What a career in Animation and Illustration looks like

Choosing which degree to study can be challenging. Weighing up multiple options, between what you enjoy, what you’re good at and what you want to be doing in the future. At the end of the day, the best way to discover where your degree will take you is to investigate the job roles in the sector.

In this blog, we’ll be focusing on the Animation and Illustration sector and popular job roles in it. The careers in the industry are as vast as the animations and illustrations we see in pop culture, films, posters, TV shows, all of these require an Animator or Illustrator of some sorts. By the end, you’ll be able to picture your future career and take inspiration from an affluent figure in the sector.

Potential careers

As with any degree, there are a variety of careers to embark upon after graduation. One option which is available to graduates is to become an animator. This career can see you animating for films and TV shows, or advertising campaigns. There are millions of platforms which require animation work.

Animators spend a lot of their time bringing drawings to life. This can be a variety of different scenarios, from backgrounds to characters to objects. A concept artist will draw a vision of how they see a scene, or series of movements looking like and then an animator will bring it to life using their software. Working frame-by-frame, animators create the incredible visuals we see on screens.

If you enjoy a variety of work and no day ever being the same, then becoming an animator is a great decision. One day you could be working on a simple cartoon, but the next you could be developing a detailed scene which takes a couple of weeks to perfect. The continuous delivery of multiple projects is what makes this role fun and exciting.

People in the spotlight

There are plenty of incredible animation that have been created over the years, which means there are thousands of talented animators. One who has seen more success than most is Seth McFarlane. Like most animators, he started drawing cartoons from a young age before seeking a career in animation.

The talented McFarlane is behind the hit TV series Family Guy and American Dad, as well as the creator, writer and producer for the shows; he even voices some of the characters. McFarlane’s career demonstrates that being an animator can lead to many other opportunities in the exciting industry.

The first step to starting a career in animation and illustration is by getting a bachelor’s degree. The University of Bolton has a great selection of courses to choose from, Click here for more information about the courses on offer.