Animator
He turned his childhood passion into an adult career but only after first establishing stable employment to which he could return if his dream never earned enough – by itself – to pay for his living expenses.
CHILDHOOD
John Serpentelli (JS) was born in Toms River, New Jersey, where he grew up until coming to Philadelphia to pursue his education after high school.
As a child, JS’ early passions were drawing, attending movies and tending to his pets.
EDUCATION
JS’ first education path was enrolling at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) but he soon transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied film and art history in addition to pursuing enough education-related courses to eventually be licensed as a middle and high school teacher.
To earn spending money during his college student days, JS was a part-time janitor at a movie theater in Philadelphia, where he continued to enjoy watching movies in short segments – for free – when not cleaning bathrooms and sweeping up patrons’ popcorn.
One time while sneaking peeks at a movie cartoon and simultaneously trying to clean the movie-house floor, JS had an epiphany: perhaps he could teach during the day and draw cartoons at nights and on weekends.
FIRST CAREER PATH IS NEVER A BINDING COMMITMENT
Assuming he should continue his career path in the field of teaching, for which he had invested the time and expense of a college education, JS was hired by a public school district to teach middle school teenagers. He later earned his Master’s degree in education (secondary school teaching).
When off-duty as a teacher, JS could often be found as a patron in movie theaters, careful not to spill popcorn for the janitor to clean up.
When not attending movies, JS experimented with teaching himself how to be an animator of films so that someday, he might be producing cartoons like those he had enjoyed as a child.
WHAT IS AN ANIMATOR
An ‘animator’ is a professional who creates multiple images, known as frames, which, when sequenced together, rapidly create an illusion of movement known as animation. This art form can be used in various forms of media including film, television, video games and the internet.
An animator has the almost incredible ability to breathe life into characters, objects and environments in a wide range of mediums like film, TV and video games. Animators often participate in the early stages of project development, brainstorming ideas, conceptualizing scenes and creating rough sketches or models. This stage may also involve research to ensure that designs are accurate and authentic.
The term ‘animator’ comes from the Latin word ‘anima’ meaning ‘life.’ Therefore, an animator can be considered as someone who brings life to static images by making them appear to move in a fluid and dynamic manner.
There are various types of animators within the industry named for it:
2D Animators: They create sequences of images on two-dimensional spaces. These images give the impression of motion when displayed in succession. Traditional cartoon animation often follows this style.
3D Animators: They create animation by physically manipulating real objects and taking photographs frame by frame, giving the illusion of movement. Examples can be found in films like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline.
Each type of animator uses different techniques and tools, but they all share the common goal of creating engaging, moving art.
Animator duties include:
- Storyboarding – a visual script of sorts, with illustrations or images displayed in sequence to pre-visualize the animation or motion graphic.
- Designing Characters, props or environments. For 3D, this involves modeling the asset in three dimensions and then texturing it to make it look realistic.
- Animating Scenes. The core duty of an animator is, of course, animation – to bring the assets to life by creating illusions of movement. For 3D, before an asset can be animated, it must be ‘rigged’ – the process of adding a skeleton to the model so it can move in a realistic way. This is a highly technical task requiring a strong understanding of both anatomy and mathematics. The movie Soul is a good example. After the animation is complete, it needs to be lit correctly and then rendered.
- Editing and refining. Once all the elements are animated and rendered, they need to be composited together, which can involve adding effects, adjusting colors or adding transitions between shots. The final step is editing, where the animation is cut together to match the timing of the soundtrack and to ensure the story flows well. Based on feedback from directors, clients or other team members, animators may have to make revisions to their work, which could involve tweaking animations, changing the lighting or even redesigning characters or environments.
HOW TO BECOME AN ANIMATOR
On-the-job training is invaluable for budding animators. This real-world experience can supplement classroom learning and provide practical skills that are highly valued by employers.
Aspiring animators have various educational paths. Some pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Animation or Visual Effects, covering drawing, 3D modeling, computer graphics, color theory and animation software.
Alternatively, shorter certificate programs and online courses on animation skills are available on platforms like (as of mid-2024) Coursera, Udemy and LinkedIn Learning. Regardless of the chosen path, students must build a strong portfolio to showcase their skills to employers.
Apprenticeships are another excellent way to gain practical experience in animation.
A LONG ROAD TO SUCCESS MAY BEGIN WITH A PHONE CALL
JS’ film animation career began in earnest with a phone call to a local art organization, when he discovered that the school’s animation instructor had recently departed and that there was a sizeable grant available to hire the instructor’s replacement.
Adopting the mantra of “fake it till you make it.” JS believed he had by then taught himself enough about animation to be able to teach it to others. Certainly he would not be defrauding his first set of students, confined to a ‘correctional school’ for girls who had committed weapons offenses.
Working with those young women resulted in JS producing the film “Some Girlz in the Hood.” He stayed in contact with many of the young women after they gained their freedom and concluded that the positive experience of many of them while working with him and each other on the film had changed their paths away from committing violence. Thus inspired, JS dedicated his life to using animation as “a conduit for people that don’t have a voice,” a promise he would keep through his long animation-teaching career.
ONCE A TEACHER, ALWAYS A TEACHER
While no longer interested in teaching middle school subjects to teenagers, JS taught college-aged students at the University of the Arts, Moore College of Art, Temple University, the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia University and Delaware College of Art and Design.
After a Sesame Street producer viewed JS’ work at a New York City film festival, JS – with sponsors – founded the Art and Animation Station (later renamed the Animation Stewdio), a place for young children to learn the fundamentals of animation. Over its six years of operation, JS’ students had their work featured at international film festivals and on television networks such as Nickelodean, HBO, PBS and Sesame Street.
According to JS, the only significant difference between teaching animation to children and college students was their difference in height.
CAREER SATISFACTION
JS’ animated short film ‘Once Upon a Time’ won awards from the NY Expo of Short Films and the American Motion Picture Society.
An award-winning filmmaker and artist, JS will be remembered by his students as a beloved mentor and teacher of animation.
_________________________________________________________________
This career story was based on multiple sources including an obituary written by one or more unknown (likely family) authors plus internet research including the website Studiobinder, with Kyle DeGuzman credited as the author on February 11, 2024.
