| Important Core Job Duties (in order of importance) For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 100 (%) | Description: Clean supplies such as makeup brushes. |
| Importance: 100 (%) | Description: Apply makeup to enhance or alter the appearance of people appearing in productions such as movies. |
| Importance: 100 (%) | Description: Alter or maintain makeup during productions as necessary to compensate for lighting changes or to achieve continuity of effect. |
| Importance: 100 (%) | Description: Provide performers with makeup removal assistance after performances have been completed. |
| Importance: 100 (%) | Description: Evaluate environmental characteristics, such as venue size and lighting plans, to determine makeup requirements. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Assess performers' skin type to ensure that makeup will not cause break-outs or skin irritations. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Examine sketches, photographs, and plaster models to obtain desired character image depiction. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Cleanse and tone the skin to prepare it for makeup application. |
| Importance: 95 (%) | Description: Select desired makeup shades from stock, or mix oil, grease, and coloring to achieve specific color effects. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Analyze a script, noting events that affect each character's appearance, so that plans can be made for each scene. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Confer with stage or motion picture officials and performers to determine desired effects. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Study production information, such as character descriptions, period settings, and situations, to determine makeup requirements. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Establish budgets, and work within budgetary limits. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Write makeup sheets and take photos to document specific looks and the products used to achieve the looks. |
| Importance: 90 (%) | Description: Duplicate work precisely to replicate characters' appearances on a daily basis. |
| Importance: 86 (%) | Description: Requisition or acquire needed materials for special effects, including wigs, beards, and special cosmetics. |
| Importance: 86 (%) | Description: Create character drawings or models, based upon independent research, to augment period production files. |
| Importance: 85 (%) | Description: Attach prostheses to performers and apply makeup to create special features or effects, such as scars, aging, or illness. |
| Importance: 81 (%) | Description: Design rubber or plastic prostheses that can be used to change performers' appearances. |
| Importance: 76 (%) | Description: Demonstrate products to clients, and provide instruction in makeup application. |
Animation Careers and Jobs
Select, Find and Prepare for Animation Careers and Jobs - all on one page
For visually creative people who also want to build technical software skills in a competitive field. Use the tools below to see which animation roles fit your background and goals.
This field splits sharply between 2D/traditional animation and 3D/technical animation, each requiring different software skill sets. Use the tools below to explore Animation-related job titles sorted by growth rate, salary, or required education. You can start with entry points like Junior Animator, or look ahead to advanced roles such as Lead Animator or Technical Director. Along the way, you will see specific certifications, such as Autodesk Certified Professional (Maya), that can help you move up the career ladder.
Here is a short Helper Video 
This page will take you through 4 steps to (1) Select from Animation careers/jobs, (2) Find Animation job listings, (3) Prepare for Animation careers, and (4) Provide Animation career-specific resources.
Step 1: Select a Career/Job: This page starts with 4 ways for you to identify and select from listings of Animation careers/jobs:
A) Fastest Growing Animation Careers - 2023 to 2033 (est.)
These listings are based on job growth estimates and helps you to identify the fastest growing and evolving Animation careers. Some careers may not initially seem related to Animation, so relevant Animation jobs are listed alongside each listing. This can also help us to identify which careers (bottom of the listing) may have negative growth - perhaps due to automation or planned obsolescence.
B) Median Annual Salary U.S. Animation Careers
These listings are sorted (descending) by median annual salary in the U.S. This may help us to identify our ideal career. We may not qualify at this time for the desired career, but this listing and the results provided can help us to explore job details, as well as learn how to appropriately prepare for the career.
C) Animation Career Ladders (Educational Requirements)
These listings will help us to identify Animation careers sorted by educational requirements (with the most difficult to obtain listed first). This may help us to identify career ladders (as we scroll down the list), and help us to get jobs that we qualify for now.
D) Select From a Listing of 25 Animation Jobs.
The list may be quite long. There are two ways you might like to use this list:
1) Filter - As you enter a word, you will filter (limit) the list of job titles
2) Browse the list (Don't Filter) - You can simply explore the list of job titles. There may be many that you might never have considered to be of interest.
Once you have identified a job title of interest, simply click on it.
Step 2: Find a Job: After you have selected a career/job title above, you will see a form asking for your location. You will see several radio selection choices to utilize the job search site of your choice.
