40. Cut&Paste. Alexa Rank: 798,528. You know how rap battles are done live off the top of the lyrical artists’ heads and in front of a large crowd? Cut&Paste realized this combat format would be even more awesome to watch and experience if it was two visual artists going to battle. If this concept is confusing to you then you can read more about the format here, and if you want to get involved you can read about the evaluation and signup process here. Get out there and show off your skills! Be sure to let AnimationCareerReview know if you compete so we can cheer you on!
39. Game Artisans. Alexa Rank: 274,722. Want to show your 2D, 3D, and animation work off to the world and get some feedback while you’re at it? This massive art community is one of the best, and it even holds art challenges and contests throughout the year to bring out the best in its talented users! Add portfolios, tutorials, free downloads, and a jobs section, and you’ve got a site worth visiting every single day. It’s so popular that it participates in an online art war each year, which I’ll get to later in this list!
38. Concept Art World. Alexa Rank: 171,875. This site is twice as popular in USA, and for good reason. Instead of having a massive art community where anyone can upload their art and share it, Concept Art World instead seeks out professional concept artists one by one, and slowly adds them to their site’s deep archives. This not only ensures that every click will smack you in the face with really impressive art, but it also introduces you to some of the most famous digital art idols that are worth following in the future.
37. 11 Second Club. Alexa Rank: 166,543. The 11 Second Club is a monthly character animation competition that’s open to everyone! The site has over 125,000 members but obviously far fewer than that participate in each challenge. Aside from getting valuable feedback on your video from thousands of animators, it also lets you learn from others by watching their contest entry animations. The August competition just started so give it a try!
36. Motionworks. Alexa Rank: 153,694. This blog is tailored to After Effects and Cinema 4D training, and their dedicated tutorial and preset sections certainly get the job done. However, if that’s not enough to meet your needs, then this site even offers personal one-on-one coaching sessions where you can customize exactly what you learn in each session. You can contact the coach here
35. Animation Mentor. Alexa Rank: 141,731. Three animation industry veterans founded an online animation school, and this is their site that does everything it can to help you start your animation career. Its Character Animation Program is currently $18,753 for 18 months, and its Animal & Creatures Master Class is only 6 months for $3,198. For all of your other questions you can read through the student page and call their hotline.
34. Aniboom. Alexa Rank: 131,532. You have an idea for an awesome animation. You want to get the project rolling. The world is going to love it! The only problem is you don’t know how to animate, or anyone else who does. What do you do? You go to Aniboom and post your project and details, then the community’s animators apply for your project, and you hire the professional(s) of your choosing. Boom. Job done. If you are an animator, then join and find some projects to get paid to work on!
33. Drawn Blog. Alexa Rank: 126,994. This Canadian based Tumblr blog is ironically even more popular in America. Drawn describes itself as a place for “your daily source of inspiration for illustration, animation, cartooning, and comic art.” Not only does it live up to its goals each day, but since it’s hosted through Tumblr that means the reblog and other note features will help you quickly bump into other great animators and animation blogs online.
32. AEscripts + AEplugins. Alexa Rank: 109,962. It wasn’t the first blog to focus only on After Effects scripts and plugins, and it won’t be the last, but it’s one of the best sites out there for this niche. A healthy dose of tutorials and an even healthier sized forums combined with loads of free downloads. This site delivers. Are you a 3D artist who wants to use 3D plugins for Lightwave or Cinema4D? No problem, this site has your back, and if you want to make your own script or plugin then this site will even host it and help you sell it online!
31. 3DVF. Alexa Rank: 104,624. It probably won’t be a surprise to you that this site is far more popular in France, but its art breaks through all language barriers. Unlike other online art communities that have thousands of awesome galleries of art and no way to explore through all of them, 3DVF has an advanced search navigation that allows users to pinpoint exactly what they’re looking for.