Well, Ive been looking around online for information on animation degree's. There's AS and BS in animation from art colleges that teach it, but those degree's cost a hell of a lot more than they will ever be worth if you ask me. Plus they're not honored by many employers from what I understand. And I keep hearing more bad things than good.

I also hear theres art degree's too but to be honest I've never been a firm believer in that one. Nobody can teach you HOW to be creative. Thats something that has to come entirely from ones imagination.

But anyways, through the research Ive done the 2 closest candidates would be comp science or mathematics. Im assuming comp is the more pricey one. But I havent really checked up on any tuition info so I could be wrong.

But my main question is which one would be more closely associated to 3D animation? Similar to what disney and pixar do? Not the programming just digital geometry and animation.

Any advice is most appreciated. thanks.

Well, Ive been looking around online for information on animation degree's. There's AS and BS in animation from art colleges that teach it, but those degree's cost a hell of a lot more than they will ever be worth if you ask me. Plus they're not honored by many employers from what I understand. And I keep hearing more bad things than good.

I also hear theres art degree's too but to be honest I've never been a firm believer in that one. Nobody can teach you HOW to be creative. Thats something that has to come entirely from ones imagination.

But anyways, through the research Ive done the 2 closest candidates would be comp science or mathematics. Im assuming comp is the more pricey one. But I havent really checked up on any tuition info so I could be wrong.

But my main question is which one would be more closely associated to 3D animation? Similar to what disney and pixar do? Not the programming just digital geometry and animation.

Any advice is most appreciated. thanks.

Your portfolio is all that really matters when you are doing something artistic. Computer Science and mathematics are great subjects to go for but they have almost absolutely not relevance for what you want to go for. Just download Blender and make awesome stuff.

IME, employers don't care about any *specific* degrees, really.. They're pretty much just a rite of passage. You need a portfolio on top to prove your skills, because no degree actually prepares you for the workplace. A less prestigious degree paired with a great portfolio will always win over a prestigious degree and no portfolio.

A comp-sci degree is what a programmer would take (but as above, they'd need to learn to program in their own time and develop a portfolio as well). The degree alone won't make them a good programmer.

Likewise, an art degree isn't meant to make you into a creative artist. You've got to learn that on your own, develop your skills and create a portfolio yourself, in your spare time while doing the degree. The degree will teach you all the jargon and boring theory that will let you communicate with other artists ;)
A traditional fine art degree would be a nice thing to have on your resume, bu as above, as with all degrees, it's not going to automatically make you hireable.
It's probably a hell of a lot more applicable to digital animation than comp-sci though!

If you want one that's actually going to include tutorials for animating and rendering in Max/Maya/Blender/XSI/etc, then look for a "digital animation/art/multimedia" one -- though you're trading away the timeless subjects for specific focus there.

First, you need to decide what you want to work with. Animation in particular is usually found in schools under the "Cinematic Arts" category, with Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Fine-Arts degrees.
If you want to become an animator (in a more broader term, an artist), I would seriously avoid the Computer Science and Mathematics programs. These are not artistic programs and will not help you develop the necessary skills for working for a studio. Furthermore, these courses won't have you building an animation portfolio or demo-reel before graduating, something that's essential to get work.

Second, you should always keep an eye on your dream employers, what kind of job openings that they have and what are their requirements. Some also offer internships.
Start to look at things from the professional point of view, instead of the consumer point of view. For instance, Disney has an entire website dedicated to careers in their various studios and departments, which the common public doesn't usually access.

You can get more information on education in digital art forums:

First, read these:
- http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=108342
- http://forums.cgsociety.org/forumdisplay.php?f=283

Then, these:
- http://www.disneyanimation.com/faqs (Read the "STUDENT PROGRAMS" section)
- http://www.pixar.com/careers (Keep an eye for industry careers, their job descriptions and requirements etc.)
- http://mercuryfilmworks.com/careers/
- http://www.animationmentor.com/

Some animators that reach their dream employers started in other studios, gaining experience and building a professional demo-reel for applying:
http://www.animationinsider.com/2013/04/thomas-estrada/
Take special note of the last question in that interview, where he recommends that prospect animators look for the feedback and guidance of professional animators (you can find these as professors at universities).

The most important thing that you need to know is this: if you really want it, then there's always a way.

thanks for the responses everybody. This does put my mind at a little more ease.

I already have the main 3d programs like blender max and maya.

Now I'm not sure how true this is I'm just going by what Ive read. Apparently big companies like pixar don't use maya as much as I thought. Someone said they use their own proprietary 3D software so if they want to make changes to it they can. I guess they can't do that with maya because they don't own the source code. In a way that sounds ridiculous but in a way it makes sense. But just things Ive read about.

anyways I really appreciate your responses.

thanks for the responses everybody. This does put my mind at a little more ease.

I already have the main 3d programs like blender max and maya.

Now I'm not sure how true this is I'm just going by what Ive read. Apparently big companies like pixar don't use maya as much as I thought. Someone said they use their own proprietary 3D software so if they want to make changes to it they can. I guess they can't do that with maya because they don't own the source code. In a way that sounds ridiculous but in a way it makes sense. But just things Ive read about.

anyways I really appreciate your responses.

Yes, Pixar uses Renderman. A lot of companies use proprietary software. Others might say something different but I think it is probably better to focus on using just one general purpose toolset and then learn the toolset that the company which you want to apply for uses very well. You have to understand, they want to know that you can do the job with the software they provide. They likely care little or not at all if you know how to use 50 different applications that all do the same thing.

Keep in mind that Renderman is a renderer, not a DCC tool. You can/do still use Maya/etc to create your scenes, and then Renderman to render the final images. Also it's very, very worthwhile learning at least one of Maya/Max/Blender/SoftImage/etc, because it will make learning other tools that do the same job much easier.

art colleges that teach it, but those degree's cost a hell of a lot more than they will ever be worth if you ask me

It all depends on the school.

There are big-brand for-profit schools that charge more than $20K per semester. There are excellent schools that charge under $2K per semester, often as state colleges and community colleges.

Apparently big companies like pixar don't use maya as much as I thought. Someone said they use their own proprietary 3D software so if they want to make changes to it they can.

Sure, everybody uses their own renderers, even games. Nearly every game has their own rendering engine.

In order to create the content for those rendering engines, you will likely be using either Maya or 3D Studio Max. Know them, love them, they will be the mainstay of the animator's career.

Apparently big companies like pixar don't use maya as much as I thought.

Maya is extensively used for Pixar and Walt Disney Pictures films:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autodesk_Maya#Industry_Usage

You can safely become a Maya expert, as it covers almost all bases - you can pair it with a sculpting software such as ZBrush or MudBox.
It's also a plus to become acquainted with software that's similar to the proprietary tools that the company uses:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pixie_(renderer)