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Tehzeeb Khurana, Creative Director, MAAC Junior Toon Club, tells you more about a career in 3D animation.

What is the role of a 3D animator?
Animation is a creative field where one needs to be passionate, innovative and have good imaginative skills. It requires long hours of continuous work with a whole lot of dedication.

What are the different steps involved in 3D animation?
Let me list the steps for you: writing a story, creating a storyboard, creating a character sketch, working on a concept, modelling your actors out, rigging the sequence together, creating the right lighting effects, adding texture, finding and recording the right voices for your characters, editing your sequence and finally cutting the final film. One can work in any one of these areas and specialise in that division. Creating the final film is complete teamwork.

Where can you work as an animator?
You can work for a company that produces feature films, advertising films or viral advertising. You can also develop computer games, mobile games and computer-based tutorials. Other options include working for studios, training institutes, web-design companies or publishing set-ups.

What subjects do you need to be good at in school?
One has to excel at drawing, painting and sketching. One should also be passionate about cartoons. Apart from that, one should be good at physics as it helps one understand the mechanism of animation well. One also needs to be observant and imaginative.

Is there a scope for a career in animation in India?
The animation industry is currently booming in India. With the release of different animated movies, serial characters and advertisements there is a huge demand for 3D animators.

Pay scale for starters
As a fresher you can start with Rs 10,000 to 12,000 a month.

PLACES WHICH WILL BE OF HELP

Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics 
www.maacindia.com

National Institute of Design 
www.nid.edu.com

Industrial Design Centre 
IIT Mumbai and Guwahati

Zee Institute of Creative Arts 
www.zica.org

TOONZ Animation India Pvt Ltd
www.toonzanimationindia.com

IMPORTANT TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND

- One should be really good at drawing and sketching. Knowledge of this is compulsory as one starts to use computer software only at a later stage.

- It’s very important to understand the principles of animation. The technical know-how goes along with the process and sequence of creating the character.

- There are lots of schools emerging for animation, choosing a right place and getting good training is a must.

- One must be a good visualiser and should develop a keen eye for everything that’s going on.