Whither keyframe animators?

Mark Mayerson does a better job explaining what I’m thinking than I do. He lays out some interesting points about the current trend in animated films toward a production paradigm that may not have as much room on the bus for animators. Basically the idea is that as technology for directing performers becomes friendlier and as audiences don’t much care about the difference between a hand keyed film and a motion edited one he sees a potential for keyframe animation to go out of the mainstream fashion. His observation about the giant wall of anonymity surrounding CG animators (even the very best of the best) is spot on. Go check out his recent post about what he sees as a potential point of concern down the road for those who enjoy animating for a living (as opposed to those who enjoy working on motion. And yes, there is a difference.) Do I think he’s right on the mark with this? Not sure yet, but I can see it happening.