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Special Effects Artists and Animators

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Create special effects or animations using film, video, computers, or other electronic tools and media for use in products, such as computer games, movies, music videos, and commercials.

Related: Art Directors Film & Video Editors Graphic Designers Producers & Directors Video Game Designers

Industries: Media & Communication

Summary
Details

Create two-dimensional and three-dimensional images depicting objects in motion or illustrating a process, using computer animation or modeling programs.
Implement and maintain configuration control systems.
Assemble, typeset, scan, and produce digital camera-ready art or film negatives and printer's proofs.
Make objects or characters appear lifelike by manipulating light, color, texture, shadow, and transparency, or manipulating static images to give the illusion of motion.
Script, plan, and create animated narrative sequences under tight deadlines, using computer software and hand drawing techniques.
Design complex graphics and animation, using independent judgment, creativity, and computer equipment.
Script, plan, and create animated narrative sequences under tight deadlines, using computer software and hand drawing techniques.
Create pen-and-paper images to be scanned, edited, colored, textured, or animated by computer.
Create basic designs, drawings, and illustrations for product labels, cartons, direct mail, or television.
Script, plan, and create animated narrative sequences under tight deadlines, using computer software and hand drawing techniques.
Use models to simulate the behavior of animated objects in the finished sequence.
Assemble, typeset, scan, and produce digital camera-ready art or film negatives and printer's proofs.
Implement and maintain configuration control systems.
Convert real objects to animated objects through modeling, using techniques such as optical scanning.
Apply story development, directing, cinematography, and editing to animation to create storyboards that show the flow of the animation and map out key scenes and characters.
Assemble, typeset, scan, and produce digital camera-ready art or film negatives and printer's proofs.
Develop briefings, brochures, multimedia presentations, web pages, promotional products, technical illustrations, and computer artwork for use in products, technical manuals, literature, newsletters, and slide shows.
Participate in design and production of multimedia campaigns, handling budgeting and scheduling, and assisting with such responsibilities as production coordination, background design, and progress tracking.

Speaking
- Talking to others.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

U.S. Annual Salary

99800/yr

U.S. Hourly Wage

47.98/hr

Currently Employed

4,130

Yearly Projected Openings

550

Artistic: People interested in this work like activities that include creating, designing, and making your own rules. They do well at jobs that need:

Innovation
Intellectual Curiosity
Attention to Detail
Achievement Orientation
Adaptability
Dependability

Digital cameras
Graphics tablets
Personal computers
Pressure stylus

Computer aided design CAD software
Configuration management software
Desktop publishing software
Development environment software
Document management software
Enterprise application integration software
Graphical user interface development software
Graphics or photo imaging software
Object or component oriented development software
Office suite software
Operating system software
Presentation software
Process mapping and design software
Spreadsheet software
Video creation and editing software
Web page creation and editing software
Web platform development software
Word processing software

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Special Effects Artists and Animators

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