<p>colcon:
Glad your daughter is doing well! what is your daughter’s major?
From you name I guess this is her second year?</p>
<p>MidnightMoon, going back to your question in post #13 about Academy of Art and other schools in the US. Academy of Art has buildings all over and not a real campus. I have read others comment that they seem to take anyone, but don’t know the success of their grads. Hopefully, another poster can add insight.</p>
<p>Can I clarify? Are you more interested in Animation or Computer Animation? The Ringling posts seem to be centered on the CA major, which I have heard fabulous things about. I have heard that CalArts is excellent for Animation (non-CA). Perhaps others have additional thoughts. Do you have any other requirements other than it be a school in the US?</p>
<p>I’m generally looking at Computer Animation first. </p>
<p>I’m mainly looking for a school that is linked to many employers and companies so that it would be a tad easier to get a job after graduation.</p>
<p>It would also be nice if it school or in a state that offers many different types of scholarships/grants. Tuition isn’t that huge of a problem, but the more help I can get the better.</p>
<p>Hi loveblue, Thank you! Yes, this is her second year at Ringling, and she is majoring in Illustration. She really enjoys drawing and painting, and has had the opportunity to also pursue her love of sculpture. It will be interesting to see where she ends up!</p>
<p>Colcon–Hope your D loves it all 4 years!
My D had roommates in both CA and illustration. They’ve all done well but it was interesting to see the final outcomes. One took all critiques and assignments really seriously–her work is phenomenal (and you can trace her progress) and is employed at a great company: the other wanted “to do her thing her way”, blew off the critiques (in my opinion) or at least didn’t value the opinions and direction of her professors and has struggled since in the job market. It will always be what you make of it.
The ability to accept criticism gracefully and adapt is a valuable asset. Employers look for it. (Just an observation over several years…)</p>
<p><< gouf wrote: Colcon–Hope your D loves it all 4 years!
My D had roommates in both CA and illustration. They’ve all done well but it was interesting to see the final outcomes. One took all critiques and assignments really seriously–her work is phenomenal (and you can trace her progress) and is employed at a great company: the other wanted “to do her thing her way”, blew off the critiques (in my opinion) or at least didn’t value the opinions and direction of her professors and has struggled since in the job market. It will always be what you make of it.
The ability to accept criticism gracefully and adapt is a valuable asset. Employers look for it. (Just an observation over several years…) >>></p>
<p>Thank you, gouf. So far, so good! I do get many happy e-mails, literally saying she loves her college and her teachers. I hope it’s always like this!</p>
<p>You are in such a neat position, to see what happens after graduation! Thank you for sharing your stories about the roommates. I am going to pass them on to D. She takes the critiques very seriously and to heart, and tries to use them to improve her work. So, it will be wonderful for her to hear that being receptive to critiques is an asset! She definitely doesn’t take them personally, but rather as a chance to grow as an artist (her words). Is your D working in animation? What is the illustration major doing? There are so many directions one can take and it is fascinating to hear real stories about post-grads. Thanks so much for posting!</p>
<p>colcon:
My daughter loves drawing, painting also. She is in the second year as your daughter. She have drawing,painting,sculpture, and video this semester.
Illustration is interesting. my daughter is in cooper and they don’t have a major. my daughter don’t know what she want to do now.
