My name is Chad Stewart and after 30 years of working as a professional animator, I now teach students ages 11-18 how to animate. When my students ask what it’s like to become an animator, I like to tell them a little story...
Once upon a time, there was a little kid who loved to watch cartoons.
This story started about 35 years ago. This kid, let’s call him, Tadd was in middle school and liked to draw. He was pretty good at it too, at least that’s what many people told him. Tadd was around the age that people started to ask “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and expected a serious answer. Tadd knew he couldn’t just say “professional baseball player” and call it good. He needed a plan, something that seemed legitimate with a college to go to and proof that he could do this and make good money.
Around this time, Tadd’s family embarked on a road trip that included such timeless sights as the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Hoover Dam and to top it all off the piéce de résistance...Disneyland. Tadd was already enamored with cartoons in general, but somehow on this trip it made it seem all the more real. This was California, where the cartoons he had loved had been created, by real people!
So Tadd started dreaming about being an animator. His mother called up the Walt Disney Feature Animation Company and asked how her son could make cartoons. They told her that the best thing Tadd could do if he really wanted to become an animator was get better at the drawing of humans and animals in motion. They also told her about California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), a college Walt Disney himself had helped create to promote all the arts, with one department specifically devoted to training animators. In fact, it was the only accredited college in the United States at the time that had an Animation Department.
Suddenly, Tadd had the answer to that ever-present question. “When I grow up, I’m going to be a Disney Animator,” he would explain to people who asked him what he was going to be when he grew up. That answer remained the same through his middle-school years and into high school. As he was improving his drawing skills, Tadd knew his dream could be a reality and even told his high school guidance counselor of his animation goals. At first, Tadd’s guidance counselor was skeptical, until he looked into Tadd’s dream school, CalArts. His guidance counselor admitted, “Well, it seems like you have a plan.”
Turning a Dream Into Reality
Things began to get real for Tadd as his high school career drew to a close. He had loved watching cartoons and drawing them since he could remember, but he had no formal art training. Unfortunately, the portfolio he submitted to CalArts to apply for admission was rejected. Tadd knew that if he was going to “make it” as an animator, he was going to have to get much more serious about his art. Whatever natural talent he had wasn’t going to be enough, it was time to get to work!
Tadd swallowed his pride and embraced a humility he wasn’t comfortable with. He realized that if he was going to improve, it would be because he listened to the people and voices that gave him critique, not just encouragement. In fact, Tadd had been existing on an “encouragement-only” diet when it came to his art. Like for anyone, it felt good to have people tell him that they thought his art was awesome, but the reality was, it didn’t help him develop his skills. So, Tadd applied to another art school to study fine art.
Over the next two years, Tadd worked really hard. He even had one professor who wouldn’t grade his work at first because he knew that he hadn’t spent enough time on it and he could do better. After Tadd applied himself over the next two weeks, he surprised himself with the project he produced! This gave him the determination he needed to apply to CalArts again. He was rejected. But he still didn’t give up!
Finally, during his second year studying fine arts, he applied for CalArts one last time and… he was accepted! Packing everything he could fit into two suitcases, Tadd set off for California. His determination, humility, and hard work had paid off, as he was now studying among the very best artists he had ever met!
Getting To Work
Before he knew it, Tadd got his very first job on the second season of The Simpsons! But, he was determined to reach that dream he had had ever since he was a young child -- to be a Disney animator! So he continued to take as many jobs as he could in order to build his resume and become skilled enough to work for his dream company. Finally, after years of hard work, he landed his first job at Disney, on the team of Tarzan.
You may have guessed already that Tadd isn’t Tadd, he’s actually me, Chad! I’ve worked as a professional animator on over 20 films and tv shows for the last 30 years and try to pass on these lessons to my kids and my students. It took a lot of hard work, practice, and humility to get where I am now, and the reality is, I’m not special. If it worked for me, it can work for you! With consistency, over time, these principles transformed that little kid who liked to watch cartoons into the grown up ‘kid’ who got to make them. And with some dedication, determination, and a little splash of humility, you can too!
These are just a few things that I’ve learned over my 30 year career as a creative. I have worked as a professional animator in film and television for almost 30 years both with Walt Disney Feature Animation and Sony Pictures on films like Emperor's New Groove, Tarzan, and Polar Express. Now I’m bringing my wide experience—both from the professional animation field and from being an expert homeschooling dad—into teaching students ages 11-18 about this fascinating art form. If your child is interested in animation, filmmaking, or storytelling, check out The Animation Course!
Chad Stewart
Founder & Teacher, The Animation Course
Former Disney Animator
