When I started out at my first job as an animator, I thought ‘wow, are all studios like this?’. I was working at a very big studio that had a real corporate feel.
I enjoyed the work and was doing well – my director was happy with my animation, but I felt a bit of disconnection with the people around me.
Maybe they were avoiding me because of the annoying perma-grin I had on my face all the time – I was just so damn happy to be there, working as an animator! Well, it’s been a number of years since then, and I’ve work for several studios (now sometimes the grin turns into a grimace).
Animation studios are generally one of two types – large corporate studios and small contractor studios.
The large corporate studios are either animation studios that started off small at the right time and grew into a large corporate business or they are entertainment media conglomerates which either swallowed up an existing studio or just started their own animation branch.
When you work at one of these places you do feel somewhat insignificant in regards to the company not matter how polite everyone is to you. They already have a core staff which will continue working there long after your contract ends.
As with all studios if they have another project after your contract ends you will likely stay on if they really like your work and your personality.(yep, it’s like that)
Smaller, contractor studios are usually less than ten years old and are more intimately owned. If they’ve been around for much longer then ten years they’re well managed and connected – meaning the owners have good relationships with producers at larger studios and entertainment companies, enabling them to consistently get projects in to their studio.
Speaking form the ground floor (as an employee working on the front lines) – one of the biggest difference between large and small studios is that in a big studio, you can’t just walk into the owners office and have a chat.
Smaller animation studios are great for that. the owner (or owners) are usually down the hall or in the next room and are usually very friendly and approachable. And why wouldn’t they be, they want their employees to be happy.
It’s good to be able to connect with the owner face to face and casually find out how your doing and what projects are coming down the line. Larger studios have an HR (human resources department), it’s just not the same. No offense to anyone in HR dept’s out there.
The biggest similarity between large and small animation studios are the negative clicks that form with employees. One piece of advise on this…stay away from the toxic crowd!
What I’m calling the toxic crowd are usually a group of people who perpetually complain about everything, say nasty things about other people, and are just very negative. You may find yourself hanging with these folks.
It’s too easy to get sucked into the negativity.
Your better off going on lunch and breaks by your self than with a brooding bunch of people because it can negatively affect your work and your attitude which are the two most important things as an animator – make an effort to keep your work and attitude in a positive light.
Having said that, most people who work in animation studios are extremely talented, supportive and positive.
Operations, pipelines, management, studio rules and policies, etc… even the way you are managed and treated, all vary at different caliber studios. If you have the opportunity, I suggest getting work in both smaller, intimate studio environments and large corporate studios – It will give you a full and rounded experience of the industry and, as they say…expand your horizons.
The Job
There’s so much that can be said about this so I’ll try to keep it in a nutshell and as concise as possible.
Series animators are character animators. We’re responsible for all character performance and actions, animating props, and sometimes fx and camera (if working in 3D). In 3D production there’s usually a layout department.
Layout artists will place the camera and animate basic camera moves, but animators almost always need to either re-animate it, or make adjustments to accommodate the action taking place in the scene.
Before we begin animation for a new episode we watch the lieca (or animatic) so we know what the episode is about and get a feel for the pacing of the show. It also gives us a chance to see how our assigned section of the show fits in to the story.
Some studios will have launch meetings before they start a new episode with all animators, lead animators, supervisors, and directors present. This is just an orientation and a chance for the director to make comments on particular sections of the episode and for everyone else to ask questions and express any artistic or technical concerns.
Animating/Workflow
Time to start animating – As mentioned above, we get our scenes from the layout department with characters placed and camera roughed in. From here I start setting the initial poses for all the characters – at the same time paying attention to the staging and framing, making sure that there aren’t any large areas of dead space, also looking at negative spaces to making sure that it has appeal and isn’t cluttered.
We work from a hand drawn storyboard to help us with the staging, framing and composition of the scene, we also use it as a guide for character posing.
The storyboards also give us a ‘feel’ for the acting. A good storyboard artist will convey the acting with loose energetic drawing, strong character poses and telling facial expressions for animators to draw inspiration from.
And, we animate….first setting poses and rough timing, then we adjust timing and employ the fundamental principles of animation to the characters mostly done through the poses we choose.