gouf:
You post is helpful to me also. Will pass to daughter to make sure she take the critiques seriously. She maybe already did but give a nice reminder is nice.</p>
<p>I’m following this thread with interest, as d wants to go into game design. She is looking in the northeast and looknig at various types of programs from game design to animation to liberal arts with focus on game design. With some of these she’d clearly need to do focused graduate work before she’d be able to get a job in industry.</p>
<p>You may want to see the gamepro magazine/princeton review top 10 listing of game design programs–they put out a new one every year.</p>
<p>[Top</a> Undergraduate Schools for Video Game Design](<a href=“http://www.princetonreview.com/top-undergraduate-schools-for-video-game-design.aspx]Top”>2023 Top Game Design Schools | The Princeton Review)</p>
<p>Sudsie, If your daughter wants game design, I would recommend that she do an undergrad in animation and take come programming classes. Afterwards, she should consider applying to Carnegie Melon’s Masters in Entertainment Technology program.</p>
<p>Colcon–yes, D is working in animation (yea!) and very happy. Actually her roommate who majored in illustration is working at an animation studio also! There are so many facets to the business of art that it is hard to comprehend.<br>
Someone earlier posted how their son didn’t want to work at a big studio because you end up working on one facet of a project and that is true. Animation jobs can be very segmented–story, layout, art, texturing, modeling, lighting, rendering, the list goes on. This is not a bad thing…artists take pride in what they do best, love what they do, and get to work on grand projects seen by millions of people.<br>
The job list can be filled by other artists–not just those in animation (modeling, some character design etc., the computer whiz). Some positions are filled by those who didn’t even go to school–the self-taught person who just has the “knack”. More and more it seems though that “the whiz” can get crossed off the interview list–even Pixar (the proverbial start-up) seems to depend more on traditional methods of finding employees. Every resume does needs that all important “reel” to show your stuff.</p>
<p>Illustration major observations (very limited! and only my opinion) for success–
The successful ones have a great sense of business. They know their art is also a career and proceed in that direction.
They have a brain for numbers (time spent on project vs income) and a “gonna go for it” attitude (this works everywhere in the business world but some artists just miss the gene).<br>
Though they can be perfectionists in their work, they also know when it’s time to quit (I hesitate to say “good enough” but it’s true).
They meet deadlines (relates to the “good enough”) for work completion from clients and employers (translate professor is needed).
Takes direction or input gracefully without ego…(from employer)…Man is that hard!
Researches employment opportunities and follow up on them. (while in school this means grants and interships).</p>
<p>OP, depending on the program, both general game design and animation programs can be very similar in what you will be trained to do. Both areas have similar pipelines that will require artists/illustrators for character/asset design and concept art. On the 3D side, pipeline tasks will be very similar also - pipeline setup, modeling, texturing, rigging, animation, and lighting. While in film and animation areas like effects, simulation (muscle, cloth, hair, etc), and shading are still the realm of technical artists, in games all that is something that is set up by the programmers in the game engine.
I don’t know how much programming a game design degree usually covers, but I doubt it is likely as in depth as a computer science degree. Possibly for scripting in game events, cut scenes, etc?
One area a game degree would lack is the film making and storytelling aspect of an animation degree. That would prepare you for jobs in story boarding, editing, layout, camera, etc. </p>
<p>So to answer your question, either degree should get you into either field. The specializations are quite numerous so you will want to decide on something to really rock at while in school. Be aware that some specializations may only exist in the game pipeline, and same with animation/film. </p>
<p>Just a note - it does seem to be easier to make the jump from film/animation to video games than the other way around, especially if one is interested in character animation. This is due to the limitations of game engines these days, compared to the quality and finesse required for animation and visual effects.</p>
<p>Regarding game design programs, it is probably better to find a program that is more geared toward either the art/asset creation side or the programming side. Unless you are working for a small startup or cell phone game company, it is unlikely that you will be doing both on the job. Knowing both sides though will probably help you move higher up the food chain if you aspire to lead design positions. </p>
<p>For 3D software, as a general rule, learn Maya for film, 3DSMax for games. For 2D software, Photoshop/Gimp for both. Composition software such as Nuke for film, After Effects for tv/commercials.
