Skills
Animator Skills & Tools
The technical skills, people skills and tools employers look for in animators, and how to build and show them.
What skills do animators need?
Animators need technical skills such as 3d animation, modeling and rigging, and visual effects, plus people skills like creativity and patience. They also use tools such as Autodesk Maya and Blender.
Technical (hard) skills
- 3D animation
- Modeling and rigging
- Visual effects
- Compositing
- Drawing fundamentals
- Rendering
People (soft) skills
- Creativity
- Patience
- Collaboration
- Openness to feedback
Tools, equipment and technology
- Autodesk Maya
- Blender
- Houdini
- Adobe After Effects
- Nuke
- Unreal Engine
Skills in action: common tasks
These step-by-step guides show how animators put their skills to work:
How to show these skills on a resume
- Lead your skills section with the technical skills from the job posting, for example, “3D animation” and “Modeling and rigging.”
- Prove soft skills with results: instead of listing “creativity,” describe a situation where you used it.
- List credentials such as Autodesk Certified Professional near the top, with the issuing organization and date.
- Use the employer’s vocabulary. Our animator glossary covers the terms hiring managers expect.
How to build these skills
Formal training, supervised practice and certification are the most direct routes. Our Animator training introduces each of these skills with plain-language lessons, procedures and a final knowledge check: a strong foundation before hands-on training or your first day.