Step 3: Prepare For a Career: In this section you will gain access to detailed information to help you prepare for the chosen career. Information may include (not every career choice includes all of the elements below - updates occur quarterly):
Core Duties: Lists the primary worker-related tasks performed in this occupation
Supplemental Duties: Lists additional tasks that are performed but are secondary to the core duties
Work Activities: Summarizes the broad types of behaviors and actions related to this career
Specific Work Activities: Provides more granular day-to-day activities tied to the work performed
Essential Skills: Provides foundational skills that are core to performing this specific occupation
Transferable Skills: Provides career-portable skills that can be applied across multiple occupations and industries
Day-in-the-Life Summaries: Provides a snapshot of the key activities performed on a typical workday in this career
Knowledge Required: Provides the requirements regarding the acquisition of facts and principles
Software Skills: Lists software tools commonly used in this occupation, organized by category and priority
Preparation Required: Provides a summary of the required experience and education
Education Required: Detailed breakdown of the education required
Training and Experience Required: Detailed breakdown of the training and Training and Experience Required
Local Salary Information: Provides national and local salary ranges
Certifications: Provides appropriate government and private-sector certifications and/or credentials that may be required
Professional Associations: Provides professional associations that are related to the career selected
Job Listings: Provides links to active current job listings for the selected career, along with multiple similar job titles to explore. All information appears on this page without navigating away.
Related Careers to Consider: Lists up to 20 careers that might be of interest to you (related to your initial choice - what they do, what they know, and what they're called), ranked by best fit.
** If you clicked on a link from section D (as described in Step 1 above), you will see one or more links to an occupation that is usually a bit more general than your initial job selection - the link(s) is directly related to the specific job you identified through your prior selections.
*NOTE: It is possible that there may not be a career path identified for the specific job you selected in Step 1. If this is the case, scroll up the page and click on a different career/job.
Step 4: Career-Specific Resources (detailed and constantly updated): Continue to scroll down the page and you will find tabs that provide detailed (updated) links specific to the career you selected. This information includes:
Videos: Provides a listing of video links related to this career. A great way to get a quick overview of the occupation.
Resumes: Sources for resume materials and techniques. This can help to get you started.
Job Description: Sources that provide job descriptions, which are vital to resume and interview preparation.
Interviews: Provides links that can help you to prepare for and successfully complete the job interview. Can also assist with coffee chats.
Step by Step: Provides links to resources that can help to organize the career search process.
LinkedIn: One of the best professional social media sites that provides links, opportunities, and networking specifically for careers and career development.
Step 1 of 4: Select a Career/Job
7 Animation careers are listed below (sorted by Percentage Change in Total Job Openings - 2023 to 2033 est.). Animation-related jobs specific to each career are also provided. This shows which careers are emerging and growing the fastest. Please Scroll and Select below:
| Occupations | U.S. Job Openings 2023-2033 (% change) | Animation-Related Jobs |
8 Animation careers are listed below (sorted by U.S. National Median Salary). Animation-related jobs specific to each occupation are also provided. Please Scroll and Select below::
| Occupations | National Median Salary | Animation-Related Jobs |
8 Animation careers are listed (sorted by Education/Preparation Requirements - descending) to provide career ladders. Animation-related jobs specific to each career are also provided.
|
Education/Preparation Categories: 5 = Usually requires graduate school (e.g., Master's degree, Ph.D., M.D., or J.D.) 4 = Usually requires a four-year Bachelor's degree 3 = Usually requires vocational training, related on-the-job experience, or Associate's degree 2 = Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, but not always Please Scroll and Select below: |
||
| Occupations | Education/Preparation | Animation-Related Jobs |
Scroll through the picklist (below). There are 25 specific Animation job titles listed. Select those that may be of interest - you will get active job listing links, along with detailed resources to help you prepare for a career related to that job.
You can use this form two ways:
Filter - As you enter a keyword, you will filter (limit) the list of job titles below
Browse the list (Don't Filter) - You can simply explore the list of job titles. There may be many that you might never have considered to be of interest.
OR - leave blank and scroll through the choices:
Select a Job Title (Scroll and Select) :
Step 2 of 4: Find a Job
Find Job Listings:
Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance.
Step 3 of 4: Prepare For a Career
Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance
Description: Apply makeup to performers to reflect period, setting, and situation of their role.