Art-wise, focus your art studies on the area that is most closely related to the area you would like to pursue:
animation - life drawing, gesture, animal drawing, human/animal anatomy, acting, improv
rigging - life drawing, anatomy, programming, math
human/creature modeling - sculpture, anatomy
asset/inorganic modeling - sculpture, drafting, programming, anatomy
camera/layout - film, cinematography, photography, composition
stage/set dressing - composition, cinematography, film
texturing/shading - painting, color, programming, modeling
lighting - painting, color, cinematography, photography, film
compositing - composition, color, cinematography, film
effects/simulation - composition, animation, programming, math</p>
<p>Smaller game/vfx/animation companies may combine many of the above into one, larger companies may have even more specialized tasks such as fur/hair, water, motion graphics, graphic designers, etc.</p>
<p>Most of the above are related to asset/shot creation however, in which you are problem solving and executing a vision that already exists. If what you are more interested in doing is the preliminary designing and brainstorming and the beginning of the process - character design, game/film story design, story boarding, art direction, color design - that is all done in 2D, then you should consider instead pursuing an illustration/conceptual art degree. </p>
<p>Regarding AAU, I just know they are not cheap. However they are located near the companies in the Northern California area and graduates often go on to find jobs with companies in the area because of the school’s proximity. </p>
<p>There are a few other cheaper schools in the area that have fairly good reputations - CCA and SJSC off the top of my head. And Southern California has even more. If what you want to do is character animation, I do read online that many students pursue more advanced training either post schooling or concurrently at places such as Animation Mentor because the original degree is just too broad in covering a little bit in every area.</p>
<p><< Jasper44 wrote: My daughter is making a similar decision-although she does not want game design she wants animation. The choices are to go to a school like Pratt, RISD and graduate with a fine arts degree or go to a school like RIT, RPI Carnegie Mellon, and graduate with a BS in something akin to media arts and if necessary finish with a masters in fine arts. Talk to Pratt obviously they say the fine arts is the way to go, talk to RIT, Bachelor of Science is the right way. …Having spoken with a number of colleges there is not an emphasis on the “computer tools”-at least from schools like Pratt, Risd-they want the graduates to have a “strong foundation in art”
Any ideas? >></p>
<p>Hi, you got some great info on the differences between animation and game design. I think every college wants the kids to have a strong foundation in art, including, as taxguy said, strong drawing skills. In fact, I read an interview with someone from one of the big animation studios that they won’t hire an animator who doesn’t have strong drawing skills! I do have a question, though (and forgive me, I don’t know about the programs in the schools you have mentioned). If your D is interested in animation, is she not planning to go to a college that offers animation as a major? If these schools don’t offer animation it seems a difficult task to learn it in a 2 year (?) MFA program, and what if she doesn’t like it? Just thinking out loud!</p>
<p>For us, the question comes down to how much dd wants to concentrate on specific skills for a future career vs a liberal arts education, with the opportunity to explore areas of interest that may or may not pertain to getting a job in this field. For this reason, we have decided to explore only colleges with art or game design programs as opposed to free standing art schools. In addition, I see her interests evolving as we visit programs and speak with faculty and students. Originally she was sure she wanted to eventually be a concept artist/animator, now she wants to learn about other aspects of game design including creative writing and at least some coding. Obviously, leaving open more possibilities has the trade off of having less concentrated experience in pure art or animation–which we are ok with. Of course, everyone has to set their own priorities!</p>
<p>Hi again gouf, Thanks so much for taking the time to share your observations. Very helpful! It’s great to hear that your D is working in animation. I think my D would enjoy a collaborative effort like that, just not on the computer side. I think it’s great that Ringling requires the kids to learn the programs and become proficient with computers, but for now her preference is to get her hands dirty! I could see her working on the tangential sides of animation, maybe even 3D modeling, or is that all done on computers (characters, sets, etc.)? Her atelier teacher said she has a talent for narrative and he could see her doing visual storytelling. I have observed in her a tremendous interest in art history and the back-back-stories to art; not just the artists but the historical contexts in which pieces were created. When she has free time, summers and vacations, she is always creating some kind of 3D project (masks, sculputres, costumes). So, it will be interesting to see where she lands! Your posts are helpful b/c they provide insight to opportunities that I don’t even know exist! I will share them with D, along with your advice. What kind of internships did your D do while a student? Ringling is opening a digital studio with some big producers which I hope will provide opportunities for student internships across the majors. My D has gotten involved in some of the community service projects, her favorite being the toymaking project to raise funds for impoverished children (that 3D aspect again)!</p>
<p>pumpkinking: Love the name!! Thanks to you, too, for such great advice. I’m saving your post for future reference! I appreciate the input from all of you in the field, or with kids who have gone through the programs.</p>
In games we require to produce animations that respond to gameplay, storytelling, blending both together and dealing with a few other things. Most animations are small and as they are combined to each other they make the character movement with attitude and confidence. looking more help visit: https://www.logoglaze.com/animated-video/