The End of Animation as We Know It?

After 30 years of running an animation and VFX company, I’ve been through my fair share of industry shifts. I’ve fought to keep my business going, invested in my team, and adapted to every major change along the way—all because I love this craft. But now, I see where things are headed, and it’s a future I don’t think most people are prepared for.

AI and real-time content generation aren’t just “emerging trends”—they are reshaping animation at an exponential pace. The reality is, in the near future, we won’t need traditional animators in the way we do now. Content will be dynamically generated based on individual preferences, attention data, and even biometrics. Imagine films that don’t just pause on a streaming platform but evolve like a sandbox video game, responding to the viewer in real time. AI will create stories tailored to each person’s interests, paid for by commerce, product placement, and microtransactions—completely shifting how content is produced and consumed.

As an animation studio owner, I’ve had to ask myself: Where do I fit in this future? The answer isn’t in fighting for traditional roles that are vanishing, but in pivoting to where the opportunities lie. I don’t fear change—I embrace it. The challenge is figuring out how to apply my experience, creativity, and deep understanding of animation to help build what comes next.

The transition won’t be smooth. Many talented artists will find themselves with skills that are no longer needed, and the industry will experience a level of disruption we haven’t seen before—one that happens in years, not decades. The resistance is understandable. Professionals are too busy trying to survive to learn new tools, and many brands are afraid to adopt AI openly for fear of public backlash. But the change is inevitable.

So, what now? I believe we need to have real conversations—not about whether AI will replace traditional animation, but how we navigate that reality in a way that creates new opportunities rather than just casualties. There’s a window, right now, where animators can supercharge their abilities with AI and produce higher-quality content at an unprecedented scale. Eventually, the technology will replace much of the craftsmanship, just like industrial machines replaced hand-weaving. But in the meantime, those who adapt will be the ones shaping this new landscape.

I don’t see this as the end of animation—I see it as its next evolution. The question is, who will step up and help define what comes next?

What do you think? Is this shift as inevitable as it seems, or is there a different path forward?