We work our way through the scene – first blocking out the rough action, then refining our work with software animation editors.
I often play the animation to check it, continually making adjustments and playing it again, often playing just sections that I’m currently refining….. until I’m happy with it.
Posing and timing is the foundation of good character animation – They are the two most important animation principles that help to convey what the character is thinking and feeling – that’s why we usually start with that… make sure it’s working, and then refine from there.
Lipsync is usually done first. Facial animation is done last as we add in blinks, eye direction and expressions to the eyes and eyebrows and mouth.
Equipment – Hardware/Software
Most studios now have dual screen work stations. This allows you more screen space for the various items that an animator will often have open at one time.
These items usually include:
- Software interface where you do your animation
- Digital storyboard, usually in the form of a PDF.
- Internet browser, animators will often get reference from the internet. UTube is fantastic for that.
- Product management tool. All studios have some sort of web system or piece of software that helps keep track of all project elements and tracks the progress of all shots/scenes and episodes in production.
Everyone uses they’re screen space differently. For example, I like to animated with the software interface up on the left screen and have my storyboard and management tool on the right screen. I keep the browser minimized for when I need it.
Occasional Perks!
Many studios owners, and large conglomerate media companies that produce animation like to keep with the tradition of animation studios being a fun place to work. After all, we are making cartoons!
Some studios even bring in beer and pizza on occasion! Gotta love that…many studios have screening rooms (sort of a mini theater) and will sometimes have a movie showing in the afternoon. I’ve been at studios that will allow group video game play on Friday afternoons(along with beverages >
As great as it is to take part in these activities at work, they’re only permitted as long as quotas are met or on track with the schedule.
Almost all studios will throw a wrap party at the end of a production (or season). All the wrap parties I’ve been to, were either at the studio or in a pub. Usually all production staff are there lamenting of the challenges and lessons the project brought, and of course there’s always food, drinks and good times.
In past workshops that I have conducted, students have asked what the job of an animator is actually like.
What’s the environment like? What do you actually do, and how do you do it?
The Physical Environment
Animation studios are usually pretty cool and funky places to work. Most studio owners are also animators and artists along with the people that work there and sometimes prefer moody surroundings.
Studios are sometimes dim with lights casting pools of light and shadow around furniture and workstations. Movie posters and production stills of completed projects hang on the wall.
Some studios that I’ve worked in are renovated warehouses built with beautiful thick wooden support beams and large windows that let in lots of natural light to support the plants and even large trees that you will find in some studios.
You’ll often find skewed placement of the desks to keep the studio from feeling like an office and making the environment more interesting.
Although I have heard some nasty stories of animators sitting shoulder to shoulder at long tables in basement studios, I haven’t experienced it. I have walked through a studio that was something like that, (I took a tour of this studio at a time when they were hiring).
I just thanked the director and left – didn’t even consider it. I can’t mention the name of the studio for obvious reasons, but it wasn’t a work environment that I could live with for the next eight to ten months.
Of course all studios are different. Most are pleasant environments to work in and the people are usually helpful and supportive.
The People
Animation studios employ some of the most diversely talented people in the world.
Often, the animator sitting next to you isn’t just a professional animator they’re also talented musicians, photographers, painters…you always meet interesting and multi-talented people in the animation environment.
People share their talents and knowledge.
In every studio I’ve worked in, I have met someone that has taught me something or given me knowledge that changed my work and my life for the better.
Although there are permanent/full time positions in studios, most animators work on a contract basis.
An employment contract is a legal document which states the terms of your employment including your salary. This contract is an agreement made between you and the employer before you start work.
I know, you want to hear about those permanent/full time positions. (and I use the word “permanent” loosely). I’m going to sound cynical here, but few jobs in the animation industry are really secure…or permanent.
Most studios have a core staff. These individuals are usually the people that were hired when the company started up and have been there since the beginning. Sometimes, they are folks who start later but who are exceptionally talented. They are usually the last to be layed off in harder times and therefore have a more secure job than someone who was hired after the company was established.
It comes with at bit of luck – you have to get hired at a new studio right at the point when they are doing they’re initial hiring. How do you find out about new studios?…..other people. Keep you lines of communication open with people in and around the animation industry to catch wind of these rare opportunities.
