I wish to be an annimator at Pixar, and I know this question may sound extremely vague, but would anyone happen to know any GREAT colleges that would help in my quest to land a job at Pixar as an annimator, and what to Major in? I was looking today and I was either thinking, computer science, graphic design, or annimation (duh)… can anyone please help? Thanks
Same info needed here. I’m doing basics at the college in town, but I have NO CLUE as to what I’m doing after this year, I need a push in the right direction. Unless I end up moving in with my sis in Michigan, (there’s a great art school there) I’m looking for something towards the west coast, California and Washington are the only 2 places that either of my career choices could take me, so I wanna get taught over there.
Sorry I couldn’t help you out Buzz.
Thanks for the help anyway, like it’s not even funny how I would die to get a job at Pixar, I bet you are the same way too, that’s why this is really important. If anyone needs to know my GPA or anything just ask, I will tell them
Well, CalArts is a really good school for animation. John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Brad Bird, etc… all went there. I’ve heard some good things about the Academy of Art in CA as well as some great things about the Vancouver Film School. There is also Gobelins in France. I’m at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design majoring in animation. I like the program there, but it’s not as extensive as some - like the ones I listed.
The question becomes: where are you living right now and if needed, are you willing to move far away to go to a great animation school? (You don’t have to answer it here, but it’s something to decide for yourself)
And I would recommend majoring in animation. That way you get as much experience with animating as possible before you graduate.
Hope that helped.
I have already considered CalArts and such, but I am a no-go on the drawing with my hand piece, and isn’t that the only way to get in?
Edited by Rachel - No need to quote the person directly above you.
I know that the USC School of Cinematic Arts is a very good film school. If I’m not mistaken, Lee Unkrich graduated from there as well as some other Pixarians.
I’d love to go to California, but I can’t imagine living by myself. I think Michigan is the only feasible option available at the moment. Who knows, maybe I’ll grow a bit this year in school. I’m wanting a trip to Cali anyway, so we’ll see how that goes. 
You’d have to check their admission/portfolio requirements on their website. I didn’t do much research on CalArts when looking at colleges. Going to CA right now isn’t feasible for me.
This site has a list of animation colleges, can even specialize your search with the links on the left of the page. schools.awn.com/
Thanks for the link Hannamation! Seems really useful, I’ll have to look at that later though. I’m kinda concerned about how much going to school in Cali would cost, with rooming, tuition, scholarships and whatnot. No doubt it would pay off though, there’s a lot of great stuff over there.
(talking to anyone) What are your plans for college, regarding degrees, universities and classes? As I said before, I have no clue what I’m doing after this year, it’s kinda nerve wracking now that I think about it.
You’re welcome, ffdude1906. 
Cost is also preventing me from going to school in CA. It would definitely be worth it, but I can’t swing it. I want to move to CA after school though.
Deciding what to do with your school can indeed be nerve wracking! Figure out what you really want to do with your life and research the best schools and programs to help you reach those goals.
^That site is my ticket to the world, just type in CalArts and all the info should be there for you
Rhode Island School of Design, Ringling Art School, and Savannah College of Art and Design are 3 terrific art schools with great animation programs. Many former students work at Pixar. CalArts isn’t as great as it once was, sadly, but many former students work at Pixar as well, including Ralph Eggleston, Doug Sweetland, Peter Sohn, Ricky Nierva, Pete Docter, Brad Bird, and Brenda Chapman,
Why isn’t it as great as it once was?
FYI, GPA won’t really matter so long as your work is awesome. But keeping a good GPA throughout college will help you qualify for scholarships to help pay for tuition, supplies, room and board, etc. The above mentioned schools are all great schools to learn animation and I might add the School of Visual Arts in NY to the list. Any college with a good, reputable background in animation is up for your consideration. The Academy of Art in SF is a bit different as they do not require a portfolio to be admitted. But I find that kind of sketchy as they’ll promise you all these things whether or not you are skilled enough or responsible enough to keep up with the demands and then charge you an arm and a leg to enroll. Do know what you are getting into when you are enrolling into an art school. Art schools are very expensive and remember that they are trying to sell to you. So make sure you get the most out of the experience! If you find your skills aren’t adequate, or if you want to fulfill some general academic classes to transfer later, consider going to a junior college. It is a much cheaper alternative route that can give you time to prepare, though you will end up enrolling in an art school later.
