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3D Animation in Los Angeles

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3D Animation in Los Angeles

I recently gained an interest in animation, but have realized that my poor drawing skills will make it impossible for me to ever become a 2D animator (I have started to learn how to draw, but realistically I know I won't be able to compete with some of the talent out there). However, I've recently learned that 3D animators do not actually need to be amazing at drawing. I'd like to take a class in 3D animation to see if it's really for me before I go out and try to find a multiple year program. Does anyone know of a class in Los Angeles where I could get a feel for 3D animation? I would simply get a program and a book and try learning on my own, but the equipment is expensive, and I don't think my computer is new or powerful enough to handle the software.

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Let me preface this by dec

Let me preface this by dec;laring one more time to all concerned that I am an avowed member of the pencil mafia.  For life.
To that end I firmly believe that drawing skills are an undeniable asset to an animator.

Some folks disagree, and some of those folks have had good careers ( perhaps even respectable careers) in animation.  You can, apparently get jobs as an animator with weak drawing skills. Apparently.

But let me lay out my argument for drawing here:

It's an asset.  WHY is it an asset??
Because drawing, ultimately, is a problem-solving skill.

It allows you to explain something on paper ( or on screen) with nuances and subtleties that a non-artist will NEVER have. And in addition to your own work,  there'll be a hope in Hell of explaining something to another artist via a drawing. You will literally have a neurological advantage.
Your work will be composed better, likely staged better. Your characters will be able to explore expressions and poses much more sophisticated than those from someone that does not draw.
Things like effects animation will have more artistic flair.  Even "static" stuff like just depicting a car on a road or a jet in the air is bound to have more panache because of a genuine artistic eye, than work from someone that has to depend on cookie-cutter/clip-art solutions.
Having drawing abilities means, that as a lead, you'll be MORE likely to have the respect of artists that can draw.

 That is if you can get to a lead position.

Drawing abilities up your market-value, as an artist. It makes YOU more valuable to a production, rather than shoe-horning someone with marginal/minimal skills into a one-function job. It means you can work for a studio of any size, because you have a versatile skill-set.

And finally, if something as basic as drawing scares the shit out of someone, then they don't belong in the biz or craft of animation. You can either do it, or you can't.
 If you can't do it but want to..........then suck it up and learn how.
Put in the sweat, put in the time and there's a worthwhile career waiting at the end of it.

And to be perfectly candid, this is the SMALLEST part of the whole process. It's like having a goal of wanting to walk across the entire country, but you are not sure if you can stand on your own two feet.

But do NOT take JUST my word for it.  Find these people that do not draw, and yet who work in animation. Ask them how their careers have gone, and then decide for yourself if this is something you really want to tackle.  

 

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)