Nathan Billman graduated this month with a degree in animation from New Mexico State University. Abril Delgado Quintana will graduate next semester. Although the two come from very different backgrounds, each found a home in NMSU’s Creative Media Institute and its nationally ranked animation program.
NMSU’s animation program continues to be ranked among the top programs in the country for the 14th year in a row. Animation Career Review evaluated more than 200 programs across the United States. In the 2025 rankings list, NMSU’s animation rose to 17th nationally among public schools and colleges. The program remains ranked seventh regionally and first in New Mexico.
“We've really been trying to ramp-up our visual effects component in what we teach,” said Derek Chase, professor in NMSU's Creative Media Institute who specializes in 3D animation. “Although our ranking has specifically outlined animation in recent years, we actually just hit Animation Career Review’s top five for Southwest visual effects ranking too.”
The Animation and Visual Effects program at NMSU has grown steadily since 2018. The number of majors has grown by 40% and the number of degrees granted by 50%.
“We are drawing in talent from the student and the faculty side,” said We have had students from all over the place. We just had a graduate who was from Alaska originally. More and more people are applying to our program, especially in the surrounding Four Corners states and Texas. We have always been a big draw for students from nearby El Paso and Juarez, Mexico.”
Delgado Quintana was born in El Paso and grew up in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico until she started college back in El Paso. Then she discovered the animation program at NMSU and moved to Las Cruces.
“It was a huge step for me, especially coming from where I was born and where I grew up,” Delgado Quintana said. “It was like, wow, it’s impressive. The accessibility, the collaboration, it makes you want to work closely with fellow students and professors.”
Billman, a Las Cruces native, was an NMSU psychology major when he decided animation was his “jam.”
“I was two and a half years in and found that I didn't really want to be a counselor, so I made my switch,” Billman said. “It’s been really hard because I don't have an art background, but I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve been embraced, and I’ve gotten better and better. It’s really been nice to have the faculty who are there for you.”
“I think our success comes down to a combination of factors,” said Eddie Bakshi, who specializes in teaching 2D animation production at CMI. “We offer a really great product. We offer great teachers and a very competitive program among all animation schools for a very modest price. As prices keep going up at many larger schools, our students get a quality education that is more affordable.”
Animation Career Review considers animation programs in degree-granting institutions with the exception of two-year community colleges. The criteria evaluated includes academic reputation, admission selectivity, depth and breadth of program faculty, value as it relates to tuition and indebtedness, graduation rate, geographic location and employment data. Since 2020, the employment data has been given significantly more weight in the ranking formula than in previous years.
The criterion of geographic location is considered because students who attend school in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Orlando, New York, Chicago, Boston, Austin, and a few others have a distinct advantage over students in other parts of the country in terms of employment opportunities.
Delgado Quintana’s senior animation project, which will be featured in a showcase next semester, focuses on the story of a middle school student named Isa, who is working at her family’s corner store. But there’s a twist.
“It’s more of a legend type of story,” Delgado Quintana said. “We see various fantastical creatures called “Alebrije” emerge during the story. (Alebrije are vibrant, strange mythical creatures that originate from Mexican folk art, symbolizing the rich cultural heritage of Mexico.) In the end, Isa recognizes that it is important to embrace her heritage. And that’s something I really wanted to express in this story.”
You might say Billman’s animation also features fantastical creatures.
“I'm doing a 2D animated short about a cockroach who tries to save his life before being crushed by a human,” Billman said. “When the cockroach reveals that he can speak, they basically have an interaction. The story is exploring how we treat cockroaches and what it’s like to encounter something that you previously looked down on and feel sympathy for it. It’s meant to be a comedy mostly, but it has this underlying theme.”
Bakshi and Chase agree students who graduate from CMI’s animation program can apply the skills they have learned to a wide variety of fields not limited to entertainment. Any profession dealing with visual media provides opportunities for these graduates.
Looking beyond graduation, Delgado Quintana is considering development design for films, but the field is wide open. “The freedom that this field has to offer is a lot. So, we really want to go into the movie industry or possibly the gaming industry.”
Billman sees a different path for his future.
“I kind of wandered into animation by accident and I've really embraced exploring my artistic side,” Billman said. “I didn’t know that this is something that I would ever do so I think the next step for me is portfolio development to see where that leads.”
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CUTLINE: Left: Illustration of cockroach family for animation short by Nathan Billman. Right: illustration of corner store for animation short by April Delgado Quintana.
CUTLINE: Animation professors in NMSU's Creative Media Institute Derek Chase and Eddie Bakshi (center) with animation students Abril Delgado Quintana (far left) and Nathan Billman (far right). (NMSU photo by Josh Bachman)
CUTLINE: Illustration of the corner store from Abril Delgado Quintana’s senior animation project. (Image by Abril Delgado Quintana)
CUTLINE: Illustration of cockroach family in the kitchen from Nathan Billman’s animation project. (Image by Nathan Billman)
Video: Clip from Nathan Billman’s animated short.
Video: Clips from Abril Delgado Quintana’s work on her animated short.