Just to sprinkle in some reality here – I was part of a core staff in a studio at one point. It lasted for a few years but I’m working somewhere else now. The company ended up closing down, but that’s not all that uncommon for animation studios. For many different reasons, some stay around for a very long time, and some do not. It’s just the nature of this volatile industry.
I wouldn’t concentrate on getting a permanent job in a studio as your first job because you’ll end up chasing your tail and never starting your career. That “permanent” position can come later – a contract will likely come much faster, so for now just try and land your first gig.
Once you’ve gotten through the interview/follow up, and a studio has decided they want to hire you, they will extend an offer of employment to you. Basically letting you know how much they are willing to pay you. The offer is usually in the form of an email.
If this is going to be your first job, take what ever they offer – don’t try and make a deal by counter offering with no experience because you’re likely to loose the opportunity to get some.
Studios usually offer the industry standard/going rate for your experience. I usually accept unless it’s ridiculously out of the ball park (on the low side of course . At your first job your annual salary should be somewhere between 30,000 – 40,000.
Contracts
Sometime after you accept the offer (usually after your sitting at your desk), you receive the contract. The contract can run for any length of time but are usually between 3 – 12 months long.
The reason studios hire production staff on contract is because animation work is project based. It’s a set amount of work – then it’s finished. Studios then have to find the next project. They usually plan ahead and have future projects lined up.(you hope!)
Most of my contracts have been around 8 months long because I work in series animation. 8 months is generally the amount of time scheduled for the animation teams to complete a season of a show. A season often runs about 24 episodes(22 min. long each). That’s a half hour show without the commercials.
Once your contract is up – hopefully the studio your working at has another project to put you on (assuming you’ve done a good job and they want to keep you). In which case you’ll receive another contract or an extension to your existing contract. As long as they have enough work they usually keep you on board.
It’s not uncommon to get extended multiple times at one studio. I’ve been extended at every studio I’ve worked for at least once – My longest run was three years at one studio, worked on three different projects back to back (so extended three times). There are plenty of animators who have worked at the same studio for 10 years or more.
Animators Salaries In Canada (but probably similar to U.S.)
This can be a bit of a touchy subject for some people because it really does depend on your experience and quality of your work, but also the budget that your employer has to work with and what they’re willing to pay you.
Once it’s been decided that you would be a good fit for the project, studios will often place you in a category of junior animator, intermediate animator, or senior animator based on your experience and skill level. There is a set salary range for each category – an offer is then extended to you (as discussed above).
Series animators generally make between 30,000(to start) and 70,000 per year depending on your experience and skill level you will climb closer to (around) the higher amount of 70K. Of course this is very general and there may be some that make less or more than this, but the majority of series animators are somewhere in this range.
Leads make upward of 70K, Supervisors up from there and of course directors make somewhere around 90K and can get into 100k’s. I won’t get too specific here because it does vary with different studios and projects.
3D animators salaries are usually a little higher than Digital 2D animators. Although this is usually the case, on rare occasion I’ve seen it the other way around.
So if your just starting out, anything less than 30,000 is on the low side. If you do start contract work, open a new savings account at your bank and put enough money away each pay cheque to sustain you for at least a month just in case you don’t get extended or served another contract. This should give you enough time to find the next job.
A career in animation will usually dictate where you live. Animation jobs exist all over the world, but studios are usually concentrated in big cities. Depending on the type of lifestyle you enjoy, this may become an issue.
It’s amazing how many animation students and grads I’ve met that know they will have to leave their home town but can’t bring themselves to take the plunge when the time comes. If your planing on an animation career and you live in an area that has no industry – you will have to move.
If you prefer to live a more remote, quiet lifestyle like living in a town, village, or smaller city away from all the hustle and bustle of a big city, remember that animators generally work in busy cities. You’ll be faced with the decision of either living in the city or paying to commute from the outskirts.
It’s a common issue with many animators that prefer small town living – often moving to the outskirts of cities where they work, and commute one or two hours into work every day (each way) so they can have the preferred house and neighborhood. Usually folks with families and kids.