Please click on a section below to expand and see detailed occupational information related to "Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance":
U.S. Total Employment (2023):
3,100U.S. Total Employment (2033 est.):
4,200
Employment Change (2023-2033 est.):
1,100 (37%) Average Annual Job Openings (2023-2033 est.):
500
Core Duties
Supplemental Duties
| Important Supplemental Job Duties (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Advise hairdressers on the hairstyles required for character parts. |
| Importance: 48 (%) | Description: Wash and reset wigs. |
Work Activities
| Important General Work Activities (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 92 (%) | Description: Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships: Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Importance: 91 (%) | Description: Thinking Creatively: Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions. |
| Importance: 89 (%) | Description: Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates: Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Importance: 88 (%) | Description: Getting Information: Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Importance: 85 (%) | Description: Making Decisions and Solving Problems: Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Importance: 79 (%) | Description: Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work: Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
| Importance: 78 (%) | Description: Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings: Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems. |
| Importance: 76 (%) | Description: Scheduling Work and Activities: Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others. |
| Importance: 74 (%) | Description: Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge: Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
| Importance: 72 (%) | Description: Assisting and Caring for Others: Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients. |
| Importance: 70 (%) | Description: Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others: Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks. |
| Importance: 70 (%) | Description: Developing and Building Teams: Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members. |
| Importance: 69 (%) | Description: Documenting/Recording Information: Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. |
| Importance: 69 (%) | Description: Training and Teaching Others: Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others. |
| Importance: 68 (%) | Description: Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others: Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others. |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Handling and Moving Objects: Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things. |
| Importance: 67 (%) | Description: Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People: Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people. |
| Importance: 66 (%) | Description: Monitoring and Controlling Resources: Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money. |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events: Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events. |
| Importance: 65 (%) | Description: Performing Administrative Activities: Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork. |
| Importance: 64 (%) | Description: Performing General Physical Activities: Performing general physical activities includes doing activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials. |
| Importance: 63 (%) | Description: Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials: Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects. |
| Importance: 62 (%) | Description: Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates: Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance. |
| Importance: 62 (%) | Description: Coaching and Developing Others: Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills. |
| Importance: 61 (%) | Description: Communicating with People Outside the Organization: Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. |
Specific Work Activities
| Important Specific Work Activities
How can you begin to build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. Specific Work Activities appear below: |
|
| Apply cleansing or conditioning agents to client hair, scalp, or skin. | |
| Apply makeup to alter or enhance appearance. | |
| Assess skin or hair conditions. | |
| Clean equipment or supplies. | |
| Clean tools or equipment. | |
| Collaborate with others to determine production details. | |
| Demonstrate activity techniques or equipment use. | |
| Design costumes or cosmetic effects for characters. | |
| Groom wigs or hairpieces. | |
| Manage budgets for personal services operations. | |
| Order materials, supplies, or equipment. | |
| Prepare operational reports or records. | |
| Review production information to determine costume or makeup requirements. | |
| Teach health or hygiene practices. | |
Knowledge Required
| Knowledge Required (in order of importance)
For the Top 5 most important - How can you build experience and skill doing these? This will help now, to begin preparing for this type of occupation. |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 87 (%) | Description: Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Importance: 80 (%) | Description: English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar. |
| Importance: 73 (%) | Description: Fine Arts: Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture. |
| Importance: 68 (%) | Description: Design: Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models. |
| Importance: 68 (%) | Description: Communications and Media: Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media. |
Essential Skills
| Essential Skills (in order of importance)
These are the foundational skills most central to success in this occupation. For the Top 5 most important, how can you begin building experience and confidence using these skills now? |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 62 (%) | Description: Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Importance: 60 (%) | Description: Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. |
| Importance: 58 (%) | Description: Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Importance: 54 (%) | Description: Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. |
Transferable Skills
| Transferable Skills (in order of importance)
These are skills that can transfer across occupations and industries. For the Top 5 most important, how can you strengthen these skills now so they support both this career and future career flexibility? |
|
| Importance (%) | Description |
| Importance: 54 (%) | Description: Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
