Question from an Animation Student-

skellitterixx

skellitterixx

Member
Original Poster
Hey there :D

So, I'm a Florida native, and I've just recently decided my major in college to be in Animation. I know it's going to be tough, but I also know that Disney and Pixar both do internships. Their internships are in California, but I was wondering about the Florida animation studio? Is it still in business, or is it closed permanently? I heard a rumor that the last project to come out of Florida was "The Princess and the Frog"...
 
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lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
The Feature Animation department in Florida was shut down in 2004 and was not revived as part of The Princess and the Frog.
 
the.dreamfinder

the.dreamfinder

Well-Known Member
Well for school, there is the Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota whose Computer Animation program is considered one of the elite animation programs in North America along with schools like CalArts, SVA, RISD, Sheridan, and MICA (Which is really good for stop motion btw).

However, most of the animation work in the United States is in California and New York.

Hope this helps!
 
skellitterixx

skellitterixx

Member
Original Poster
Thanks! I've already looked into Ringling, and as far as college, my mind is made up as to where I'm going :)
I hope to be able to do an internship!
 
jmorri26

jmorri26

Well-Known Member
Yep, the Florida studio closed and I think tssandtully is right that Brother Bear was their last. Maybe Dinosaur. I vaguely remember thinking that was in Florida. The Cali studio (the big one with the dwarves as pillars) is going strong, but on their CG films. Frozen is wrapping now.
I'm gonna go all motherly on you for a sec- This industry is a very rewarding one to be a part of, but I speak from my heart here when I say it's not one for someone to enter into lightly. I was in your shoes a decade ago and if I could go back, I'd slap myself then and have told myself to get a "real" job (meaning a stable one) I love what I do, but it's not for the faint of heart. If you pursue animation, prepare for a life in front of computers, long hours, little recognition and hope for an understanding family that will stick with you through it. Any college you go to will skip over the fact that 3/4 of your classmates will be working at Home Depot in 4 years, not Pixar or the like. Very few places, Disney and Pixar included, have many staff spots, most are "Length of Picture" then your fate is in their hands. I hated the idea of every 8-12 months hoping I had a job, could afford rent and food. It's heartbreaking. I've seen incredibly talented people give up and go find hourly jobs just to make ends meet. Look up the protests from last year's Oscars. That's from the VFX industry, but same people, same thing. At the end of the day, if you do it, you get to say you make cartoon and movies, just like many greats before which is pretty darn cool. I know you didn't want a lecture on this, but that's my two cents as someone in this industry to someone who wants to be. It's not as rosy-glassed as it was made to be when Walt was at the forefront.
Ok, back to regularly scheduled talking about WDW :)
 
the.dreamfinder

the.dreamfinder

Well-Known Member
Dinosaur was made by a VFX studio Disney bought in the mid 90's which was called The Secret Lab. It was latter disbanded after post production on Michael Bay's Pearl Harbor which saw many of The Secret Lab's shots reassigned to ILM.
 
jmorri26

jmorri26

Well-Known Member
dreamfinder,

I totally forgot about Secret Lab. I remember them more as DreamQuest before Disney got them and the great VFX they did.
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
the.dreamfinder

the.dreamfinder

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
That is the Team Disney - Michael D. Eisner Building by Michael Graves which is the primary corporate office building. The Feature Animation building was done by Robert A.M. Stern and features the Sorcerer's Hat over the entryway (it is apparently hated by animators).
http://www.ramsa.com/en/projects-search/office/feature.html
Click to expand...
Funny that Disney was looking at building them a larger and better facility on the actual Disney Lot (http://www.alliedworks.com/projects/animation-studios-burbank/). The Roy Disney Building is presently receiving an extreme makeover to make it more like The Steve Jobs Building.
 
skellitterixx

skellitterixx

Member
Original Poster
jmorri26 said:
Yep, the Florida studio closed and I think tssandtully is right that Brother Bear was their last. Maybe Dinosaur. I vaguely remember thinking that was in Florida. The Cali studio (the big one with the dwarves as pillars) is going strong, but on their CG films. Frozen is wrapping now.
I'm gonna go all motherly on you for a sec- This industry is a very rewarding one to be a part of, but I speak from my heart here when I say it's not one for someone to enter into lightly. I was in your shoes a decade ago and if I could go back, I'd slap myself then and have told myself to get a "real" job (meaning a stable one) I love what I do, but it's not for the faint of heart. If you pursue animation, prepare for a life in front of computers, long hours, little recognition and hope for an understanding family that will stick with you through it. Any college you go to will skip over the fact that 3/4 of your classmates will be working at Home Depot in 4 years, not Pixar or the like. Very few places, Disney and Pixar included, have many staff spots, most are "Length of Picture" then your fate is in their hands. I hated the idea of every 8-12 months hoping I had a job, could afford rent and food. It's heartbreaking. I've seen incredibly talented people give up and go find hourly jobs just to make ends meet. Look up the protests from last year's Oscars. That's from the VFX industry, but same people, same thing. At the end of the day, if you do it, you get to say you make cartoon and movies, just like many greats before which is pretty darn cool. I know you didn't want a lecture on this, but that's my two cents as someone in this industry to someone who wants to be. It's not as rosy-glassed as it was made to be when Walt was at the forefront.
Ok, back to regularly scheduled talking about WDW :)
Click to expand...


I appreciate your insight!!! I'd love to message you sometime (just tried to, and WDWMagic said something about signature changes...whatever :p. There are some questions I'd love to ask you about this if you could give off any extra help :)
 
jmorri26

jmorri26

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
That is the Team Disney - Michael D. Eisner Building by Michael Graves which is the primary corporate office building. The Feature Animation building was done by Robert A.M. Stern and features the Sorcerer's Hat over the entryway (it is apparently hated by animators).
http://www.ramsa.com/en/projects-search/office/feature.html
Click to expand...


Sheesh, I knew that. My brain is flipped off completely today. And yes, I've heard similar about the hat building :)
 

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