ACR Staff

Animation is one of the most exciting career fields in the art and design industry. It also offers one of the highest salaries. Animators earned a median annual wage of $63,970 in 2015, with top earners averaging more than $113,600. Certain industries, specialized areas or high-level positions could pay even more than the median. For example, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) lists software publishers and other information services among the top five highest paying industries for animators. Average earnings are $76,920 and $82,940, respectively.

Just about every degree program available offers the opportunity to enhance the degree by adding a minor, concentration or electives to match students’ career goals. For example, students interested in cinema and computer animation rather than traditional animation might choose a degree in Cinema Art and Science with a Concentration in Animation.

With more than 10,000 animation studios, employing more than 200,000 people, China is one of the largest producers of animation in the world. Thanks in part to the Chinese government, which has been subsidizing and investing in the animation industry, along with the explosive growth of internet-based new media distribution channels, total output value of China’s animation industry exceeded RMB100 billion (over $14.5 billion US) in 2014, up 14.84% from 2013.

The 1960s was a breakout decade for animated series, with some already making a name for themselves in the late 1950s. Take The Huckleberry Hound Show, for example. This syndicated animated series, and the second from William Hanna and Joseph Barbera (Hanna-Barbera), made its debut in 1958, but it wasn’t until after 1960 that the industry recognized the show by awarding it one of its highest honors. The Huckleberry Hound Show became the first cartoon to receive an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Children's Programming in 1961. And then there’s Yogi Bear.