Animation

Irish animation has been punching above its weight ever since the early 1990s when Dublin was the home of three large international animation studios, which produced classics such as the popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and coming-of-age dinosaur feature, The Land Before Time. The sector is currently worth about €23 million and has changed in that it is nowadays largely made up of smaller, indigenous companies. Brown Bag Films, who opened a state-of-the-art animation studio in Dublin last year, are a shining example of the new generation of Irish animators.

Animation combines drawing and sketching skills with story-telling and filmmaking techniques. Animation careers require hard work, practice and a natural flair for art. Anyone considering animation as a CAO choice should already have developed a considerable portfolio of work that will include items such as well-designed storyboards, 3D work, drawings and sketches, and more.

For those with a genuine interest and talent, animation can be a tremendously interesting and fulfilling career option across a host of media industries.

Education

The Irish School of Animation in Ballyfermot College of Education offers FETAC (non-CAO) entry to animation studies. School leavers can apply for the one-year FETAC level 5 Animation Drawing Studies (minimum of 5 passes in Leaving Cert required), which introduces students to animation and focuses on the development of drawing skills; or the two-year Higher National Diploma in Classical and Computer Animation (two HC3s, one of which must be Art, and thee Ordinary Level passes required), which enables students to take hand-drawn and computer generated projects from conception to completion. Students acquire the professional skills and techniques to enter the animation industry. Successful completion of the Higher National Diploma facilitates entry to the two-year BA (Hons) Animation (awarded by the University of Dundee Scotland).

The Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology provides the first and, as yet, only Irish Degree in Animation. The four-year BA Honours Degree in Animation incorporates a mix of creative and technical learning. Students learn the whole process of animation filmmaking from script to screen, with the provision of key skills in the first two years followed by two years when students can develop within specific areas of their own choosing. Recent graduates from this course are currently working in Ireland and abroad in companies such as Brown Bag Films, Kavaleer, Jam Media, Barley Films, and Aardman.

Applicants for all these courses are required to prepare a portfolio of wholly original (i.e. no inclusion of copies of another’s work). Visit the course web page or contact the relevant dept as the required portfolio quality and quantity varies for each course.

Students in Animation study a range of subjects, including general art and drawing classes, art and animation theory, and specialised technical subjects. Subject titles include Drawing for Animation, Visual Design, Life Drawing, Animation Skills & Techniques and Art & Animation History.

Most animation courses focus on the core skills of hand drawn animation as the basis for understanding all the basic principles of animation. You will find similar early exercises in many of the courses. These basic principles can then be developed and used to produce 2D and 3D digital animation or applied to other more traditional or experimental techniques. Students will also study subjects like Video & Audio Post-Production and will typically undergo training in software packages such as 3D Studio Max, Flash and Photoshop. 

Third-level students taking other courses such as Fine Art, Film Production, Graphic Design, Web Design, Computer Game Development and Digital Media will often be able to study animation as part of their courses.

Options After Qualification

An animation qualification can be used to pursue a career in a number of different media areas. The most famous animators work on films and TV shows, but animation graduates are also involved in illustration, graphic design, computer game development, interactive web sites, online training courses and web advertising.

Some animation graduates choose to gain extra qualifications and training before entering the workforce. Professional animators may focus on one particular specialisation – examples include film, web design, storyboarding and scripting – and take a postgraduate training course in this particular area.

The Work

Animators are artists. They draw a series of pictures – frames – to make a character or scene come to life by conveying personality, mood and emotion.

A team of animators involves several people working together in different roles. Storyboard artists visualise written scripts by drawing out what each scene will look like onscreen. Layout artists work on the technical aspects of an animation, including how and where shadows may fall, changes in colour and light, and the varying contrasts and textures. Animation assistants concentrate on colour and backgrounds, while animation directors oversee the entire animation process.

Traditionally, all animation has been created by hand, which is a painstaking and time-consuming process. Today, a lot of animation is created using computer technology, which speeds things up considerably. CGI involves adding backgrounds and special effects to a scene. The traditional aspect of handmade animation remains intact with the process of stop-motion animation (Wallace & Gromit, for example), which involves using 3D models and making small changes to the models in each frame.

Work Environment

Animation is a popular career because it combines artistic flair, storytelling and IT. Successful animators are creative and hardworking in equal measure. Animation is a collaborative process, so you need good teamwork and communication skills.

Most animators work in an office or studio. Animators can experience less job security than some other careers, with a schedule that can vary depending on the workload available. Some animators work full-time for one company, while others are hired on a project-by-project basis. Overtime and long hours may be required to meet production deadlines. You might find yourself working for a large Hollywood studio, or you might work in Irish animation companies, which tend to be on a smaller scale and focus on a number of areas such as film, TV, web and advertising.

The Money

People rarely choose a career in animation to become rich, although if you have the talent, determination and luck to get to the top, you will earn a high wage. Starting salaries are relatively low, but these rise with experience.

The Jargon

Storyboard: A series of sketches or illustrations outlining a scene sequence

CGI: Computer generated imagery, whereby a scene, character or effect in a film is created with a computer

Motion-Capture: A form of animation as seen in Shrek that utilises a real-life actor’s movements, which are recorded by motion points connected to a computer

Job Titles

Animator
Animation Assistant
Animation Director
Storyboard Artist
Layout Artist
Key or Lead Animator

Further Resources

Brown Bag Films
First Floor, Block F
Smithfield Market
Dublin 7
Phone: 01 872 1608
Web: www.brownbagfilms.com
Email: studio@brownbagfilms.com 

Darklight
69 Dame Street
Dublin 2
Phone: 01 670 9017
Web: www.darklight.ie
Email: derek@darklight.ie 

Screen Producers Ireland
77 Merrion Square
Dublin 2
Phone: 01 662 1114
Web: www.screenproducersireland.com
Email: info@screenproducersireland.com 

JAM Media Ltd
40 Kevin Street Lower
Dublin 8
Phone: 01 405 3484
Web: www.jammedia.ie
Email: info@jammedia.ie