# disciplines
Choose your discipline.
Eight CG disciplines, each a different UK career route. Salary bands are Glassdoor UK + Indeed UK + ScreenSkills 2025 (verified 2026-07). Studio adoption is IMDB Pro tech-credit search + published job posts.
# routes
The eight routes.
3D modelling
Build the assets: characters, environments, props, vehicles. Tools: Maya, Blender, ZBrush, Substance Painter. UK salary junior £24k, mid £34k, senior £50k+. High demand in Bristol animation and game studios (Sumo Digital, Rockstar North).
Animation
Make things move with intent. Tools: Maya, Blender. UK salary junior £26k, mid £38k, senior £55k+. Aardman + Cartoon Network Studios Europe anchor the Bristol/London cluster.
VFX
Comp, sim, lighting, matte-paint. Tools: Nuke, Houdini, Maya, Katana. UK salary junior £28k, mid £42k, senior £65k+. Framestore, DNEG, MPC, The Mill, Union anchor Soho.
Motion graphics
Broadcast, brand, ident. Tools: After Effects, Cinema 4D, Redshift. UK salary junior £26k, mid £36k, senior £52k+. ManvsMachine, Buck, Passion Pictures.
Character animation
Specialism inside animation. Aardman stop-motion crosses over here.
Game art
Real-time. Tools: Unreal, Maya, Substance, ZBrush. Bristol (Rockstar), Guildford (Ninja Theory), Edinburgh (Rockstar North).
Digital art
Concept, matte, illustration. Tools: Photoshop, Procreate, Blender for blockouts.
Computer graphics (primer)
Umbrella term for everything above. Read this if you are totally new and want the vocabulary before you commit.
# which fits
Which discipline fits which learner?
- Career switcher with a graphic-design background: motion graphics or digital art. Least retraining, closest to existing skills.
- Career switcher with an engineering / maths background: VFX (FX TD) or technical art. Highest ceiling, hardest first year.
- Someone who loves character work: animation or character animation. Longest apprenticeship, most competitive.
- Gamer wanting to enter games: game art or 3D modelling with Unreal specialism.
- Undecided: start with 3D modelling in Blender. Broadest transferable base.
Still stuck? Read how to become a 3D artist or how to get into VFX for step-by-step career maps.
# UK career context
What UK CG artists actually earn.
£24k–£32k
3D artist junior UK
£45k–£70k
VFX artist senior UK
40+
Soho VFX studios
12+
Bristol animation studios