Careers in Animation

By Willy Franzen

Looking for an entry level job or internship in animation? Here's an overview of how to approach the search and a list of companies that might have entry level and internship opportunities that will interest you.

See companies with animation careers or search the latest animation jobs and internships.

Photo Credit: Flickr user dyashman

Every animation you watch, from a full-screen feature to a two-minute clip on Youtube, takes a lot of work to make. The animation itself can be divided into two rough areas: the art and the programming. In both cases, standing out with an outstanding demo reel or portfolio is the best way to get a job in animation.

If the art of animation interests you, then some possible careers include a 2D or 3D animator, a digital cel animator, a character designer, or a mixed media animator, depending on where your animation interests lie. If the programming interests you more, jobs in software development and production–writing the scripts that make the animations animate–would be more up your alley. No matter which side of animation interests you more, knowing a little about the other part of animation will only help you.

While entering a career in entertainment is a popular option, it’s not the only one. Game companies, movie studios, and cartoon channels employ a lot of animators, but simulations and virtual reality are becoming more common, and animations are often used for training as well.

Companies with Entry Level Jobs and Internships in Animation

Laika - Laika is a Hillsboro and Portland, OR based “animation company specializing in feature films, commercials and short films.”

See the complete Laika profile

Job Title	Location
Art Fabrication Intern - Summer 2014	Hillsboro, OR
CG Rigging Intern - Summer 2014	Hillsboro, OR
Puppet Intern - Summer 2014	Hillsboro, OR
Stop-Motion Animation Intern - Summer 2014	Hillsboro, OR
Facial Animator/Track Reader Intern - Summer 2014	Hillsboro, OR

See all 14 job postings

Pocket Gems - Pocket Gems is a San Francisco, CA based company that “develops free-to-play mobile games that are ridiculously fun.”

See the complete Pocket Gems profile

Job Title	Location
Product Manager: New Grad	Redwood City, CA
Product Manager: Monetization	Redwood City, CA
Orthopedist and Pain Physician Reps One Sale = Residual Commissions	United States
Software Engineer, Intern	San Francisco, CA
Content Design Intern	San Francisco, CA

See all 24 job postings

Fuhu - Fuhu is an El Segundo, CA based company aiming to be "the leading designer, seller and innovator of ‘thoughtful’ consumer products and services for children.”

See the complete Fuhu profile

Job Title	Location
Unity Animator	Los Angeles, CA
Jr. Animator	Los Angeles, CA
Game Development - Artist/Animator (Denver)	Denver, CO
Game Development - Programmer (Denver)	Denver, CO
Project Manager	Los Angeles, CA

See all 52 job postings

Crunchyroll - Crunchyroll is a San Francisco, CA and Tokyo, Japan based company that offers “the leading global video service for Japanese Anime and Asian media.”

See the complete Crunchyroll profile

Job Title	Location
Marketing Intern	San Francisco, CA
Video Content Onboarder	San Francisco, CA
Motion Graphic Designer	San Francisco, CA
Product Designer (UI/UX)	San Francisco, CA
Subtitle Script Editor (Korean)	Remote, OR

See all 29 job postings

G2 - G2 is a marketing communications agency that helps its clients sell more. They have offices in NYC, San Francisco, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

See the complete G2 profile

Job Title	Location
Corporate Recruiter	Annapolis Junction, MD
ENTRY LEVEL BRAND AMBASSADORS	New York, NY
ENTRY LEVEL CHARITY AMBASSADORS FOR INTERNATIONAL NON PROFIT	Manhattan, NY
ENTRY LEVEL FUNDRAISER	Manhattan, NY
Account Executive/Inside Sales	Bellevue, WA

See all 255 job postings

Industry Weapon - Industry Weapon is a Pittsburgh, PA based company that offers a platform makes controlling digital media simple by centralizing and organizing it.

