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Animation Production vs Illustration and Animation?

I'm currently looking at animation related courses for further education after sixth form. I was simply wondering what the differences were between the courses for

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Original post by akuaku

I'm currently looking at animation related courses for further education after sixth form. I was simply wondering what the differences were between the courses for

Hi @akuaku!

My name is Rohnak, and I am a Second Year student at Escape Studios studying BA/MArt The Art of Computer Animation. I'd be happy to help you by clarifying this for you.

Animation Production
While an "Animation Production" course will definitely have you doing plenty of creative work, it is usually a very broad course, focusing on the entire animation pipeline, from pre-production through to production and post-production. The main focus of the course, though, will be developing your skills as a Producer. In the Film and TV industries, a producer is a very important role. They are the main decision-makers of the film/series. They approve the ideas for projects, decide on the budget and work out how the money will be gained. You approve or deny costs, solve logistical problems, and make sure that the film/series is completed on time. Essentially, your role is to be in charge of planning out the pipeline so that the project runs smoothly! This course will impart these skills to you, as well as a groundwork understanding of the entire animation pipeline.

Illustration and Animation
As far as I have researched, this looks like the more standard creative course, with a focus on the fundamentals of drawing and animating being established in the first year, then developing this in the years to come. Based on the terminology used by courses with this name and the fact that almost all the projects seem to be self-initiated and exploratory rather than group work set to a specific brief, I would assume that these courses lean into more of a "Fine Art" direction, giving you the skills to create art pieces on your own, rather than preparing you for a job in the animation industry.

Hopefully this will help you with the decision-making process! If you have any further questions, please do let me know! :smile: