The vfx and animation industries are a global business. California's Sony Pictures Imageworks, Digital Domain, ILM and Café FX and Paris' BUF Compagnie are working on Speed Racer. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.

When I worked on Bebe's Kids, one of the last hand-painted animated films made, we hired painters and painting services from all over Southern California. But we also used services in Canada, the U.K., and Asia. Outsourcing part of an animated project was not new. Television shows had been using overseas studios for years to help them complete their labor-intensive shows, but the original reason outsourcing occurred was to try to keep costs down. Now, it is often done to meet the deadlines set for the films and to tap into the talents and skills of artists all over the world.

Many students and professionals dream of working at ILM or Pixar (both in Northern California), but few get their starts there. Today, the primary vendor on a big visual effects picture might be ILM, but ILM may not do all the shots. Work by smaller, lesser-known studios shares the screen with ILM shots. Those smaller, lesser-known studios could be much closer to you than Hollywood.

Pamela Kleibrink Thompson.

Students often ask me about how to break into the industry. Sometimes opportunity is as close as your own backyard. Get a job at a lesser-known company near your home and start building your career and your resume. You might be working in Hollywood from your own home town. You might be surprised to find how close you are to Hollywood right now.

To find out what companies are working on the next blockbuster, visit VFXWorld.com. There are visual effects and animation studios on every continent except Antarctica. You don't have to leave your home to find work unless you are a penguin.

Pamela Kleibrink Thompson worked in Hollywood, but never lived under the Hollywood sign. She lived close to the Walt Disney Studios in the San Fernando Valley for many years and has discovered filmmakers also live in Idaho. Last night she conducted a networking workshop for the Idaho Media Professionals. Last month she spoke to students at an animation workshop in Singapore. She is currently recruiting for Lucas Animation Studios in Singapore. To contact Pamela for a career coaching session, recruiting or speaking engagement, email her at Pambo@q.com.