See the complete Industry Weapon profile

Job Title	Location
89B Ammunition Specialist	Guernsey, WY
89D Explosive Ordinance Disposal Specialist	Glenville, NY
HTML 5 Developer / Interactive Genius	Pittsburgh, PA
Intelligence Analyst Asc	Tampa, FL
F-16 Senior Systems Engineer / Data Coordinator	Fort Worth, TX

See all 864 job postings

Trailer Park - Trailer Park is a Hollywood, CA based full-service entertainment marketing agency that serves “a broad spectrum of clients."

See the complete Trailer Park profile

Job Title	Location
Product Specialist	Bakersfield, CA
Owner / Operator CDL Class A Driver	New York
Leasing Operator: CDL Class A Driver	Maryland
Sales Associate	Akron, OH
Retail Sales Associate	San Bernardino, CA

See all 472 job postings

J. Crew - J. Crew is a New York, NY based apparel retailer that started with a catalog in 1983 and is known for its preppiness, but that may be changing.

See the complete J. Crew profile

Job Title	Location
Summer Internship 2014	New York, NY
Superintendent heavy and highway	Brookfield, CT
Store Director	Bridgewater, NJ
Fashion Design Intern wanted	New York, NY
2014 College Graduate - Merchandising, Planning, Allocation	New York, NY

See all 927 job postings

Edventure More - Edventure More is a San Francisco, CA based non-profit that “inspires the playful pursuit of enrichment for the next generation.”

See the complete Edventure More profile

Job Title	Location
Camp EdTech App Design and Programming Instructor (5th-8th) - Los Altos	Los Altos, CA
Camp EdTech Video Game Design Instructor (5th-8th)- Cupertino	Cupertino, CA
Camp Edmo and Camp EdTech Counselor (K-9th) Cupertino	Cupertino, CA
Camp EdTech Animation and Movie Making Instructor - San Francisco	San Francisco, CA
Camp Edmo Animation Instructor (2nd-4th)- San Francisco	San Francisco, CA

See all 92 job postings

Arkadium - Arkadium is a New York, NY based company that develops “casual, mobile, social, and Windows 8 games.”

See the complete Arkadium profile

Job Title	Location
Business Operations Intern	New York, NY
Research and Development Intern (Retail)	New York, NY
Production Intern / Retail	New York, NY
Games Intelligence Intern	New York, NY
Producer	New York, NY

See all 7 job postings

Tremor Video - Tremor Video is a New York, NY based company that is working hard to increase engagement with video advertising.

See the complete Tremor Video profile

Job Title	Location
Business Intelligence Analyst	New York, NY
Associate, Sales Strategy & Product Marketing	New York, NY
Vice President, Corporate Communications	New York, NY
Clinical Research Coordinator	Stanford, CA
Clincial Research Coordinator	Stanford, CA

See all 48 job postings

Z2Live - Z2Live is a Seattle, WA based company that “creates original next-generation, free-to-play, social and multiplayer games for mobile devices.”

See the complete Z2Live profile

Job Title	Location
Product Manager	Seattle, WA
Product Manager	Seattle, WA

See all 2 job postings

JESS3 - JESS3is a Los Angeles, CA based “creative interactive agency that specializes in the art of data visualization

See the complete JESS3 profile

No current job openings.

TrainSignal - TrainSignal is a Schaumburg, IL based company that helps people improve themselves through video software training, and they're hiring.

See the complete TrainSignal profile

No current job openings.

Hill Holliday - If you’re digging Hill Holliday’s portfolio, then you’re in luck, because they also appear to be an awesome place to work.

See the complete Hill Holliday profile

Job Title	Location
Associate Social Media Strategist – Restaurant/Retail	Boston, MA
Assistant Social Media Strategist – Financial Services	Boston, MA
Social Media Strategist - Financial Services	Boston, MA
Associate Social Media Strategist - Insurance	Boston, MA
Assistant Social Media Strategist - Healthcare	Boston, MA

See all 5 job postings

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia - If you enjoy Martha Stewart and want to work on the media or merchandise side, you definitely need to take a look at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia’s Careers.

