3D Animator Salary

They see the weirdest of stuff in your household as potential characters who are full of emotions. Hard to believe? Let me give you an example - Spongebob Squarepants! I mean, seriously, who could ever think of creating a worldwide successful character by taking an idea from a frickin' sponge? Even more bizarre is the evolving of talking dogs (Goofy and Scooby Doo), the flying Carpet (Aladdin), and well, the 'pip-pip-cheerio' Bugs Bunny! Oh boy, animation is surely fun, and if you're amongst the few people who know the knack of creating funny characters, you're gonna go a long way. At least, that's what the salary figures of 3D animators depict. A career as a 3D animator or a multimedia artist can give you a handful of opportunities to frame a successful career in animation, an immensely creative field that it is. Your uniqueness will help you survive and thrive in the world of animation, and your desire to create something new every time will take you places. While employment in 3D animation is expected to grow phenomenally in the coming few years, here's a sneak-peek of the average pay scale of a 3D animator on an annual basis. Let's see how much can creating funny cartoon characters flood into your bank account.

Average 3D Animator Salary

The demand for 3D animators in the entertainment and multimedia design professions is ever-increasing, thanks to the bulk of opportunities and a constant hunt for newer concepts that make 3D animation an extremely remunerative field. Note that, 3D animation, unlike ordinary animation, requires high level of expertise, and therefore, salary packages are comparatively higher. On an average, the annual salary of a 3D animator in the United States of America lies somewhere between $40,000 - $120,000, and is highly driven by the degree of expertise required in a particular project. While the lower limit of the salary range demonstrates the starting remuneration or entry-level salary for a 3D animator, the higher limit represents the package that a 3D animator gets after good working experience in hand, and a large-scale project to work upon. Almost 60 percent of all 3D animators in the US are self-employed, or are working on a freelance basis. The following tabular data represents the median wages of 3D animators all over the major states of the US:

Arizona - $58,000 California - $71,000 District of Columbia - $75,000 Florida - $64,000 Georgia - $68,000 Illinois - $71,000 Kansas - $62,000 Louisiana - $50,000 Maine - $65,000 Massachusetts - $76,000 Michigan - $61,000 Minnesota - $64,000

New Jersey - $68,000 New Mexico - $60,000 New York - $77,000 North Carolina - $64,000 Ohio - $63,000 Pennsylvania - $61,000 South Carolina - $61,000 Texas - $64,000 Utah - $62,000 Virginia - $68,000 Washington - $60,000 Wisconsin - $55,000

Note: The annual salaries given above are approximate and are subject to change.
The basic education becomes secondary in front of the importance of an active and brilliant imagination that a 3D animator is required to have. One can begin working in the direction of becoming a 3D animator right after passing high school, and enrolling into a good animation school. However, it is strongly recommended that one begins learning the basics of 3D animation from the very beginning. Do as much research as you can, get a hang of as many 3D animation software as you can, and then, enroll for a recognized animation school where you will get the correct exposure and endless opportunities to flaunt your creativity and imagination. All you need is that one major 'hit' that makes you a numero uno in the list of all corporates looking for a 3D animator to bring their mundane animation to life.

It's easy to become a 3D animator if you know yourself and your capabilities. However, it's equally difficult to become one if you're clueless about how to make the characters come alive on screen. While a few mug ups may help you pass the written exam, when it comes to actually displaying what you've got in terms of creativity, not many are able to get through. If you believe your creativity can make the world go crazy, go, break a leg. The world of 3D animation awaits to see what you got.