Info on Working as an Animator in Albuquerque, New Mexico

The city of Albuquerque, New Mexico is home to as many as 65,000 commercial businesses and several colonies of local artists.  Recent global advances in digital graphics have created a persistently increasing local demand for animation professionals.

Albuquerque Schools and Training Programs for Animation

Assorted Albuquerque, New Mexico colleges, Universities and trade schools offer training and degrees in animated art.  Aspiring Albuquerque animators attending art colleges typically major in photography, fine arts or communications design.  Popular Albuquerque design schools that feature classes in animation include Central New Mexico Community College, The Art Center Design College and University of New Mexico.

Some Albuquerque animators opt for virtual degree programs.  Well-known accredited online schools of animation include Stratford Career Institute, Post University, Full Sail University, University of Phoenix, The Art Institutes, ITT Tech and DeVry.  Some cyber animation schools also maintain physical campuses and local resource facilities.  University of Phoenix and ITT Tech have convenient locations in Albuquerque.

Working as an Animator in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Assorted Albuquerque businesses associations hire local animators to produce cartoons, interactive games and feature film segments, as well as educational media, training videos, medical animation, courtroom evidence and website banner ads, among countless other things.  Some local animated film makers work for Albuquerque animation studios like Frederick Howard, Maypole Productions or Rising Trout Productions.  Others join local motion picture producers who do their own animation.  A-list Albuquerque movie makers include Anvil Springs Entertainment, Filmyard, Game Production Service, Production Outfitters and Volti-Subito Productions.  Some local animators work for digital graphics IT corporations.  Accessible Albuquerque info tech firms include Blue Gamut, Christopher Padilla, Lentech, Multimedia Concepts and Telecom Solutions, to name a few. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics provides no current information regarding the salaries of professional animators living in New Mexico.  In any case, thanks to the internet and many new technologies, the potential income of a professional animator is virtually unlimited.

Skills of a Professional Animator

Mechanical skills required for professional animation include advanced illustrative technique, photography and proficiency with animation design software.  Professional animators use Adobe Illustrator (for drawing), Photo Shop (for image manipulation and page layout), Action Script (for building interactive content), After Effects (for editing) and Flash Animation (for banner ads), to name a few.  Among the most popular animation software packages are Toon Boom Digital Pro for 2D motion pictures and Maya or 3D Studio Max for three-dimensional animation.  Other essential skills needed for animated film production include prototyping, set design, web page construction, fluency in programming languages and project management ability.