See the complete Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia profile

Job Title	Location
Junior Business Analyst	New York, NY
Associate Editor	New York, NY
Data Analyst	Palo Alto, CA
Home Editor	New York, NY
Gardening Editor	New York, NY

See all 31 job postings

38 Studios - 38 Studios is “combining the ages-old art of the story with 21st century interactive entertainment" and they're hiring lots of people to help achieve this.

See the complete 38 Studios profile

Job Title	Location
Communications Specialist - Overland Park, KS or Costa Mesa, CA	Costa Mesa, CA
Support Specialist – Tablet / Smartphone Business App for Sales & Marketing	Cupertino, CA
Print Designer, mun2, Off-Air Creative	Universal City, CA
Intermediate Applications Programmer	Tustin, CA
Creative Director	Sunnyvale, CA

See all 22 job postings

Organic Motion - The technology behind Organic Motion is pretty complex, so you should probably read up on it before considering a job with them.

See the complete Organic Motion profile

Job Title	Location
Technical Director, Set Modeling	Emeryville, CA
Interactive Designer	Warren, MI
Graphics Intern	Raleigh, NC
Summer 2014 R & D Product Development Intern	Waterbury, VT
WA, Vancouver - Produce Assistant	Washington

See all 130 job postings

Lucasfilm - Lucasfilm is a dream employer for many, and if you’re not insanely fanatical, you’re probably not going to be a great fit (unless you’re just really good).

See the complete Lucasfilm profile

Job Title	Location
Executive Assistant	San Francisco, CA
Motion Graphic Designer/Animator - Title Designer Only Apply	California
SVP, Digital Marketing	Burbank, CA
Image Archives Coordinator	San Francisco, CA
Sales Ninja - Commission Based	California

See all 30 job postings

Watercooler - Watercooler has already raised $9.5 million in venture capital, so they’re certainly in a growth stage. This is also evident when you look at their Jobs page.

See the complete Watercooler profile

Job Title	Location
Sports Media - Digital Marketing Intern	United States
Videogum.com Editorial Internship	New York, NY
User Experience Designer	New York, NY
Application Designer	New York, NY
Harvest Expert	New York, NY

See all 9 job postings

DreamBox Learning - The founder of Netflix is putting a ton of money and attention into online education, and if you want to join him, check out Jobs at DreamBox Learning.

See the complete DreamBox Learning profile

Job Title	Location
Regional Sales Manager - K-12, Curriculum Sales	Phoenix, AZ
Account Executive - Inside Sales - K-12 \| SaaS	Bellevue, WA
Sr. Technical Program Manager	Bellevue, WA
Principal Software Engineer	Bellevue, WA
Sr. Software Engineer-Server	Bellevue, WA

See all 7 job postings

Firstborn - The currently available jobs at NYC's Firstborn most likely to be suitable for new or recent grads are 3D/Motion Artist and Software Engineer.

See the complete Firstborn profile

Job Title	Location
Interactive Art Director	New York, NY
RNDialysis Manager	Martha's Vineyard, MA
RNICU	New Bedford, MA
Software Engineer - Platform	San Francisco, CA
RN~ICU	New Bedford, MA

See all 4 job postings

Sportvision - Sportvision is constantly developing new technology to make sports more fun to watch on tv, and they're hiring new grads to help do it.

See the complete Sportvision profile

Job Title	Location
Human Resources Intern, Mountain View, CA	Mountain View, CA
Sports Equipment - MiLB PFX System Operator, Daytona	Mountain View, CA
Administrative Assistant, Chicago, IL	Chicago, IL
Senior Web Application Engineer, Mountain View, CA	Mountain View, CA
IT Intern, Mountain View, CA	Mountain View, CA

See all 8 job postings

Riot Games - With all of the recent investment, Riot Games is growing its headcount rapidly. Their Jobs page will show you that they have nearly two dozen full-time openings

See the complete Riot Games profile

Job Title	Location
Esports Features Assistant Editor	New York, NY
Animator	Santa Monica, CA
Office Coordinator	Santa Monica, CA
Esports Freelance Writer	Work from Home
User Researcher	Santa Monica, CA

See all 256 job postings

Slide - Slide is very clearly growing, and as I mentioned in the opening of this post, they’re hiring a lot of new grads.

