<p>I'm still in high school and I was looking into some careers I might like to do. </p>
<p>I really like 3d animation and cinema animation like in a video game.</p>
<p>I don't have really good drawing skills.</p>
<p>Would I need to know how to draw really good to get into college for this.
I was thinking of something like Pratt Institute. </p>
<p>Can someone just fill me in on some info about my choices and how I can improve to get into college.</p>
<p>You will really need to draw well. Schools may hone the talent that you already have to a higher level,but sadly, if you don't already have very decent drawing skills, especiallly figure drawing, you will probably have a tough time gettting a job. I admit this is my opinion, and you can read other responses.</p>
<p>As to top 3d schools, Pratt would be a good choice as would Cal Arts and Ringling. I think Leguna has an animation programs as does Chapman University,but don't quote me on that.</p>
<p>ok thanks, Im a sophomore in high school so maybe I could just practice figure drawing or take a class. I chose pratt because I live near it.</p>
<p>just do what the woman at cooper told me to do, get a sketchbook and just draw every day, draw people when youre just sitting around or w.e, dont draw from pictures</p>
<p>Nick984,
To follow-up on Taxguy's comments.
Draw, draw & draw. Fill up books and books with drawings from your visual perspective. Take a drawing pad (portfolio's are better) everywhere, and draw everything. People, places, things... Change your perspective and draw again. Draw things from every angle, get creative and look at something from a different point of view (the floor, a doorsill, the ceiling) and draw from unusual angles and unusual things.
See if your local art museums, or art colleges has any summer programs with drawing classes especially the figure. Take them and expect to need to draw nudes.
My d. can draw well, but decided that 3D animation (after a summer pre-college program at MICA) was not for her. You can spend a month working on 60 seconds (or less) of a single character or thing. Your contribution to a full length production could be the "hair moving the right way". That's why there are teams and teams of animation artists that work on full length productions. And they farm out special effects, so teams of folks can work on one single effect (like fire, or moving water...)
Take a pre-college program, if you still like animation, then go for it. But you REALLY need to be able to draw well. Enjoy yourself.
S.Dad</p>
<p>If you still want 3D animation, but decide you can't draw well AND if your the inventive type and have great computer skills including computer languages.
Figure out a way to build a small motion capture studio in your garage (it's possible but not easy), if you want to turn someones's head about why they should bring you into a program, you should "get out of the box". Or write a new computer program that uses someone elses equipment to do something new...
3D animation is a big field, with lots of components. Places like Cal Arts, Ringling, SCAD, (if you have really great grades...Carnegie Mellon), plus some other less known like Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media (University of Washington) and the Digital Animation Center at the University of Colorado Denver.
S.Dad</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure I want to do something in the computer graphics field. I love manipulating phots and such in adobe ps. I want to help make movies like pixar does and stuff. I started drawing figures with like the 3d circle shapes, simple stuff. Still Im only in grade 10. Thanks for the answers. I'll post some of the stuff I made later.</p>
<p>Nick, instead of animation, have you considered the emerging field of Digital Design. A good digital design program is a combination of web design, animation and special effects design. One of the best schools in that area is University of Cincinnati, where my daughter is attending. They have to master the full array of adope products by the end of their freshmen year alone! They get some amazing coops too.</p>
<p>RIT also has a good New Media program but is very web oriented. I would imagine that Priatt institue has good offerings in this too as does MICA. You should check out all three schools.</p>
<p>I would like to also note that you will get some animation in digital design. If you find that you really prefer it to all other aspects of design and are good at it, you can always seek a masters degree in animation, and a digital design background will certainly be a good background for advanced study in animation. ..Just something to think about.</p>
<p>^^^^</p>
<p>I agree with taxguy. </p>
<p>You sound like my daughter, actually. She likes messing with enhancing macros on ps (like for hours at a time on a single image). She's actually decided that she wants to attend the biomedical photography program at RIT after meeting a professor from their program at National Portfolio Day last year during her sophomore year. A summer at Ringling further convinced her that it's digital imaging and manipulation that she loves, and is best at (especially of teeny, tiny things, altho ironically her true dream is to work on Hubble photographs). She has never considered herself good at drawing, and this too was brought home to her at Ringling, especially after she took a class in Computer Illustration, and was surrounded by astoundingly talented draw-ers.</p>
<p>Read about the new Digital Arts major at Chapman University/Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, in southern California. I guess it's far for you from NYC, but once you get the idea of what goes on the major, you might find other schools closer to you. </p>
<p>Best wishes, and you're smart to think of it starting in l0th grade.</p>
<p>Are there any teachers in your high school who teach photography, or film, or computers? Sometimes they know more about art media applications than the studio drawing teachers. Ask them.</p>
<p>Thanks guys for the ideas.</p>
<p>Heres some things I did, this is just a bit of it.</p>
<p>Flickr:</a> Nick984's Photostream</p>
<p>And I took a look at that chapman/dodge site about digital arts and thats exactly what I want do. They explained it perfectly and it sounded great.
