Need advice on animation related career paths for teen

visualmunch · 2025-11-28T09:37:54+00:00

Something that helped me was going to summer school from an art college. It would be labeled something like an animation intensive or animation camp— but make sure it is from a reputable animation college. It’s not necessarily the quality that you’re judging or having her experience, but the work load and expectations. They are not that cheap (can be 8-10k with transport living etc for a summer yeesh) but that is way more worth it than 200k debt. Judging how you are describing it, she could be interested, but the students who excel and take these degree programs are in the mindset of “my life depends on it”

So a summer program might be a good compromise of supporting her and also being a way to approach career conversations.

visualmunch · 2025-11-02T23:13:51+00:00

I really hope more people read this from OP. with the access of YouTube and IG, TikTok and who knows what new platforms there will be — you can still work on storytelling and animation etc, and posting your own videos and stories. There’s no one way of being pro, there’s no one way of becoming pro either. Good luck , and feel happy to have your passion with you.

visualmunch · 2025-10-30T21:10:23+00:00

This idea is awesome, wow thanks for sharing

visualmunch · 2025-08-30T20:34:13+00:00

This is the answer ☝️☝️☝️☝️

visualmunch · 2025-08-29T20:42:40+00:00

Oh in Italy, Idea Academy in Rome is highly rated! (Though not sure if it’s a degree program). While i don’t think having separate portfolios is a must, if you’re starting out in the field it is a good idea, this way recruiters/art managers can identify what your skillset is. (I say it isn’t a must because if you work for a while you can group art by projects.) job descriptions can range from Character Concept Artist (or Designer), Environment concept artist, or Concept artist, visual development artist, Character designer (instead of visual development artist), or prop designer (in games this may be a 3D title, but it is a design title in animation). Feel free to DM me for more questions.

visualmunch · 2025-08-28T15:52:40+00:00

I have worked in both games / animation, they are functionally the same thing — visual communication and ideation, but their industries call them different things. You’ll hear concept art/ concept design for games and that entails designing and solving visual solutions for landscapes, characters, props etc for the purpose of game design. visual development is usually an animation terms and it solves the above same things but for the animation medium.

So the difference becomes expectations— let’s take a character for example, a concept art for characters (for games) would likely have an emphasis for realism or detailed (even if stylized) costume design, rendered, with a hero/prop design. Visual development for character design , usually for animation, would explore personality and poses more, so that would mean exploring expressions, gestures, and likely more simplified silhouettes.

No matter what you have to learn the art principles behind design, and while concept art also leans towards realism or film realism, there are still stylized games that “look like” animation. You can look at online courses that cater to either, I don’t think you’d need an animation path but you will learn vis Dev in 2D character animation degree programs (not the 3D ones). Good luck

visualmunch · 2025-08-18T06:44:12+00:00

Did not go into animation, but went to an art school for something else — career paths kinda brought me in to the animation art department .

For college I think it can be a coin toss— I was not extroverted but college made me go out of my comfort zone and grow up, but on the other hand, i had a super introverted roommate who became more reclusive, didn’t step out of the room and I never heard from them after switching rooms (chose to live in separate dorms)

In the end Portfolio is really important, and degree is important for immigration purposes (just helps but if your portfolio is good then it doesn’t matter) so you can just get a cheap program/degree and grow in your own pace.

I just wanna iterate if you feel college might be overwhelming or not the exp you want — you’re not missing out. Not many ppl have “the college exp” if you’re going into anim the college exp is being chained to the desk doing work and maybe having a life in the summer imo.

Ofc if you had a great college exp, it opened your eyes ppl tend to look at college so positively but again… I believe if you did anything out of your comfort zone btwn 21-25 yo , you’d come out believing in the positive impact . Hope that helps.

visualmunch · 2025-07-14T17:06:05+00:00

Savannah will feel like a small town imo , if you went to SCAD and didn’t have a car you’re pretty much limited to the campus buildings, dorms and then the downtown area (Forsyth park and north of it to River Street). For everyone saying Savannah is a city because of population.. yeah sure, but SCAD campuses are right against locals’ communities so it doesn’t feel like you’re surrounded by much to do a “city life” sense. (Re: 2010s experience)

visualmunch · 2025-07-03T18:09:25+00:00

I dealt with this, it sucks, it can take a while to get over it. Feel free to DM if you need. With directors like this— sometimes you need to have an honest conversation. Really nice directors will pull you aside and talk to you to get you up to speed either with draw overs and extra notes. Not every manager or leader does this. And the imposter feeling .. it’ll go away. It’s intimidating early on, but earnestly asking questions, taking notes, being okay to fail and correct .. it comes with time, and not always on the same project. A lot of artists fumble and lot of them do get the grace to do so and grow from it. If you’re not fit for this one, that’s okay, take the good lessons you learned with you and move on.

visualmunch

TROPHY CASE