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» Experts Advice
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Where is your beef? Should you focus on your Weaknesses or Strengths?
When it comes to your strengths and weaknesses, play to your strengths, but work on your weaknesses. For example, if your knowledge of film grammar is weak, don't apply as a board artist until you have a decent grasp of the basics. That said, it is very important to get out of your comfort zone to grow.
Demo Reel
When cutting your demo reel, keep it short at 3-4 minutes in length. If you've produced or animated entire shorts, commercials or directed longer formats, included those as a separate link from the clip reel. There is no need to include everything you've ever done and it's very important that you edit your weak work out. When strong work is mixed with weaker work, it calls into question your ability to tell the difference, or that the stronger work was more the result of your supervisor.
| Chris Bailey
Director/
Animation Supervisor
www.majordamage.net
Filmography USA
| | | | | 
Wayne Gilbert
Animation Director
www.anamie.com
Filmography
CANADA
| When people say "Follow your passion", what does this exactly mean?
'Know what your passion is' - that must come first. Animation is an industry with a broad range of disciplines. Identify your passion within it. Do you have a passion for story telling, character design, world design, character animation, lighting and FX? You may have a passion for story boarding from existing stories or your passion could be writing the stories. If character animation is your 'passion' then you will have a constant and overpowering desire to study acting, and the principles that create action. Know your passion, let it consume your creative life.
Some people say I need to concentrate on my weaknesses, some others on my strengths?
This is an open ended question so please allow a question to your question - will concentrating on your weakness take time away from what you want to be doing?
With regard to aesthetics - if you concentrate on your strengths, weaknesses will disappear. 'Master the fundamentals, there is nothing else.' This is a quote from a book titled Simplified Drawing for Planning Animation. Not sure who the author is...oh yeah, Wayne Gilbert. Character animation is an all encompassing craft. Drawing was at one time the foundation of traditional animation but now there are many software packages to animate with, and drawing has been de-emphasized. The craft of character animation remains in tact. It is good - or it isn't. Strive to master acting, motivating action.
...I was just about to go on a philosophical tangent but it frightened me. Let's leave it for the next time.
Are your strengths and weaknesses connected or disparate, when defining your goals? The answer will make it easier to focus a discussion around your initial question.
| | |  Producer
Rainmaker Animation
www.Rainmaker.com Filmography CANADA
| How to Manage Artists Part 1.
In my experience as an Associate Producer in Television, Production Manager in CG Film, Artist Manager at ILM and now a high end Recruiter…..managing artists is different than managing any other people. Artists are motivated by different rewards and find fulfillment in ways that may not be considered in the mainstream business world.
Hiring a student
If you can spot a great talent and nurture them through your in-house pipeline, you have a true gem that will infuse energy and innovation into your studio. Despite their raw ability, they will still need to learn how to create under the constraints of tight schedules, multiple direction and consistent teamwork.
When you hire an artist straight out of school, there are certain soft skills that they may not have attained because of the nature of the work they have done. At most Computer Animation schools, the students have probably been working on a personal project and may not have had any opportunity or a desire to collaborate with their peers. Because of this they may not recognize the important role that teamwork plays in the completion of a studio project. People who work as individuals can be very difficult to manage when you are trying to complete a project and they are trying to complete their demo reel. For this reason, it is important to look beyond the work on the demo reel and find out how the student works with others and how they see themselves fitting into your studio.
Students can sometimes have a skewed understanding of their place in the market and may demand high salaries or positions based on their potential talent while offering little or no production experience. Often, talented students are lured away by big salaries only to realize too late that they have missed a great learning experience in exchange. A student must feel that they are being respected for their raw talent but also that they are working with people who are able to teach them as well. Make sure that your new student has several weeks of in-house training on your pipeline and workflow, and that they understand why you use the methods you do. Offer in-house mentoring by pairing a new student employee with a veteran in your company. Offer in-house workshops where veteran artists discuss the nature of their craft and the way to optimize the use of certain tools. These “extras” are the type of rewards that money cannot buy and that will lure the best new talent to your studio.
