--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you work in animation, everyone…" description: "\"When you work in animation, everyone starts on the bottom rung. You don't even draw your own pictures, you just fill in the movements in between the dr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/rob-minkoff-10869_animation_when-you-work-in-animation-everyone-star_641965.jpg" --- # When you work in animation, everyone starts on the bottom… ![“When you work in animation, everyone starts on the bottom rung. You don't even draw your own pictures, you just fill in the movements in between the drawings of more experienced animators. There's never any question of anyone in animation not having paid their dues.” quote by Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/rob-minkoff-10869_animation_when-you-work-in-animation-everyone-star_641965.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/rob-minkoff-10869_animation_when-you-work-in-animation-everyone-star_641965.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/rob-minkoff-10869_animation_when-you-work-in-animation-everyone-star_641965.jpg) > “When you work in animation, everyone starts on the bottom rung. You don't even draw your own pictures, you just fill in the movements in between the drawings of more experienced animators. There's never any question of anyone in animation not having paid their dues.” [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. In animation, newcomers begin with modest tasks, learning by assisting seasoned artists before earning full creative responsibility. **In simple terms:** Beginners start low and learn from experts. Key Takeaway Embrace humble beginnings and learn from mentors. Themes growth learning humility craftsmanship Mood reflective inspirational Type professional motivational When to use this quote - entry-level animation jobs - studio mentorship programs - career progression in creative fields Key Concepts Apprenticeship skill development industry hierarchy Questions to Reflect On - How can you value the learning in low‑level tasks? - What mentors have shaped your skill set? A Different Perspective Progress may be slow and credit can be unevenly distributed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animation/) [Animators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animators/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [You have to love Dr. Seuss to take on the responsibility of conveying his work in animation or any medium.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-meledandri/you-have-to-love-dr-seuss-to-take-on-the-responsibility-of-conveying/) [Chris Meledandri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-meledandri/) > [I did what we call dry for wet effects, some of the miniatures work and two animation sequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hench/i-did-what-we-call-dry-for-wet-effects-some-of-the-miniatures-work/) [John Hench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hench/) > [You don't have a face to work with, so your voice has to do all the work until you see the animation. So, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-hayes/you-don-t-have-a-face-to-work-with-so-your-voice-has-to-do-all-the/) [Sean Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-hayes/) > [Too many of Disney animators, and a lot try to emulate Disney, are trying to hit what they call quality levels. They're boring mannerisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/too-many-of-disney-animators-and-a-lot-try-to-emulate-disney-are/) [Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/) > [I think stop-motion has always been semi-obsolete. And stop-motion animators - people like myself - love it so much that we're always going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-selick/i-think-stop-motion-has-always-been-semi-obsolete-and-stop-motion/) [Henry Selick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-selick/) > [All new tools are useful to animators, but great animation comes down to great animators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-deblois/all-new-tools-are-useful-to-animators-but-great-animation-comes-down/) Dean DeBlois > [Joanna Priestley is one of the most interesting and adept personal animators and filmmakers. I have enjoyed her work for years and been amazed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/joanna-priestley-is-one-of-the-most-interesting-and-adept-personal/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [Sometimes you're talking to a tennis ball on a stick, and you have to imagine what is supposed to be there and trust that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-fisher/sometimes-you-re-talking-to-a-tennis-ball-on-a-stick-and-you-have-to/) [Ray Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-fisher/) > [In timing a film, we used to assume that sneaks move slowly. This was great for animators-thirty-six to forty-eight drawings for a single step-but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-jones/in-timing-a-film-we-used-to-assume-that-sneaks-move-slowly-this-was/) [Chuck Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-jones/) > [I think a good study of music would be indispensable to the animators - a realization on their part of how primitive music is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-think-a-good-study-of-music-would-be-indispensable-to-the-animators/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [There's always kids who become stop motion animators. I get stuff all the time. They put it on YouTube. It's exciting to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-selick/there-s-always-kids-who-become-stop-motion-animators-i-get-stuff-all/) [Henry Selick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-selick/) > [People who get into animation tend to be kids. We don't have to grow up. But also, animators are great observers, and there's this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/people-who-get-into-animation-tend-to-be-kids-we-don-t-have-to-grow/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [The animators are fantastic though. They'll shoot their own reference material, and just go into the car park or something. And they might shoot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sanders/the-animators-are-fantastic-though-they-ll-shoot-their-own-reference/) Chris Sanders > [The industry in Japan moving toward CGI is not as severe and extreme as in the U.S. The animation industry in the U.S. is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katsuhiro-otomo/the-industry-in-japan-moving-toward-cgi-is-not-as-severe-and-extreme/) [Katsuhiro Otomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katsuhiro-otomo/) > [There's always room out there for the hand-drawn image. I personally like the imperfection of hand drawing as opposed to the slick look of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-groening/there-s-always-room-out-there-for-the-hand-drawn-image-i-personally/) [Matt Groening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-groening/) ## More by Rob Minkoff > [Mr. Peabody is this genetic anomaly. He does have brothers and sisters, all of them non-speaking, not super-smart dogs. He's an outcast, but has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/mr-peabody-is-this-genetic-anomaly-he-does-have-brothers-and-sisters/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [What's unique about Disney Animation, many of the films have this perennial quality about them. They don't seem like old films, they still seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/what-s-unique-about-disney-animation-many-of-the-films-have-this/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [I mean, when you really look at it, Mr. Peabody and Sherman were the original 'Modern Family.