# Studio Tour

Part of the Animation Merit Badge Digital Resource Guide: [Introduction & Overview](https://merit-badge.university/merit-badges/animation/guide/index.md)

*4. Animation in the Real World*

> **4a.** Tour an animation studio or a business where animation is used, either in person, via video, or via the internet. Share what you have learned with your counselor.

## What to Look For

Whether you visit a studio in person, watch a virtual tour video, or explore a studio's website, you want to come away understanding **how animation actually gets made** in a professional setting. Here are the key things to pay attention to:

### The Animation Pipeline

Every studio follows a **pipeline** — a sequence of steps that takes a project from idea to finished product. While the details vary, most pipelines include these stages:

1. **Story and Script:** Writers and directors develop the story, dialogue, and overall vision.
2. **Storyboarding:** Artists draw rough sequences (like a comic book version of the film) to plan every shot.
3. **Design:** Character designers, background artists, and color stylists create the visual look.
4. **Layout:** Artists plan camera angles, character positions, and scene composition.
5. **Animation:** Animators create the movement — this is where the 12 principles come to life.
6. **Effects:** Specialists add rain, fire, magic, explosions, and other visual effects.
7. **Lighting and Rendering:** (For 3D) Digital lighting artists set up lights in the virtual scene, and powerful computers render the final images.
8. **Compositing:** All the layers — characters, backgrounds, effects, lighting — are combined into the final frames.
9. **Sound and Music:** Voice actors, musicians, and sound designers add the audio that brings the visuals to life.

> **Did You Know?**
>
> A single frame of a Pixar movie can take 24 hours or more for a computer to render. A feature film has over 100,000 frames. Pixar uses a massive "render farm" — a building full of thousands of computers working around the clock.

### The People

Animation is deeply collaborative. During your tour, notice how many different roles exist:

- **Director** — guides the creative vision
- **Storyboard artist** — plans the visual storytelling
- **Character animator** — brings characters to life
- **Rigger** — builds the digital "skeleton" that allows 3D models to move
- **Technical director** — solves engineering problems (how to simulate fur, water, cloth)
- **Compositor** — assembles all the visual layers
- **Producer** — keeps the project on schedule and on budget

### The Workspace

Pay attention to the physical (or virtual) workspace. You might notice:

- Reference materials everywhere — photos, toys, drawings pinned to walls
- Dual monitors showing animation software
- Drawing tablets for digital sketching
- Review rooms where teams watch work-in-progress together

![An animation studio workspace with a large monitor displaying a 3D character model, a drawing tablet beside it, reference photos pinned to a corkboard on the wall, and a shelf with small figurines and art books](https://ik.imagekit.io/doulacoop/tr:w-800/mbu-assets/merit-badges/animation/guide/animation-studio-workspace?v=e0de13b1)

## Virtual Tour Options

If you cannot visit a studio in person, these video tours will give you an inside look:

Video: [What It's Like Working at Disney Animation & Studio Tour](https://youtu.be/1KUAO2hfdBE?si=x4yxTOYqlnh4KVS_)

Video: [CGI DreamWorks Animation Studio Pipeline](https://youtu.be/ru0tQRJ4qKs?si=_s5HH3nCS7hflRoB)

Video: [What It's Like to Work at Pixar Animation Studios](https://youtu.be/C3IdS20YzHg?si=EBYH71frOfara-ns)

Video: [Inside Out 2 — Exclusive Pixar Studio Tour](https://youtu.be/3NaZsIdXtC4?si=B3HEHhLVRuIMgMrs)

## Beyond Film Studios

Animation is not just used in movies and TV. Many businesses use animation every day:

- **Advertising agencies** create animated commercials, social media ads, and product demos.
- **Video game studios** animate characters, environments, and user interfaces.
- **Medical companies** produce animated training materials and 3D models of the human body.
- **Architecture firms** create animated walkthroughs of buildings before they are constructed.
- **News organizations** use animated graphics to explain weather, data, and breaking stories.

If there is a business near you that uses animation in any of these ways, that counts for this requirement too.

> **Tip**
>
> If you do a virtual tour, take notes as you watch. Write down at least three specific things you learned — the name of a tool they use, a step in their pipeline, or something that surprised you. Your counselor will want to hear specifics, not just "it was cool."

**Studio Tour Discussion Prep** — Be ready to share with your counselor

- [ ] What type of animation does the studio create? (Film, TV, games, ads, medical, etc.)
- [ ] What steps are in their pipeline? Name at least three.
- [ ] What surprised you the most about how animation is made?
- [ ] What roles or jobs did you learn about?
- [ ] How does their work compare to the animations you created for [Requirement 3](https://merit-badge.university/merit-badges/animation/guide/req3/)?

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You have seen how animation works in the real world today. Now let's think about where it is headed.

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- Previous: [Create Your Animations](https://merit-badge.university/merit-badges/animation/guide/req3/index.md)
- Next: [The Future of Animation](https://merit-badge.university/merit-badges/animation/guide/req4b/index.md)