@VLanimate makes some very good points.
As someone who is in the UK, and works in it I can tell you It depends on what you expect of the animator, and the quality of the product. If you are trying to make a professional series, expect professional rates. People of Newgrounds will pitch discount prices due to a number of factors. But keeping a realistic open mind about the actual rates of an animator will help you see it's like every other job. For a full time animator (5 days a week, 9am- 5pm) could easily expect around £2000 a month.
If you're animator is working on preproduction, or post (voices, storyboards, concepts) then you're animation hinders as you're spreading his actual animation time off product production. That's why you hire layout artists, concept artists, storyboard artists, etc. So the animator is purely on animation driving the project. So something like having to find voices can take time, and communication with multiple voice actors for availability and cost has to be factored in. So if your animator has to hire voice over (which I have done in the past due to inexperience of the client) then it gets added to the invoice. Usually the producer will deal with that. So it would be up to you to go get the materials needed for the animator.
There's many people that do it for much cheaper, but this could be due to inexperience, haven't worked in a professional environment, simply need the work or want to make your passion project (which can be sometimes detrimental to your career). If you're looking to do a passion project people will always be willing to join and be part of a collaboration for fun, however if you are looking to employ then expect a freelance animator to charge living wage rates, and professional rates.
The UK animator salaries are, 8 hours a day 9am to 5pm with an hour lunch can be broke down as follows.
Annual: £17,038.00 - £33,834
Monthly: £1,419.83 - £2819.50
Weekly: £327.65 - £650.65
Daily: £65.53 - £130.13
Hourly: £8.19 - £16.27
You can see more here:
http://www.payscale.com/research/UK/Job=Animator/Salary
USD rates will be different, but I think it's worth noting that you can't expect animators to say. Work 8 hours a day on your animation, turn out say 15 seconds of frame by frame animation and pay them £20, or about £100 a week. The animator would be more financially beneficial working in McDonalds.
A lot of people may jump on me for my comments above, but people should be aware of the clear difference in professional and what I call "passion project" rates. Animation, whether for Film, TV or Games should be taken with a sincerity which comes with every other job and not be overlooked because it's creative.
Good luck with your project, you sound like an aspiring producer! ;)
