An example of animation of the title characters from Madagascar.
	It's All An Illusion Animation is the art of movement. Through a succession of individual poses, it creates the illusion of life. It takes 24 individual drawings to make up one second of screen time. These individual poses are called "frames." The individual frames, when put together on film, create the movement that you see on the screen. Do the Math Q. Here's a problem for you to solve. How many individual "frames" are in your favorite animated film? Length of the film in minutes: ____ X 60 (for seconds) =________________ X 24 (the number of individual drawings per second) A. TOTAL =_______ total is the number of individual frames there are in the feature. Imagine! In a movie that runs for 70 to 90 minutes, over 100,000 frames have been hand-tweaked and posed by the animator. And this creates the illusion of life.

Interview with the Animator Part II
So You Wanna Be an Animator?
Read Part I Interview with the Animator

By Leanne Gluck, staff writer
With Melanie Cordan, senior animator, Madagascar

Last month, we talked with Melanie Cordan, Senior Animator on the new movie, Madagascar. She told us how she got into animation and a bit about the movies she's worked on. This month it's all about you! We'll explore your options and how you can break into this exciting field.

So You Wanna Be an Animator?

The opportunities are endless if you are a creative person, love storytelling, and don't mind working hard. The industry isn't limited to just movies. You can do live-action, TV, video games, and more.

It's More Than Just Saturday Morning Cartoons…

When thinking about a career in animation, there are more job options than you might realize. With animation you can:

• Create storyboards for commercials
• Design video games
• Direct Hollywood movies
• Build superheroes for action films

The list goes on…

The Choice is Yours

First and foremost, decide what you want to do. Do you want to animate? Maybe it's the lighting of the film that really gets you jazzed up. Do you love games? Or creatures in live-action films? Or are you really interested in art direction? Deciding exactly what you want to do is important. Once you start down a path in one area, it's very difficult to transfer to another.

Don't Wait, Animate!

You can start now by trying to make your own film. Nothing will teach you how to be a better animator then just doing it. Focus on learning how to tell a story visually, and learn the principles of animation: 2D, computer, stop motion—the medium doesn't matter.

Do a Little Research

New to the field? Learn the concepts of 2D and 3D animation. There's a ton of information on the Internet. Search the Web to learn about traditional animation, computer animation, modeling, video game design, and Web design.

Animation Education

Lots of schools give you training that will give you a step up. Take some time to scope out your options. According to Melanie Cordan, places to look include: California Institute for the Arts in Valencia, California, Sheridan in Canada, the Art Academy in San Francisco, and Ringling academy.

Some schools have pre-college programs, where you can study animation in the summer.

Whether you're an accomplished young animator with a sketchbook full of characters, or you're just curious about animation, courses allow you to learn the ropes. Along the way, you can find out more about careers in the field and meet animation professionals.