See the complete Slide profile

Job Title	Location
Medical Writer	Philadelphia, PA
Principal Medical Writer	Southport, CT
Executive Assistant	Midvale, UT
Account Manager Cardiac Assist (Alabama, N. Georgia)	Georgia
Temp Scientist\Research Associate	Tarrytown, NY

See all 5,288 job postings

Rockstar Games - It's amazing how many job openings Rockstar Games has, so whether you're an artist, programmer, or marketer, there's probably something for you.

See the complete Rockstar Games profile

Job Title	Location
B2B Marketing Intern	Sausalito, CA
Animator	Andover, MA
Environment Terrain Artist	Carlsbad, CA
Lighting Artist	Carlsbad, CA
Cutscene Layout Artist	Carlsbad, CA

See all 108 job postings

Bungie - I don’t know if it’s because unemployed people buy video games or it’s hard to find people w/ the right skills, but I’m shocked to see Bungie has 21 job openings

See the complete Bungie profile

Job Title	Location
Finance and Operations Analyst	Santa Monica, CA
Environment Artist	Bellevue, WA
Salesforce Developer	Santa Monica, CA
Flagperson	San Diego, CA
World Designer	Bellevue, WA

See all 37 job postings

Kaos Studios - If you’re sitting around playing video games instead of diligently job seekeing, then you’re the reason that companies like Kaos Studios are on “a hiring binge”

See the complete Kaos Studios profile

No current job openings.

Blue Sky Studios - Entry level jobs at Blue SKy Studios include Production Assitant, Admin (Production), Temp Animator, Modeler, Character Designer and quite a few more.

See the complete Blue Sky Studios profile

Job Title	Location
Need headshot photography	Eugene, OR
Senior/Lead Forensic 3D Artist	Centennial, CO
Assistant Controller (Blue Sky Studios)	Greenwich, CT
Production Assistant (Blue Sky Studios)	Greenwich, CT
Production Assistant (Blue Sky Studios)	Greenwich, CT

See all 15 job postings

Blizzard Entertainment - Even in this down economy, Irvine, CA based Blizzard Entertainment, the company behind World of Warcraft, seems to be on a hiring binge.

See the complete Blizzard Entertainment profile

Job Title	Location
Executive Assistant	Santa Monica, CA
3D Character Artist	Irvine, CA
Motion Graphics Artist	Irvine, CA
Cinematic Animator (Temp)	Irvine, CA
3D Character Animator	Irvine, CA

See all 190 job postings

Marvel Enterprises - Are you a superhero whose alter ego is looking for a job? Just for cover, of course, because superheroes don't actually need to work. How about a job at Marvel?

See the complete Marvel Enterprises profile

Job Title	Location
Social Media Intern	New York, NY
Technical Support Engineer	Portland, OR
Analog IC Design Engineer	Austin, TX

See all 1 job postings

Pixar - Positions that new grads at Pixar are currently working in include Technical Director Resident, Animator, Software Engineer, Lighting Director, and Layout.

See the complete Pixar profile

Job Title	Location
Software Developer - Intern	Mountain View, CA
Marketing Finance Graduate (MBA) Intern (Global Media Corporation)	Burbank, CA
SVP, Digital Marketing	Burbank, CA
Character Artist, CC, TDS	Glendale, CA
Sr. Hardware Engineer	Los Altos, CA

See all 62 job postings

Armstrong White - Armstrong White has a number of job openings that could presumably be good fits for new grads who love cars and are trying to get into Computer Graphics.

See the complete Armstrong White profile

Job Title	Location
Director of Marketing Communications	San Mateo, CA

See all 1 job postings

AngelVision Technologies - Based in Portland, OR, AngelVision Technologies creates “impact movies” that go beyond the normal text-based marketing that drives most online business.

See the complete AngelVision Technologies profile

No current job openings.

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