But if your young and single, you might enjoy living and working downtown – taking in the nightlife and excitement. (for a while that is) >
Since most animators work on contracts it’s ideal to be in an area with a high concentration of studios so you can bounce from one studio to the next and stay employed throughout the year.
In Canada the main cities that have a high concentration of studios are Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. All three of these cities have lots of studios that produce animation for TV series, feature film, vfx and gaming, and are great places to live and maintain an animation career.
Other Canadian capitals include Ottawa with a hand full of studios. Edmonton, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, Charlottetown and Fredericton have some, but very little animation work.
In the United States the hot spots are Los Angeles and New York. Other places through out the world have animation studios. An interesting one is Weta Digital in New Zealand (An island country in the Pacific Ocean) they do high end feature work – that’s an example of a large successful studio, not likely to shut down any time soon.
There are smaller studios all over the place, but they can start up and shut down frequently so it’s not easy to keep track of where they are. A good place to find studios is Mandy.com, Animation World Network (aidb.com) or do Google searches similar to this “winnipeg, animation studio”. (ie .the place, and “animation studio”) will bring pretty good results.
photo courtesy of Lotus Head, JHB, GP, South Africa
Most of what I write about is in regards to character animation for TV series, but I thought it would be a good idea to write about some other types of animation jobs that exist…
The four areas of the animation industry where there is the most opportunity is TV series animation, animated feature films, visual effects(vfx), and gaming.
Other areas include commercials, documentaries, medical visualization and training, industrial, architectural, home and building design, even aerospace and forensics.
TV Series Animation
Most animated series made for TV are geared for preschool age and older kids but there are more and more shows being targeted toward college age and adults.
Shows like The Simpson’s, Family Guy, King of the Hill are targeted toward an older adult audience and have aired in prime time slots on network television. There are also networks that broadcast animation exclusively such as Teletoon, Cartoon Network, and Treehouse.
With these networks broadcasting animated shows 24/7 along with animation shown on local networks there is usually plenty of series animation work in the industry. Animators make up a large portion of people working on any given project.
For example (and this is very general)…on a series project there might be 1 Series Director, 1 or 2 Animation Supervisors, 1 – 6 Lead Animators, 1 Producer, 1 or 2 Editors, 1 or 2 Production Managers, 4-6 Layout Artists..(I’ll get more into Production Pipelines later but you get the general idea).
But the animation team can be quite large…maybe 12-24 animators working on a series project (in a season).
Here are some of my favorite things about working in Series Animation:
~ The varying styles of character animation that are used. I like the ongoing challenge of learning new styles and techniques.
~ The rewards come quick. You’re able to see the finished show (with your work in it) fairly soon after the episode’s been animated.
~ The hours aren’t usually too long, generally 8 hour days unless there’s a time crunch. I have had to work the odd weekend day, or stay an hour or two later than usual to meet a deadline – but that’s not too bad when your in a job you don’t hate!
~ Episodes are typically wrapped up in 4-8 weeks (not including retakes/revisions). You move on to another episode which keeps things interesting and adds variety to the work.
The challenge in series animation is maintaining a reasonably high level of quality and speed. That is, being able to animate well and quickly. It’s common for junior animators to have to really work on their speed when they first start out.
Animated Feature Films
Most aspiring animators want to work on movies – probably because of the lure of bringing to life the fantastic characters we see in animated films. Working in feature films is a highly demanding part of the industry, there are some things to consider before you decide that you want to be a feature animator.
Pretty much all feature work requires previous studio experience. Although I have heard of graduates getting hired to work on animated films, it’s extremely rare. With experience comes a higher quality of work but also very important – speed. Being able to hit your deadline and maintain a high level of quality comes with experience.
But animating quickly is more important in series animation. Feature animators are generally given more time to complete their animation work load. The quality expectations are set very high and they end up doing lots of fixing and revising – sometimes even re-animating shots, if for example a section of the script has been re-written or dialogue re-recorded.
Both of those have happened to me before – that’s when you have to remind yourself how much you love being an animator and couldn’t see yourself doing anything else!
Salaries are generally higher in feature animation but you work much longer hours – especially near the end of the project when stress levels can run high.
