Without doubt artistic ability is the most important talent for making it big in the animation career. Since its not a a mechanical subject, it needs lot of passion and imaginative skills along with a flair for sketching/drawing (though 3D requires a bit less of this) . But contrary to popular belief this is not the only skill required. As detailed out, the modern animation making process is a highly complicated and stretched out process making it impossible to produce good quality films without working in teams. And high handed individualism does not any place in the industry, how much ever artistically talented you are (at least until you are established).

There are other skills that always help though, such as self-motivation and a tremendous amount of patience as it needs long hours of continuous work with a whole lot of dedication. ( animation involves moving a character  centimeter by centimeter to build a sequence that lasts for a minute 25 to 40 still images per second which can be painfully slow, though a lot of the work is eased by the latest animation software).

Irrespective of your final role mastering the basics of script writing, stop-motion photography and editing would be a definite plus as this is enable getting a big picture of the whole process, increasing the pace of overall learning and understanding. Animators sometimes also work completely in isolation especially for some parts of the whole animation or for shorter work like advertisements etc. In such a case they have to do everything from writing a script and creating a storyboard, to directing, producing and editing their work. This is a bit uncommon today and use of teams is permeating at all levels.

Other skills that can be taught or learned but is good to have naturally include  being good at visualizations, choice of colors and acting too. Though on a day to day basis it might seem unglamorous, it is a very exciting field and one needs to have complete dedication and interest to be successful in the field as to see the results of one's work, it might take anywhere between months to years.

Thus a animator should be creative, talented, detail-oriented, dedicated and original in his ideas. Some other broad and important understanding that could help him/her in their career include

1.  The fundamentals of visual communication

2.  Iconography

3.  Image processing tools

4.  The nature of electronic media

5.  Computer painting

6.  Storyboarding techniques

7.  Ability to create artwork that conforms to the style and content specifications provided by the project's art director or producer.

But these can all be learned as opposed to the earlier innate skills.

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