What Is Spotting In Animation?
By Neil Blevins
Created On: Feb 15th 2026
Updated On: Mar 28th 2026
Software: None

Spotting in animation is the process by which one person or department later in production looks at earlier material (such as a script, storyboards or concept art) and creates a list of all assets that will be required for the project.

For example, the concept team will take the script to a film and make a list of everything it needs to design. Or the environment department will take some rough concept art and make a list of every asset it will need to create to make the final environment. Or the materials team on a large project spotting different materials they'll need to develop for the film.

This is an important part of the animation process allowing a team to organize and get a sense of the scope of what will be needed. While we're talking about animation here, a similar process happens for videogames and VFX films.

You have two choices with this lesson, watch the video below, or read the full text.



Spotting Or Bidding?

So sometimes the spotting process is referred to as an asset breakdown, VFX spotting (when you're working on the visual effects for a live action film), or sometimes bidding. However, bidding is subtly different. The process in bidding is identifying the assets, but then also assigning each the time/money it will take to design/produce those assets. Some groups split the spotting and bidding process into 2 separate events. Others combine the two and just call it bidding. But for this lesson we will focus just on the spotting aspect.

Example 1

Let's do an example. Say I am doing concept design for an animation based on the book project "The Story Of Inc". I need to know what I'll need to design. So I go through the script from the book and start breaking it down. Here's an excerpt from a scene in the book:



So from this little bit of the script, we can start making our list.

First are characters. We have the narrator, so we'll need to design them. Then we have a merchant. Then we have at least two robots, the squat robot, and a red robot that the narrator eventually picks. Likely a few extra background robots too.

Next lets do environments / props. In the first paragraph we see we're in a peddler's tent. So we'll need a tent. Then since there are robots in the tent, we can imagine there's likely to be robot parts sitting around the tent too for sale. Maybe an area of the tent where robots are repaired, meaning we need repair tools. Then we might need tables or chairs to sit on, work on, or stand behind. And finally there's mention of a puddle of fluid on the ground.

So in a spotting session for this scene, you might end up with a list like this...

Robot Tent Scene:
Now with this list, the concept artist has a checklist of what needs to be designed in order for the next stage of production to be able to do their work more efficiently.

Example 2

Say you're part of the Environment team, and rather than the concept team handing you separate designs of each and every prop, you get a single concept painting (key art) of a scene, and your job is to model / texture that scene. Here's an example environment:



We break things down in a similar way:

Scifi Executive Office:
Different Spotting Sessions For Different Departments

Spotting is important for both small and large productions. Whether you are a team of 5 people or a team of 500, the only difference is how you break up the task. For example, if you're a large team, you might have a bunch of different spotting sessions, one for the character team, one for the environment team, one for the fx team, etc, and each only focuses on the part of the project you are responsible for. If you're a smaller crew, maybe you need to produce both the characters and environments yourself. Nothing changes, it's just you spot both types of assets instead of just one.

Things Change

Also keep in mind that things will change. When you spot early in the production process, you will end up with one list. While you're making the assets on that list, a scene may change, or a scene could be added or deleted all together. In which case you need to go back and respot, fixing your list. Productions are not linear, a script isn't 100% finished before people are already building assets, so be prepared for revisions, that asset you've been working on for the past 2 weeks might be cut from the film. Sadly, that's just part of the way this works.

Bidding & Reality Check

If you haven't done bidding as part of your spotting, next will be to bid the list, deciding approx how long each asset will take to produce. This can also be a big reality check, lets say after bidding you realize you have 5 times more objects to make than you have budget / time to produce them. That's where you might decide not to take the project if you're a subcontractor, or ask for more money, or to ask if some of the assets can be removed from project so you can do it for the budget. The spotting process makes it far easier to know the true scope of the project, which is vital to getting it done.

Conclusion

Spotting is an invaluable part of making a successful project, it helps align teams and keeps things organized, even as the script changes underneath you. So make sure to give it the focus it deserves, you'll save a lot of time later on.

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