Just whats a undergraduate and graduate? How do they differ?</p>
<p>Nick, you might want to compare Chapman's Digital Arts program to that other some others, notably University of Cincinnati and RIT. Although the Chapman program does look good,it is part of the Film School and seems very film production oriented. This may or may not be right for you depending on your needs,but it does narrow your options compared to the other programs that I mentioned above in this thread.</p>
<p>I certainly applaud your foresight in investigating these programs while you are in 10th grade. This is the time for you to start working on your portfolio and drawing skills. Draw, draw and draw some more. DEFINITELY take drawing courses on the weekend at your local junior college. Take summer pre college art programs. If you have the resources, DEFINITELY hire an art teacher to help you develop your portfolio. Most kids that I know who did hire a tutor in high school, not only have strong portfolios but also have done better, grade wise, in their freshmen foundation courses than those that didn't use a tutor.</p>
<p>Most portfolio requirements involve drawings from observations and NOT photographs. Remember this.</p>
<p>undergraduate = the first four college years to achieve a bachelor's degree, which could be, for example, a B.A. (Bachelor of Arts), or B.S. (Bachelor of Science), or B.F.A. (Bachelor of Fine Arts). A college student is called an "undergraduate" because he's not yet graduated from college. The 4 undergraduate years are called, in most places, just like high school: freshman, sophomore, junior, senior. </p>
<p>graduate = degrees taken after college, for example, the M.A. (Masters of Arts) in a specific field (M.A. in Literature, M.A. in Teaching), or M.F.A. (Master of Fine Arts in Painting, or Theater..) or even higher, a "doctorate" Ph.D (Doctor of Philosophy in a specific subject). Masters Degrees might be a year or two; Ph.D's can be for 4 or 5 years more! So anyone working on a Masters or Ph.D. would be called a "graduate" student. Also, I think (but am not sure) that if a university also has a Medical, Law or Business professional school, those students might be numbered with the "graduate students" on the university's website, since they need to have finished their undergraduate degree to begin those schools, too. </p>
<p>I think I took longer to explain this than it takes to get the degree. Well, maybe not.</p>
<p>LOL, Wikipedia says it more simply, under "Academia"</p>
<p>
[quote]
The degree awarded for completed study is the primary academic qualification. Typically these are, in order of completion, associate's degree, bachelor's degree (awarded for completion of undergraduate study), master's degree, and doctorate (awarded after graduate or postgraduate study).
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Adding: An associate's degree is the first 2 years of your undergraduate work
(freshman, sophomore). Some do theirs at a community or junior college and then transfer in to a 4-year college for their last 2 years (junior and senior years), ending up with their bachelor's degree. They save a lot of money, but aren't in the same 4 years in one college location, so there are pros and cons for each path. Getting all the credits accepted, meeting friends when others have been there since freshman year are some of the things people talk about as challenges to face, if you transfer in the middle. In some states, especially California, it's organized well and many do it that way. Also, some take one year at a community college and transfer in as sophomores to a college or university.</p>
<p>If you read about a "university" they'll describe their undergraduate program as a "college" within the university. Other colleges are exactly that: 4 years only in undergraduate work. After you earn your bachelor's degree from the college, you move to a university if you want to go further and get a graduate degree. You don't have to stay in one place, either; for example, you do undergraduate studies at Case Western University or Boston College, followed by graduate studies at New York University or a campus of the State University of New York. Those are just random examples to illustrate undergraduate v. graduate; not named for their art programs!!</p>
<p>I started drawing figures everyday and practicing. My school has art and graphics classes and clubs. I plan on taking one of those classes next year and joining a club in the art field at my school next year. I've noticed my self getting better at drawing but then I look at sketches and things on the internet and I think I can't ever get that good.
Right now I'm drawing pictures like this - <a href="http://bluebuddies.com/gallery/How_To_Draw_A_Smurf/jpg/How_To_Draw_A_Smurf_Step_6.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://bluebuddies.com/gallery/How_To_Draw_A_Smurf/jpg/How_To_Draw_A_Smurf_Step_6.jpg</a></p>
<p>and if I took my time I think I can get here <a href="http://www.art-made-easy.com/images/horse-drawing5.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://www.art-made-easy.com/images/horse-drawing5.jpg</a></p>
<p>But will I need to get this good? <a href="http://blog.glimbit.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/ems-2-28-07-big.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://blog.glimbit.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/ems-2-28-07-big.jpg</a></p>
<p>Drawing runs through my family though. My father can draw pictures like that last one. He was a great artist in high school. </p>
<p>My parents don't want me to go to college far. They want me to be in like the 3 hour driving range. But I don't care where I go, whether its in california or rhode island, as long as its good. My parents would never let me go to college in california. Its my decision and if its the best college that I get accepted to then I think I should go.</p>
