After Effects is an Adobe application used to create animations and visual effects. An essential aspect of receiving professional After Effects training to set yourself up for a career change is learning what kinds of fields and industries that training will help you find work in. Each industry will have different requirements and expectations for prospective employees, and you should consider these expectations when you start your training. This is true for students who have an idea of what kind of work they want to do and those who aren’t yet sure what path to take after learning After Effects skills.

What is After Effects?

Adobe After Effects is a motion graphics application used to design and create special effects. This Academy Award-winning program has been a favorite of film, television, and internet creators since its creation in the early 1990s. Whether you are a small business looking to make eye-catching advertisements and commercials or an employee of one of the top animation studios, After Effect offers a way to bring your imagination to life. When combined with the other programs of the Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe After Effects is a great way to make sure a video project stands out from the crowd.

Read more about what After Effects is and why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with After Effects Skills?

After Effects is a motion graphics and special effects software that allows you to animate texts and objects, use greenscreens to add or subtract objects and elements and develop unique transitions to your visual media creations. Users can create their original graphics using Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator or redesign one of the many available templates to create their vision. When users combine the editing power of After Effects with the capacities of Cinema 4D Lite included with every subscription, these artists can add new textures and dimensions to their visual media. Beyond the incredible toolkit offered within the After Effects program, this application is also compatible with many other tools.

Common Industries That Use After Effects

After Effects is used to create animation and special effects, becoming the industry standard for motion graphics. This application functions in many industries, including film and television, digital marketing, and website design.

Film and Television

After Effects is widely relied upon within the film and television industries. In 2019, it won an Academy Award for scientific and technical achievement, with the Academy explaining, “After Effects’ pioneering use of consumer hardware to host an application that is extensible, efficient and artist-focused has made it the preeminent motion graphics tool in film production.” Designers use After Effects for animation and motion graphics, title sequences and other typography, and a wide range of visual effects.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Special Effects Artists and Animators have a good job outlook. The agency estimates that employment in this field will grow about 5 percent in the next ten years, about as fast as the national average. It also reports that California employs the most people in this field, with many concentrated in Los Angeles. Special Effects Artists and Animators are often self-employed, and while they generally work a regular schedule, night and weekend hours can be required when there is a deadline to meet.

Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is marketing that takes place through digital channels such as social media. To get viewers’ attention, designers in this field use a variety of special effects and motion graphics, often created in After Effects. Research shows that getting noticed with so much digital information can be challenging, and viewers quickly move on to something else. For instance, according to a 2021 study, it takes only 2.6 seconds for a viewer to decide whether they like or dislike a website. Researchers have found that including special effects and motion graphics can effectively capture and hold an audience's attention. 

Many people now spend hours daily using digital media, so digital marketing has become one of the most important ways to market products and services. LinkedIn calls it a booming career, and most experts believe it will become even more critical in the future.

Web Design

The internet has become an essential part of daily life for a large percentage of the world’s population. According to one study, people spend an average of about seven hours online daily. Web Designers create many websites visited every day, using visual effects and other elements created in After Effects. These elements are an effective way to attract and retain viewers.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that web development and digital design jobs are expected to increase by 23 percent over the next ten years. This is much faster than the average growth rate for all occupations. It explains that two main drivers of this growth are ecommerce, which continues to expand worldwide, and the growing use of mobile devices, for which designers need to create an interface different from that of regular websites.

Video Editing

In addition to working with existing footage, video editors often add sound effects, dialogue, and special effects to their videos. After Effects is a popular tool for doing this. It lets designers make a vast number of different changes to their material. For example, they can alter color, lighting, speed up, or slow footage. They can even use a green screen to completely change the background of a video or add a wide array of different visual effects.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts many employment opportunities for video editors in the next ten years. The data found that overall employment of film and video editors and camera operators is projected to grow 12 percent from 2021 to 2031, much faster than the average for all occupations. According to the Bureau, California has the highest level of employment for film and video editors in the United States, followed by New York. Overall, New York is the top-paying state.

Learn After Effects Skills with Noble Desktop

Are you looking for a training program to jump-start your After-Effects adventures? Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, is known for its high-rated full and part-time bootcamps and certificate programs. Expert instructors set students up for long-term success through project-based learning and many opportunities for hands-on learning. Students living in or near New York City can easily commute to regularly offered in-person After Effects classes offered at Noble Desktop’s Manhattan campus. Want to avoid a long commute? Consider enrolling in one of Noble Desktop’s live online After Effects classes, where you can receive dynamic and interactive After Effects training from the comfort of your home or office!

Wondering which class format will help you cultivate your After Effects knowledge and skills? Consider your timetable and ultimate objectives. Students looking to use After Effects more casually or as an additional skill for an existing career may want to enroll in Noble Desktop’s After Effects in a Day or three-day After Effects Bootcamp. These classes save you time and money by balancing lectures with hands-on experience, maximizing retention, and setting you up for success. “Definitely recommend Noble Desktop overtaking a semester-long continuing education class at an expensive art school,” raved one reviewer, “This class practically covers techniques, and you can get started on your own after three days of intensive learning.” Worried that you couldn’t possibly retain everything you learn? Noble Desktop offers a free retake for all of its classes.

Students interested in a more dramatic career change or developing their portfolio and CV may want to enroll in the Motion Graphics Certificate or Video Editing & Motion Graphics Certificate programs. These training programs use hands-on experience and project-based training to teach students how to create original content using After Effects, Premiere Pro, and other Adobe Creative Cloud applications. Students also have several opportunities for one-on-one mentorship and receive a comprehensive step-by-step manual that ensures they have all the tools needed for long-term success. 

Key Takeaways

• After Effects is an industry-standard application for motion graphics and functions in an array of industries.
• The film and television industry heavily relies on After Effects.
• After Effects is a valuable tool for Web Designers.
• After Effects is used for digital marketing to create elements that capture an audience's attention.
• Video Editors use After Effects to help them make changes to video footage.
• Noble Desktop offers a range of After Effects classes, both live online and in-person, at its campus in New York City.