Stay tuned for the next installment of “How to Manage Artist” at www.VancouverAnimation.ca
| | | | | | | 
Dhimant Vyas
Animation Film Designer
www.dhimantvyas.com
INDIA | Why do I need to have passion and Where will it take me?
We all have passion about some work from childhood and it is always there until we die.
It is up to you to recognize it and find the way to extract it out of you, nurture it. Then your work would not be only a job but you would be passionate to do it. It will show in your work too when you have passion for it, we will never get tired of the work but enjoy it. All the great people have done it and are doing extraordinary things in their lives because they are driven by passion.
Then it will become your attitude to struggle for perfection in your work, learn new things related to your subject, experiment new things, and refine your skills. The outcome would be always great and it will open up all the doors for you to the way of successes.
We are very lucky to be in art of animation where we are not only creating the one drawing or image but giving life to it, giving birth to our characters and watching them walk, dance and in various expressions of life! And the process is as painful as a mother giving birth to a baby and enjoy watching them growing up. In this case if you do not have passion then you can imagine the result.
Simply search within yourself, what you love and enjoy doing, find the way to get into, develop learning attitude all the time until you die, have the guts to experiment new things in your work.
Portfolios and Demo reels (What makes them bad, good and excellent?)
Portfolios and demo reel gives a first impression of your abilities, talent and professional level. It is very important to organize it properly. In this fast and professional world people do not have time to spend ages to see an endless show reel. So it should be short with best your best work only, easy to access and tailor it to what the employer is looking for.
It will create a bad impression when you have great experience but your reel is badly presented, difficult to find things or doesn’t play or open. In other words it shows your personality, attitude and professionalism. We should be studying our work and compare it to what is happening around the world to check where we stand. Refining your Portfolio is an endless process, remove old bad stuff and add new interesting stuff in it.
| | | |  Shawn Kelly
Lead Animator ILM
Co-Founder
Animation Mentor
www.AnimationMentor.com
USA
| Your portfolio got you to the interview, you are there... now what?
When you're first starting out, the interview can be the most frightening, intimidating, and exciting moment of your early career! You're bound to be nervous, so just accept the fact that you'll have some butterflies and try not to let it get the best of you. The more you can be yourself, the better off you'll be. My advice to anyone going into an interview would be:
1. Know the company! Familiarize yourself ahead of time with the projects and work that the studio has recently done. This will show that your interest is in more than just a paycheck, but in being a part of the studio team, and will also help you avoid congratulating Studio A on the work you loved in the project that was actually done by Studio B! (NOT a good idea!)
2. Be yourself! If you're eager and enthusiastic, don't let your fear of looking unprofessional hold you back from showing that excitement. Sure, you want to project a sense of professionalism, but there's a fine line between sounding like an eager professional and sounding like you're bored or "too cool for school."
3. Arm yourself with questions! Yes, you're there to give answers, but most interviewers will eventually ask you if you have any questions for them. Don't let this catch you off guard - instead, impress them with questions about the day-to-day work expected, the project in question, or the project's schedule. Avoid questions about money or benefits - save those questions for the next time you talk, when you hopefully get the good news!
4. Be respectful! You don't need to show up in a full suit or gown for your interview, but put some effort into your appearance. Show your respect to the interviewers and the studio by dressing a little nicer, being polite, and avoiding harsh language. That stuff can really backfire if you aren't careful.
5. Bring extra reels! There's no harm in showing up with some extra demo reels, resumes, and a copy of your portfolio to pass around. You never know when that might come in handy, and looking at your stuff again will refresh their memory of your work, and help them remember you more after you walk out of the room. No need to push that stuff onto anyone either, of course - you can just mention that you have it with you, in case they'd like it.
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