Graphic designer to animation layout artist
A graphic designer already meets 46% of what the animation layout artist role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
61.4/ 100
1 How much of what an animation layout artist is expected to do is already part of a graphic designer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the animation layout artist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An animation layout artist role treats 9 of its required skills as things a graphic designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- 3D lighting
- adapt to type of media
- computer graphics
- edit digital moving images
- finish project within budget
- follow a brief
What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 23 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An animation layout artist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a graphic designer background worth leading with.
- already held Capture One information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held create 3D characters working with computers
- already held create animated narratives communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held create moving images communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held motion graphics arts and humanities
- already held 3D lighting arts and humanities
All 23 carried skills, including the 9 the animation layout artist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 24 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn analyse a script required
- still to learn consult with production director required
- still to learn ensure visual quality of the set required
- still to learn provide input to collaborators to guide their work required
- still to learn set up animation elements required
- optional, not held animate 3D organic forms optional
- optional, not held convert into animated object optional
- optional, not held manage portfolio optional
- still to learn digital arts required
- still to learn holography required
- still to learn multimedia systems required
- optional, not held motion capture optional
- still to learn study media sources required
- still to learn study relationships between characters required
- still to learn ICT software specifications required
- optional, not held augmented reality optional
- still to learn follow work schedule required
- optional, not held operate a camera optional
- optional, not held select camera apertures optional
- optional, not held set up cameras optional
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an animation layout artist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 digital arts study this
- 02 ICT software specifications study this
- 03 analyse a script practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 23 skills that carry over
- already held 3D lighting knowledge
- already held adapt to type of media skill
- already held computer graphics knowledge
- already held edit digital moving images skill
- already held finish project within budget skill
- already held follow a brief skill
- already held graphic design knowledge
- already held motion graphics knowledge
- already held operate 3D computer graphics software skill
- already held Adobe Illustrator knowledge
- already held Adobe Photoshop knowledge
- already held Capture One knowledge
- already held GIMP (graphics editor software) knowledge
- already held Microsoft Visio knowledge
- already held SketchBook Pro knowledge
- already held Synfig knowledge
- already held apply 3D imaging techniques skill
- already held create 3D characters skill
- already held create animated narratives skill
- already held create moving images skill
- already held design graphics skill
- already held develop animations skill
- already held graphics editor software knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held provide multimedia content optional
- optional, not held rig 3D characters optional
- optional, not held receive appropriate permissions for use of recorded audiovisual examples optional
- optional, not held digitization optional
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held animate 3D organic forms optional
- optional, not held convert into animated object optional
- optional, not held motion capture optional
- optional, not held operate a camera optional
- optional, not held provide multimedia content optional
- optional, not held receive appropriate permissions for use of recorded audiovisual examples optional
- optional, not held select camera apertures optional
- optional, not held set up cameras optional
- optional, not held augmented reality optional
- optional, not held digitization optional
- optional, not held manage portfolio optional
- optional, not held rig 3D characters optional
41 held skills the animation layout artist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role 3D modelling knowledge
- not needed by the target role Adobe Photoshop Lightroom knowledge
- not needed by the target role adobe creative suite knowledge
- not needed by the target role advertising techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role aesthetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role brainstorm ideas skill
- not needed by the target role convert scribbles into virtual sketches skill
- not needed by the target role copyright legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role create 3D environments skill
- not needed by the target role create advertisements skill
- not needed by the target role design greeting cards skill
- not needed by the target role design management knowledge
- not needed by the target role design prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role desktop publishing knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop an artistic framework skill
- not needed by the target role develop creative ideas skill
- not needed by the target role develop digital content skill
- not needed by the target role digital compositing knowledge
- not needed by the target role digital media knowledge
- not needed by the target role draw design sketches skill
- not needed by the target role edit negatives skill
- not needed by the target role edit photographs skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role interactive media knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role meet expectations of target audience skill
- not needed by the target role perform ideation activities skill
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role photography knowledge
- not needed by the target role publishing industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role respect publication formats skill
- not needed by the target role select artwork developed by staff members skill
- not needed by the target role translate requirements into visual design skill
- not needed by the target role use CAD software skill
- not needed by the target role use creative suite software skill
- not needed by the target role use digital illustration techniques skill
- not needed by the target role use photographic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role use presentation software skill
- not needed by the target role use traditional illustration techniques skill
1 further entry not listed here
7 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn digital arts required
- still to learn ICT software specifications required
- still to learn holography required
- still to learn multimedia systems required
- optional, not held motion capture optional
- optional, not held augmented reality optional
- optional, not held digitization optional
Other moves recorded from graphic designer
- special effects artist 56% covered · moderate
- animator 56% covered · moderate
- advertising copywriter 52% covered · moderate
- desktop publisher 49% covered · substantial
- animation director 47% covered · substantial
- cartoonist 43% covered · substantial
- creative director 40% covered · substantial
- 3D animator 39% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a graphic designer become an animation layout artist?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A graphic designer already covers 46% of what an animation layout artist is expected to do: 23 skills carry over, 9 of which the animation layout artist role treats as required.
What skills does a graphic designer need to become an animation layout artist?
12 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is digital arts.
How hard is the move from graphic designer to animation layout artist?
Its learning distance is 61.4 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.