Of course, it all depends on how hard you work in college to get yourself up to a professional level rather than arguing which school is considered better than another and then boasting about it. Your portfolio will speak for you. I also suggest exploring on your own and supplementing your college experience with books, blogs, videos, and other resources to learn more about animation and how to improve your skills.
Thanks a lot starling, that’s a lot of great info! I’m gonna try working on a portfolio throughout this semester, I haven’t really delved into artwork yet, I’m just now considering changing my degree. I’ve already had a year of junior college, and I have most of my basics out of the way. It’s been really great so far, all my instructors (well, most of them) have been really helpful. The art professor at my college is really great, I’m intending on spending a lot of time with him throughout this upcoming semester. He is a bit more of a traditional artist, he’s not into digital media, but I’m sure he’ll be very insightful nonetheless. I’m really excited to go back to school this semester.
By the way, I’m thinking about moving in with my sister in Michigan and going to Creative Studies. My bro-in-law went there and works as a concept car designer at Ford now, and one of my sis’s friends now works at EA games after going there. It’s fairly easy to get in it seems, I just need a solid portfolio, and I’m sure my bro-in-law will be able to help me out tremendously with it. I’ve been trying to talk with my sis for the last few days about it, I need some more info, but I’ve got a pretty good feeling about it.
No problem ffdude!
It’s good to learn more about how to handle traditional media. I think that if you have a solid grasp of things in traditional media, you’ll have a much easier time working digitally. The same rules apply in digital painting and design as those art pieces done in traditional mediums. Plus, after working with traditional media for a while, digital programs and tablets seem so wondrous because they are so flexible and can basically mimic any medium you want-- without the hassle of cleaning up!
I’m also planning on building my portfolio this and next semester. If you can, you can try to find a good portfolio prep class to fit into your schedule. I’m hoping to as well but if I can’t then I’ll just have to get my butt into gear on my own-- it’s just so much harder to motivate myself when I’m not forced to do it sometimes haha 
And if you’ve got a good feeling about it, follow it! Pursuing art as a career began for me as a good feeling and now it’s become incessant 
Good luck! (you’ll need it buahahaha!)
Yeah, I really need to find myself a good tablet at some point. I have 2 friends with them, and they’ve done some awesome stuff. I think I’ll try to get into some more art classes before I put that sort of money down though.
I pretty much already knew that working with traditional mediums would help me in all areas, that’s where it all began! I had already considered doing graphic design, but more towards gaming rather than animated movies, that’s my big change recently.
The only thing that kept me from being confident about entering into graphics was my lack of proficiency. My drawing of Carl (you should check it out, I’m super-dog proud of it) totally threw that doubt out the window, and now I’m really interested in digital and traditional art. I figured if I familiarize myself with the tools that I need, I can start working towards a career in visual design, and I think I’m headed that way now. All stemming from my visit to the movie theater for Up, it’s pretty amazing.
As for building my portfolio, I don’t think there’s a course for that where I am. However, my brother-in-law is an AMAZING visual artist, and his family and he himself can both help me with it if I need it. The potential setup I have is actually pretty ideal, I’ve got relatives within driving distance of a great art school, they’ve got the knowledge to help with this sort of thing, the only issues I can think of are money (of course) and whether or not I can get off my lazy butt and do the work (in other words, I hear ya loud and clear, I’m a terrible procrastinator. I almost HAVE to be forced to do school work sometimes, but hopefully this area of my brain will inspire me to want to do it. )
Thanks a lot for the info, and for the support! And welcome to Pixar Planet (if you haven’t already been formally welcomed!), hope to see you often!
What does anyone know about RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology)?
Anyone?