| Importance: 52 (%) | Description: Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
Day-in-the-Life Summaries
| Day-in-the-Life Summaries These summaries show the main types of activities you are likely to perform on a regular basis in this occupation. How can you imagine your typical workday — using these examples to see if this type of work fits you? |
| Activity: Apply hygienic or cosmetic agents to skin or hair. |
| Activity: Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas. |
| Activity: Communicate with others about specifications or project details. |
| Activity: Create artistic designs or performances. |
| Activity: Evaluate patient or client condition or treatment options. |
| Activity: Groom or style hair. |
| Activity: Manage budgets or finances. |
| Activity: Prepare reports of operational or procedural activities. |
| Activity: Purchase goods or services. |
| Activity: Study details of artistic productions. |
| Activity: Train others on health or medical topics. |
| Activity: Train others to use equipment or products. |
Software Skills
|
Software Skills These are examples of software tools commonly used in this occupation, organized from most to least important for your career preparation. How can you start learning or practicing the highest-priority tools so that you feel confident using them on the job? |
|||||
| Emerging Tech Skills | |||||
| Accounting software: | |||||
| Intuit QuickBooks | |||||
| Electronic mail software: | |||||
| Microsoft Outlook | |||||
| Graphics or photo imaging software: | |||||
| Adobe Photoshop | |||||
| Office suite software: | |||||
| Microsoft Office software | |||||
| Spreadsheet software: | |||||
| Microsoft Excel | |||||
| Web page creation and editing software: | |||||
| General Software Tools | |||||
| Accounting software: | |||||
| Clear Books | |||||
| Calendar and scheduling software: | |||||
| Appointment scheduling software | |||||
| Data base user interface and query software: | |||||
| Bookitlive Client databases | |||||
| Electronic mail software: | |||||
| Email software | |||||
| Graphics or photo imaging software (scroll table below): | |||||
| |||||
| Instant messaging software: | |||||
| Internet browser software: | |||||
| Web browser software | |||||
| Web page creation and editing software: | |||||
| Blogging software |
Preparation Required
| Preparation Required - How much preparation is needed to obtain this type of job? |
| Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed |
| Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job. |
| Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. |
| Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations. |
| These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include hydroelectric production managers, desktop publishers, electricians, agricultural technicians, barbers, court reporters and simultaneous captioners, and medical assistants. |
Education Required
| Education Required - by frequency of educational attainment This shows you details about the level of education most commonly held by workers in this occupation. How can you begin planning the educational pathway that will prepare you best for this type of work? |
|
| Frequency of Attainment (%) | Level of Education |
| Frequency of Attainment: 33.3 (%) | Level of Education: High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 28.6 (%) | Level of Education: Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 9.5 (%) | Level of Education: Less than a High School Diploma |
| Frequency of Attainment: 9.5 (%) | Level of Education: Some College Courses |
| Frequency of Attainment: 9.5 (%) | Level of Education: Bachelor's Degree |
| Frequency of Attainment: 4.8 (%) | Level of Education: Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) |
| Frequency of Attainment: 4.8 (%) | Level of Education: First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession. |
Training and Experience Required
| Training and Experience Required - by frequency of training and work experience attainment This section shows you how often different types of training and work experience are required for this occupation. How can you start gaining the kinds of experience and training that are most common for this type of work? |
|
| Frequency of Attainment (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience |
| Frequency of Attainment: 30.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year |
| Frequency of Attainment: 30.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 15.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 10.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years |
| Frequency of Attainment: 5.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Up to and including 1 month |
| Frequency of Attainment: 5.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months |
| Frequency of Attainment: 5.0 (%) | Level of Training and Work Experience: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months |
Local Salary Information
Select a State (scroll and Select) :
Please select a State to see State and National Salaries
Job Listings
| Job Listings and Similar Occupational Titles - scroll and click to identify common requirements, keywords, and skills in current job listings |
Related Careers to Consider
Step 4 of 4: Career-Specific Resources
This section contains detailed external resources appropriate to "Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance". Explore these resources to start learning more. Links are constantly updated, so bookmark this page.
Videos
Here is a listing of videos related to this career. A great way to get a quick overview of the occupation.
Resumes
Here are resources that allow you to see example resumes for this occupation. It may be helpful to see examples from others who have this type of experience.
Job Description
Here are resources that provide job descriptions, which are vital for resume and interview preparation.
Interviews
There are many great resources that can help guide you through the interview process. These links provide help in preparing and performing an effective interview, specific to this occupation.
Step-by-Step
Here are links to help guide you, step-by-step, to become a(n): Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance
LinkedIn®
Here are links to various posts and groups from LinkedIn ® that relate to this occupation. Great way to start building professional contacts in the field that might be most appropriate for you.
Developed by Dr. Ralph Jagodka, Ed.D., Professor Emeritus of Business Management at Mt. San Antonio College and author of the Harvard Business Impact article "What to Do When Students Ask You for Career Advice." - Full bio. © 2026 About This Page
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