Animation as an industry and a career option is booming. Says Radhakrishnan T, Manager, Business Development, Race the Animation College, Hyderabad, "The animation boom has created a lot of job opportunities. Especially for someone who looks at animation and computer graphics as a serious career. Animation is a blend of the entertainment industry and technology. The range of jobs available for a computer animator can be mind boggling. There is hardly any industry that doesn't require or use computer animators."

"These days animation is used in almost all the industries from automobile, pharmaceutical, medicine, aerospace, civil, and architectural," says Anand Kannan from ToonSkool, Bangalore.

According to Radhakrishnan, top IT companies like Tata, Reliance [Get Quote], Satyam [Get Quote], UTV, Pentasoft, Rhythm & Hues, have jumped into the fray. International animation houses like Walt Disney [Images] studios, Paprika Animation Studio, Technicolor labs, SONY are looking at tie-ups with Indian animation companies too.

Puneet Sharma, General Manager of Zee Institute of Creative Arts (ZICA) says, "As per the NASSCOM Report 2006 (NASSCOM - Primary Research & Analysis, Pg 127), the starting salaries of freshers is between Rs 8,000-Rs 12,000 per month. With 1-3 years of experience in Animation, a professional can draw between Rs 20,000-30,000 per month, whereas 3-8 years of experience can get a remuneration of Rs 40,000-Rs 60,000 per month."

With so much demand in the industry, it is obvious that trained personnel need to be created. This is where animation training institutes feature.

A few years ago there were a handful of institutes. Over the last year, many animation training institutes have mushroomed all over the country.

We spoke to a few institutes across the country and here is what they have to say.

Who can become an animator?
Here's what industry experts feel:

• You need good drawing skills, good visualization, imagination and observation to become a good animator, says Amit Kapoor of Anitoons, the School of Animation, New Delhi
• Animation is a combination of 70 per cent art and 30 per cent technology. For us, animation is computers but if you are academically poor you cannot give a good output. Acting is a very important part of animation, says Anand Kannan, Relationship Manager at ToonSkool Advanced Animation Academy, Bangalore
• The ability to draw is an advantage besides a good knowledge of art and design, movements and imagery. Your creative problem solving technique and innovation in your work help you in better performance, says Puneet Sharma of ZICA, Mumbai.
• Apart from passion, good drawing and sketching skills, creativity, you need English language skills, says Radhakrishna T, Race Academy, Hyderabad
• Inclination towards art and basic knowledge of handling computers is desirable, says Shravni Chopra, Chief Operating Officer, Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics (MAAC), Mumbai

What aspects do the courses cover?
At Anitoons, the following is taught

• 2D Cel (classical) Animation (from planning to execution) example: Lion King, Hanuman [Images] type.
• 2D Flash character Animation example: Akbar & Birbal, Jonny Bravo types.
• Stopmotion Clay Animation example: Chicken Run types movie.
• 3D CGI Digital Animation example: Shrek, Toy Story types.
• Non Linear Editing
• Acting Classes

Race courses offer the following:

• Visual Effects
• Non-Linear Editing
• Digital Movie Production
• In-depth study material and training by dedicated faculty
• Individual attention

At ToonSkool, the student get to do the following:

• Rigorous hours of training on the foundation art
• 2D animation
• Digital art
• 3D animation

Zica diploma courses offer the following:

• Fundamental drawing and History of animation
• 2D Classical Animation
• Pre Production to Post Production of 2D Animation Film Making.
• Pre Production to Post Production of 3D Animation Film Making
• Basic to Advanced Study of 3D Character Animation & Visual Effects

MAAC offers the following:

• Pre-production
• Production
• Post-production

How does one chose between a short term or long term courses?
~ In the animation industry, there are no shortcuts, says Amit, who has been associated with the industry for more than 10 years.

~ Short term courses help those who already have some basic knowledge and want to enhance their marketability. For example, if a mechanical engineer wants to demonstrate how a new gear functions, learns animation, it would help him to make his presentations more effective, says Anand. 

~ Short term courses are good for an entry level job in animation in areas like Digital Designing, 3D Modeling, Rigging, Texturing and Lighting or Compositing. Long term courses have better scope than short term courses if you want to make a career in animation, says Puneet.

~ Freshers should enroll for a long term course as they should go through all the processes of animation film making to make them complete animators, says Shravni.

What are the course fees like?
~ Anitoons
Duration: 18 months
Fee: Rs 1 lakh, including service tax

~ Race
6 different courses
Fee: Ranging between Rs 30,000 to Rs 2,50,000 (educational loan facility available)

~ ToonSkool
Duration: 3 year (diploma)         
Fee: Rs 1 lakh per year

~ ZICA
Duration: 3-year Diploma          
Fee: Rs 2.5 lakh  

Duration: 10-months Diploma
Fee: Rs 1.10 lakh

~ MAAC
The course fee ranges from Rs 10,000 to Rs 2 lakh

How do you choose an institute?
Here are some tips on how you can choose the right institute:

• Visit the school and see how the students are working and studying, says Amit.
• Look into their track records and credibility, their infrastructure and the people behind.
• Check whether the institute is into productions, the kind of work stations offered to work on, library collections, placements record and other minimal information, says Radhakrishnan.
• Candidates have to analyse his/ her skills/ strength, talk to people in the industry, visit few websites to know the requirements and then come to a conclusion, he adds.