In the Film Industry, and the entertainment industry as a whole, animation as a medium has been deemed “childish” whenever its brought up, and is often looked at with an already dismissing eye whenever its quality is judged. This needs to stop.

People who work on animated projects are collectively bothered when their work is dismissed as something lesser than what it actually is as anyone would be. But for animators it seems as though they have to put up with this issue much more than others, with the main contributor being the general belief that animation is “just for kids”. With the commonness of Kids cartoons alone shaping the way people view animation

Especially at the Oscars, an award’s ceremony that people usually look towards to derive what's “good” and what's not; 

there’s a level of belittlement towards animation. At last year’s ceremony when the award for “best animated feature” to the movie Encanto was being presented, the presenters made a backhanded comment about it. Saying that “So many kids watch these films over and over and over… ”and over and over and over and over.” another presenter added. Which angered those who actually work on animation, such as screenwriter Andrew Guastaferro who said “If animation is really just mindless, annoying kids’ content, why is an entire floor of your museum devoted to the artistry & brilliance of Miyazaki’s achievements?” Highlighting the regression of how people view animation since Hayao Miyazaki is a renowned Filmmaker known for his creation of the studio ghibli films who’s been honored for his progressions for filmmaking but we still sit here. Sullying animation’s significance. WIth that, animation still has many people whom respect of it, of which there’s Jonah Badstubner who finds it to be true that people’s perception of animation is shaped by filmmakers. And that's evident with how the academy has been. 

“Guillermo del Toro said that animation isn’t a genre, its a medium because that's something I've read like all over the internet for a long long time but you’ve never actually seen a filmmaker mention that until now," Jonah said. And things like “best animated series” or feature or whatever shouldn’t even really be a category. Animated projects should just be counted amongst the other projects.”

Which goes to show that the “public eye” and its perception of animation might actually be more positive than what we think it is, with big names in the industry often shrouding what people may actually think. Because Animation has always had its lovers and it's only really grown since then, as it really has grown since its conception, says Janiyah. Another fan of the medium.

“I was listening to this podcast, and it was about, you know, the ‘misfits' in the industry," Janiyah said. And the only reason that Incredibles was made was because of all the misfits, or just all the people who didn't fit in with their groups of people, and those at disney got together these misfits as opposed to their standard star teams who had created their earlier hits and the Incredibles yielded great success because of how unique it was.”

And that really brings to light how significant these animated projects are, as they can come to be some of the most influential pieces of media known to man. And really anyone can start with it since animation styles can vary greatly and widely, and there’s always something to enjoy with one. From animating stick figures, stop motion with toys, and of course big scale animation on the cinematic level. And here I have a local Animator Ruby, who’s currently working on several projects. You can find them at @Iamcreativekitty on instagram, they make animated shorts and are currently working on a show.

“I feel like animation is one of the most unique forms of entertainment since there’s so much that can be done with it, and that's why I’ve loved it so much," Ruby said. "Like there’s something about it that gives all animations a certain “character” that I love! There’s also just like so much you can do with it, and that's honestly why I got into animating, it just feels so special.”

And with that, it should be known that animation is still a special thing no matter all of the flak it may have gotten or the dismissive eyes it's been judged under. It's this unique medium that allows creatives to express themselves in ways that are just not possible or at least not as well done in live action cinema and television. 

Its been making great strides, people are still giving animation its unending support. Even recently the netflix series “Arcane” won best animated series in the game awards and is being famed as some of the best fiction of its kind. And it just goes to show how this medium, this art, this way of expressing yourself will continue to push forward despite any of the hurdles it comes across. 

“Animation is whatever you make it,” Jonah said.