It’s common for there to be a major time crunch near the end of the animation schedule due to heavy changes that may have been made during production and people leaving the project to pursue other work. (I don’t recommend ever leaving a project before the end of your contract).
What I’ve noticed during my time in the industry is that peoples lifestyles play a part in the types of jobs that they work. Feature animation can often cause a strain on personal relationships – for example, if your married with kids – working on features all the time can put a strain on family life.
On the flip side, it’s not all like that – some features are better manage, planned, and funded/budgeted and run into less snags during production. For example, if you working on a Pixar or Dreamworks picture. I’m sure they’re a joy to work on.
Visual Effects (vfx)
Most of what’s been said about feature animation, (above) rings true when working on vfx – your working on movies and it’s highly rewarding, but there will be long hours and lots of clients revisions/retakes which will often require long hours.
Animator salaries might not be quite as much as feature animation but usually higher than series animation work. Of course salaries are unique to the individual and depend on your skill level and experience.
Gaming
With a huge popularity in gaming, animation opportunities are comparable to feature work. In gaming there’s theatrical animation and game play animation.
It should be said that gaming companies like to hire only people that have a passion for gaming. I found this out when I first started to look for work right out of school.
Sure I’ve played my share of PlayStation or X Box with friends – heck, I even have a Wii, but I’m not a die hard gamer. They want die hard gamers with strong animation skills. Usually modeling and texturing ability is a plus.
If your able to get work in the theatrical animation for games, it’s a good foot in the door for feature. Games usually have a theatrical intro and even parts during the game where theatrical animation will play out to further the story. These theatrical parts of the game are produced in a higher, feature-like animation quality.
The game play animation is the actions you see the character perform while actually playing the game. These actions aren’t key framed by an animator, they’re done with a technique called motion capture. A real persons actions are captured with special equipment and sensors – then inputted to animation software.
With this technique, keys are placed on every frame. Motions from real people don’t always translate properly once it’s applied to the 3D character so animators are often needed to go in and clean up the work.
This job isn’t regarded as the most rewarding. I hear it’s really tedious, but it could be your way into better things with gaming if that’s what your after.
Other Opportunities
Animation work in other fields such as medical animation are scattered through out the world. Some studios will take on these projects and some studios specialize in this type of work.
3D Medical animation is often used to train doctors and medical staff or sell medical equipment. It can be used to demonstrate concepts and medical procedures that are very difficult to show any other way.
Sounds like pretty dry stuff but it’s no McJob – it is very skilled work and you’d learn a lot about human anatomy! (from the inside out) mmmm
Some documentaries require some animation or vfx but it’s more likely that you would stumble upon that work in a studio that you are already working in than it is to deliberately seek it out.
Animation for architectural, construction, home design, and industrial may be an option if the area you live in employs more blue collar work and there isn’t much entertainment industry. But it’s likely that you’ll have to really reach out and hustle to sell your services.
Some studios specialize in things like home/building walk throughs or auto design. Work in aerospace and forensics is usually contracted out to studios that do more industrial work and sometimes even animation schools as co-op work.
With any of these more specialized areas of animation, you would normally have a special interest in the particular field or area. So if you are interested in, for example… medicine and animation, and want to do something in both, it does require a bit of digging to find relevant opportunities – doing a simple Google search such as ’3D animation medical’ or ‘forensics 3D animation’ will return pretty good leads.
photo courtesy of Steve Woods - Colchester, Essex, UK
Are you sure that a career as an animator is really the right path for you? Before you rack up that huge student loan debt you might want to visit a school and talk with the students, and just find out as much as you can about the industry before you dive in head first (so keep visiting my blog! Once you’ve gained a fair amount of knowledge do some soul searching. Be honest, and ask yourself “is this really for me?”
Quality animation programs are quite pricey. They’re usually one of (if not) the most expensive course at college. Specialized animation schools can be even more expensive. Tuition generally ranges between six to ten thousand dollars per year (sometimes more), plus materials, hardware and software.
Online Animation Schools
If you are taking an online animation program you’ll need to have the required software for the course and a machine that will run the software. If you upgrade your machine or plan on buying a new one, I suggest you pump up the ram and video card; this will help run the animation software and allow several applications to open at one time (which will come in handy).