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/i-mean-when-you-really-look-at-it-mr-peabody-and-sherman-were-the/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [If you're in the movies and you haven't been to Beijing, you're kind of missing where things are really happening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/if-you-re-in-the-movies-and-you-haven-t-been-to-beijing-you-re-kind/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [Some people might look askance at a dog driving a scooter. But not everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/some-people-might-look-askance-at-a-dog-driving-a-scooter-but-not/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [History turned out to be my favorite subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/history-turned-out-to-be-my-favorite-subject/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [I'm breaking all the rules directing a picture with animals, kids - and talking mice!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/i-m-breaking-all-the-rules-directing-a-picture-with-animals-kids-and/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [I loved the fact that Peabody was a teacher and that he would take Sherman on these incredible adventures to meet these crazy characters.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/i-loved-the-fact-that-peabody-was-a-teacher-and-that-he-would-take/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [In fact, if you look at the early Warner Brothers cartoons, you'll see the precedent for Roger Rabbit was really the earliest Daffy Duck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/in-fact-if-you-look-at-the-early-warner-brothers-cartoons-you-ll-see/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [There was something raw and intense about Simba tugging on his dead father's ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/there-was-something-raw-and-intense-about-simba-tugging-on-his-dead/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [Mr. Peabody adopted Sherman and raised him the best way he knows how. Like with any family, things become complicated, so they both must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/mr-peabody-adopted-sherman-and-raised-him-the-best-way-he-knows-how/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [When I was little, I really loved movies and I also did a lot of performing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/when-i-was-little-i-really-loved-movies-and-i-also-did-a-lot-of/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [A big part of filmmaking, and a big part of the power of filmmaking, is creating characters that people fall in love with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/a-big-part-of-filmmaking-and-a-big-part-of-the-power-of-filmmaking-is/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [You can't think of animation as anything less than a performance and a show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/you-can-t-think-of-animation-as-anything-less-than-a-performance-and/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [Stuart Little will go down in history as the most expensive actor in motion pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/stuart-little-will-go-down-in-history-as-the-most-expensive-actor-in/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) [Explore all 63 Rob Minkoff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) ## More Animation quotes > [If I'm doing a voice-over session, like animation or something, and I'm doing three different voices, you've gotta separate them. You've gotta find the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-adlon/if-i-m-doing-a-voice-over-session-like-animation-or-something-and-i-m/) [Pamela Adlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-adlon/) > [I was always into cartoons and animation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nonito-donaire/i-was-always-into-cartoons-and-animation/) [Nonito Donaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nonito-donaire/) > [What's unique about Disney Animation, many of the films have this perennial quality about them. They don't seem like old films, they still seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-minkoff/what-s-unique-about-disney-animation-many-of-the-films-have-this/) [Rob Minkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-minkoff/) > [I was always tinkering around with stuff but nothing serious at the time. I was doing animations and drawing like crazy, but I wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-vangaalen/i-was-always-tinkering-around-with-stuff-but-nothing-serious-at-the/) Chad VanGaalen > [In feature animation, cartoony or exaggerated animation is almost taboo. There is this precedent that if you do that kind of stuff people won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genndy-tartakovsky/in-feature-animation-cartoony-or-exaggerated-animation-is-almost/) [Genndy Tartakovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genndy-tartakovsky/) > [CGI has fully ruined car crashes. Because how can you be impressed with them now? When you watch them in the '70s, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/cgi-has-fully-ruined-car-crashes-because-how-can-you-be-impressed/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [To this day I over prepare. I draw storyboards for every scene - chicken scratches so crude that they amuse and horrify the crew.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-stoltz/to-this-day-i-over-prepare-i-draw-storyboards-for-every-scene-chicken/) [Eric Stoltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-stoltz/) > [I was invited to join the MGM cartoon department. But if I'd started work in animation I'd have had to take a cut in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/i-was-invited-to-join-the-mgm-cartoon-department-but-if-i-d-started/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [I took a lot of influences from Studio Ghibli, which is the Japanese animation studio that made 'Spirited Away' and 'Castle in the Sky.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-hewlett/i-took-a-lot-of-influences-from-studio-ghibli-which-is-the-japanese/) [Jamie Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-hewlett/) > [I've worked in animation for a long time. I started in Spain and I wanted to make feature films. That desire to figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raul-garcia/i-ve-worked-in-animation-for-a-long-time-i-started-in-spain-and-i/) [Raul Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raul-garcia/) > [If you were to look at an old 'Betty Boop' cartoon or an 'Out of the Ink Well' animation, there are many things about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-seibert/if-you-were-to-look-at-an-old-betty-boop-cartoon-or-an-out-of-the-ink/) [Fred Seibert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-seibert/) > [Animation has always been about technology. You can't have animation without technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-wedge/animation-has-always-been-about-technology-you-can-t-have-animation/) [Chris Wedge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-wedge/) > [In a movie, it's often important to have aliens whose gestures and facial expressions can be 'read' by humans. And in the days before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/in-a-movie-it-s-often-important-to-have-aliens-whose-gestures-and/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [Tigress is my alternate personality, especially with children. I love animation because you get to do things you don't normally get to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-yuh-nelson/tigress-is-my-alternate-personality-especially-with-children-i-love/) [Jennifer Yuh Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-yuh-nelson/) > [With live-action I think we'd have lost the universal appeal of the Persepolis story. With live-action, it would have turned into a story of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/with-live-action-i-think-we-d-have-lost-the-universal-appeal-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) [Browse all 837 Animation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you work in animation, everyone starts on the bottom rung. You don't even draw your own pictures, you just fill in the movements in between the drawings of more experienced animators. 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