Careers
in Animation

The animation industry offers a huge range of positions, which depend on the candidates’ sphere of expertise, on their qualifications, and on the level of responsibilities they are willing to assume. At ESMA, the CG Animation & FX curriculum is a broad-based training program ; therefore, the great strength of our graduates is their level of excellence in all the areas it covers. Nevertheless, the end-of-studies short films they work on in their last year offer them the occasion to specialize in one specific field.

ESMA has a very strong background in animation cinema and that’s really what we’re looking for. This allows us to have specialized students, very focused on their careers. Students are passionate and highly motivated by what they do.

Erik SMITT

Director of photography at Pixar Animation Studios

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The qualities of ESMA are the qualities of a very high level school. That a short film from ESMA is selected for the Oscars is well deserved!

Kristof Serrand,
Directeur Artistique, Dreamworks

The quality of the films is really palpable. Both technically and narratively, the scripts are developing and getting more complex year after year.

Shelley PAGE

Key Talent and Artist Liaison – DreamWorks, Aardman…

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To be able to work in the world of video games, several qualities are necessary: being creative and autonomous, being proactive, having a good team spirit and knowing how to work with others but also being able to face new challenges. ESMA conveys all these values to its students.

Arielle DETHOMAS

Lead Animator at Ubisoft Annecy

We are visiting several schools but to be honest, ESMA is where we met the best student works. We are really delighted to see all the love and hard work they invest in their projects and how hight the level of everything they have done is.

Claudia GLOD

Producer and Resource Manager

Milford Creative Studio

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I love the movies I’ve seen but I also love this school! The quality of the work is really good and high and the students don’t hesitate to confront complicated situations.

Andrew GORDON

Head of Animation (Feature Animation)

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ESMA allows students to pursue their ideas to their full potential. It’s a very high level school!
Dorian MARCHESIN

Environments and rendering supervisor

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We have recruited talented artists who have studied at ESMA in recent years. The curriculum they are following has allowed them to prepare well for our studios.

Dana RAAD 

Talent Acquisition Manager – The Focus

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ESMA being a reference school, we are very attentive to the new talents that emerge each year.

Lionel FAGES 

Director & founder of Cube Creative studio

 

Erik Smitt de Pixar, président d'honneur du jury ESMA 2019
Kristof Serrand
shelley page
Logo Ubisoft Annecy
logo milford creative studio
Logo studio DNEG
Dorian Marchesin Unit Image
Logo The Focus studio
Visite du studio Cube Creative à l'ESMA Montpellier

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Become Grooming Artist

Become
Grooming Artist

The Grooming Artist works on everything from hair, eyebrows, beard, threads, animal furs. It is about giving shape to very fine geometries.
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Become Texturing Artist

Become
Texturing Artist

The main task of the texturing artist is therefore to create photorealistic textures to be mapped on 3D objects.
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Become Visual Effects Specialist 2D/3D

Become

Visual Effects Specialist 2D/3D

In the world of computer-generated imagery, the FX artist mainly operates during the post-production stage. His goal : to put his skills at the service of image processing.
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Becoming Director / The CG Project Manager

Becoming

Director / The CG Project Manager

In the context of a CG production, the CG director (also known as the CG project manager) is THE person at the heart of the project. Artist, technician and pilot at the same time, he follows the various stages of the project, from its reflection to its conception, and perfectly masters its subtleties.
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Become CG Animation Supervisor

Become

CG Animation Supervisor

As his title suggests, the CG animation supervisor is the keystone of the animation team: in direct relation with the director, he has a very clear idea of his expectations, which he transmits to his team of animators, in pre-production. He also ensures the liaison with the other studios that will eventually work on the same project, in order to guarantee the coherence of the animation.
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Become Surfacing Artist

Become
Surfacing Artist

The surfacing artist adds texture and colour to characters, environments and CG accessories in an animated function, in order to enhance their visual appeal based on the design style defined by the artistic director, the production designer and the film director.
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Become Rigger

Become
Rigger

The rigger provides characters with the digital framework that will allow them to move in a realistic and coherent way.
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Become Rendering Artist

Become
Rendering Artist

The Rendering Artist colours, paints, sculpts and shapes like any other artist, although its medium remains exclusively digital. He makes artistic choices.
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Become Previs Artist

Become
Previs Artist

The Previs Artist allows a director, or a FX supervisor through digital technology to experiment with different options for staging and artistic direction.
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Become compositor

Become
Compositor

The compositor is both an artist and a technician. His work consists in assembling, mixing several sources of images or special effects.
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Become Illustrator 3D

Become
Illustrator 3D

The 3D illustrator is a specialist in the creation and modification of digital images or computer graphics.
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Become Lighting Artist

Become
Lighting Artist

In digital animation, lighting is an important element which participates to the realism of a scene. 
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