Here’s a list of other items you can expect to purchase if your taking an online program:
* Autodesk Maya software (student version): approx. $300
* Quicktime Pro: $30
* Webcam: $25
* Book: “The Illusion of Life”: $40
* Book: “The Animator’s Survival Kit”: $25
* Internet connection and operating system
(should already be on your machine).
Online animation school is nice because you get to work from the comfort of your own home and work station – the hours are flexible, you don’t even have to think about what to wear! And you save money on commuting, and other expenses that just come with leaving your home.
College Programs and Specialized Animation Schools
This is the route I took myself. Didn’t have much of a choice, there wasn’t any online animation schools when I was in training. If you take an animation program at a college or specialized animation school, the tuition usually includes access to a computer lab and all the software that you will need.
When your learning, animated projects (school projects) take an extremely long time to produce – your will have many assignments and final projects in progress at the same time. And you will be doing everything from conception to final rendering(there’s an awful lot in between). Your going to be living at school!
Rather than spending your life in the lab, I strongly suggest that you invest in your own equipment so you can work at home – unless you’d rather be at school all time. If you do work exclusively at school there will be many, many late nights. I remember being at school all hours of the day, I saw other people pull all nighters. This sort of thing is common in animation school.
Computers are coming down in price constantly. You can also have a machine custom built with optimum performance for animation software. Even thought they cost a little more, I suggest you get yourself a laptop. The biggest advantage to a laptop is so you can work anywhere, anytime. I had one in school and it was invaluable.
I took a three year diploma course at my local college – I felt it was important to have a full background in my chosen field, (I was also still young and had time on my side). In the end the entire education cost a total of around $30,000. I payed off a big student loan for years after but it was the right choice – and now it’s paying off. Is it the right choice for you?
Some animation programs will ask you to submit an art portfolio in order to be accepted into their program. I’ve been through this myself…
Down below is some info and advise on things you can do to help your chances of getting accepted into an animation program.
Usually, it’s the programs that include classical animation training (as part of the curriculum) that will ask for a portfolio submission in order to be accepted into the program.
They want to make sure that the students they accept into the program are the most likely to succeed. Animation is a very specialized profession and it’s not for everyone. (Fact: Most animation programs have a high drop out rate).
If you don’t draw, don’t worry you can still learn to be an animator – there’s many schools that only require a high school diploma or equivalent plus basic computer skills. You may also be required to pass an aptitude test.
It’s usually after you’ve enrolled in the program they send you a package with instruction on what to include in the submission. So here’s a general example of what you might find in a portfolio requirement package(what you could be asked to do), and some tips on each.
Draw a character in four different emotional states. (ie. sad, angry, happy, surprised
With this test the reviewers are looking to see that you have a sense of acting. Design your own character head or use an existing cartoon character that you can draw. Use the shape of the eyes, eye brows and mouth to create the four different expressions. Those three facial features are the key to facial expressions. Eye direction can also have an impact. For example if the character is sad, you could have him looking down. Or if you have the eyes really wide for a surprised look it helps to shrink the pupils down a little.
Draw the inside of a room from 2 different angles.
This is a technical test to show that you understand perspective and can draw 3 dimensional objects and space. Pick any room in your house with objects in it – should just look natural. Decide on two interesting angles/places where you will sit to draw the room. You could even get up on top of something to draw the room at a high angle – if you do, please take any appropriate safety precautions. (do a Google image search for “animation layout” to see examples of this test).
Draw your own hand in four different, interesting poses/angles.
They will be looking to see that you understand three dimensional drawing and construction. Obviously, draw with one hand, pose with the other hand. As the description says – use interesting poses. You can get a lot of cool poses with your hand and fingers. Use some basic geometry – a cube for the main part of the hand and three cylinders for each finger to get the basic construction and perspective(draw this part lightly), then draw the line and contour over top a little darker. Keep the geometry, don’t erase it! drawings should be rough and loose. Keep the under drawing so the reviewer can see the construction. Should just be line and contour drawing – skip the shading and rendering.
Include 2 – 4 pages from your sketchbook
This is your opportunity to really shine. But keep in mind your applying for animation school so give them some eye candy. Try and fill the pages with characters in dynamic action poses – show line of action in all of your character poses(if full body). Also, draw characters in emotional states(the line of action would be a ‘C’ curve for a sad character to slump forward). Be creative and think of extreme scenarios or situations that a character might get into, or a reaction to something that just happened and tell that story with a drawing of a character posed with facial expression. Make sure you use silhouetted character poses, line of action and strong facial expressions to show character acting.
Include any color work in the medium of your choice. (ie. paint, pastel, digital art…)
If I had to do this over again I would probably do a Photoshop painting. There’s some great tutorials online to help you learn how to paint in Photoshop. What I ended up doing was a portrait in color pencil. If you use color pencil make sure to layer and blend your colors well.
Any kind of fantasy/creative/interesting scenes of your choice.
I found this one lots of fun – try looking through magazines and pick out bits and pieces of photos. For example take the background from one photo, people, animals, and other elements from another and combine them to make your own hand drawn scene. You might have an idea to start with or you might come up with an interesting or funny idea as you search for photos. Do some thumbnails and rough versions of it to get the composition the way you want it and then draw your final piece.
Photography, illustrations, and any other supporting work that you would like to include
You can include any work for this one. If your submitting photography make sure the composition and framing is something that you focus on – framing and composition is something that animators have to pay attention to in their shots/scenes. Include any other artwork that you didn’t get a chance to do in your portfolio. If you include illustrations make sure that the subjects are drawn in dynamic poses, appear to be reacting to something or expressing some kind of emotion. Character animation is acting, so you should squeeze as much ‘acting poses’ into your portfolio drawings as possible.
You will always be asked for copies – never send originals. Just because it would be very cumbersome for the faculty to be charged with the task of returning hundreds of pieces of artwork unscathed.
Even if they don’t ask for it include a few pieces life drawing if you can. Check out your local University’s fine arts program. Ask if there is a life drawing sessions that you can participate in. If you can get some nice life drawing into your portfolio it will be an added bonus. (WARNING – the model is usually nude!) The point is to draw and study human anatomy and form. If you think you’ll feel awkward in the presence of someone posing nude then I suggest you don’t take part.
An alternative is to simply grab your sketch book and head to the library or a place where people don’t move around too much and just start drawing people (try and get some full body drawings) – the zoo is also great if you want to include life drawings of animals.
Don’t get too crazy with shading and rendering. The reviewers at a school will want to see how you constructed your drawings (your thinking process) so leave the rough stuff there on the page. Do a bunch of loose, intuitive drawings and submit your best ones.
Follow the instructions from the school. They usually ask you to submit copies of your work on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. You want to present your art in a neat and professional way to create a good impression of yourself. My suggestion is to place the sheets in plastic sleeves and submit them in a case similar to the one shown in the photo at the top of this article.
One last thing, I’ve seen portfolios go missing so don’t forget to tag it with your name, phone number and program that your applying for ….GOOD LUCK!
Description/What you learn:
Before we start animating we should set ourselves up for easy character control selections. Here’s two different ways to do it and why. We will use a pre-rigged and textured ball.
Exercises: go to animcareerpro.com
Download and open the file. Set up the ball with character sets (or a shelf button if you prefer). Save it to use in Maya Workshop 4
Quick Animation Review
Packed with action and suspense, this story keeps you on the edge of your seat. Although it reminds me of the chase scene in Ratatouille, it's still original and very well done. I have nothing bad to say about the animation, it's all there, looks fantastic. I especially enjoyed the bit of 2D in there with the chef chopping up the squid - really drives the motive for the escape. Nice cliff hanger at the end - looking forward to another one of these!
This is a short created at Gobelins L'Ecole de L'Image (Goblins School of the Image). A school in Paris dedicated to the visual arts which is best known for the Cinéma Department of Animation. Oktapodi won a flurry of festival awards in 2007 and 2008, and was nominated for Best Animated Short at the 2009 Academy Awards.
Also check out the making if Oktapodi - shows a snippet of the extensive planning and pre/post production that went into the film. It's on the Oktapodi site http://www.oktapodi.com
Well, it’s been a number of years since then, and I’ve work for several studios (now sometimes the grin turns into a grimace). 
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