What does Bucks look for in an online portfolio?

Life drawing - excellent training for animators

One of the most common questions we get asked by students applying for the Animation and Visual Effects course here at Bucks is: What should go into my portfolio? The answer is - a bit of everything. Drawings, Painting, Life drawing, sketches, scribbles - and especially 3D digital artwork.

Our course at Bucks is increasingly digital, reflecting long-term changes in the industry, and we find that applicants with solid computer skills tend to flourish best. For a full description of what might go into a good application portfolio, check out this post.

Nowadays, we are doing a growing number of online interviews with Skype, generally for applicants from overseas. As a result, a new and slightly different question arises - what should go into an online portfolio?

The answer of course, is pretty much the same as if you were being interviewed in person. We are looking for candidates with good all-round art skills, including drawing, design and animation. You should also be familiar with computers and computer software, and be curious enough to want to know more.

It also helps if you don't get too frustrated when computers go wrong - which they do all the time - and see this as a challenge to be overcome rather than as a reason to stop work. of course, we also want to see signs of creativity and visual invention. Animation is not just about mastering the software, it's about having ideas, and giving a performance.

The best kind of digital portfolio is a website or blog showcasing your work. Check out our post here on how to create a free blog and/or website, and start uploading your work today. It's never too early.

However, if you're not ready to put your work online, or you simply don't have the time, email us your stuff. This could take the form or a JPEG or a PDF document; something that is easily opened with standard software. Movie files in simple formats like .avi or .mov are also welcome.

Quick sketches help to capture movement, and can be used for animation poses

What we don't want to see are specialist program files like Maya files or 3D Studio Max files, or Flash, or AfterEffects files. Specialist files like this take too long to load up and the person doing the interview may not have the software on their laptop.

So, just like if you were applying for a job, make sure you present your work in a format which is easily opened. Do a quick tech check before you send it out - do the files actually work? And can they be opened in standard software like QuickTime or Adobe Acrobat?

----Alex

What do studios look for in a great demo reel?

Getting hired is diffuclt in the current climate, and finding that first job can be the hardest leap of all. The most vital thing that every Bucks graduate will leave with is a demo reel or portfolio that showcases their talent and will - hopefully - get them a job. One question that tutors get asked a lot is - what should go into a demo reel? It's a good question.

Below are some excellent notes on demo reels from Jinny Hinkle, a "wannabe animator" who attended Disney's "Inspire Day" in Los Angeles. The rules for demo reels were handed down by Disney but they apply to finding work at any studio.
So, here is Here's Jinny's checklist for what should go into a demo reel or online portfolio:

1. Start strong. Create a good first impression
2. If in doubt...leave it out 
3. Show versatility - different styles
4. Customize for the job. Don't have a "one size fits all" demo reel. 
5. Submit digitally. No DVDs or paper portfolios. 
6. Polish - you’re representing yourself to the studio. Presentation is important 
7. Show your work to others for opinions 
8. You are not the best judge of your work (and neither is your Mum)
9. Don’t sacrifice quality for quantity 
10. Show your title card at the front and end 
11. Students should have a 1-2 minute reel 
12. Include a reel breakdown list on the reel (at the end) 
13. No sound on reels, except dialogue/music in the animation 

We could not agree more - this is an excellent checklist. 

You can read Jinny's whole post here:

And for more on demo reels, take a look at this video by Sony Pictures Animation. You can also watch my ten minute video on creating a great reel, and read this post on the perfect demo reel.

Remember above all that a great demo should be completely free of mistakes.

---Alex

Student Showcase - The Art of Monika Dzikowicz

Monika Dzikowicz is a 3rd year student at Bucks who has developed a very strong portfolio in visual development and concept design. She draws well and has practiced her craft to develop her skills as a concept designer, visual development artist and storyboard artist.

Monika has also taken the hugely important step of creating her own blog to showcase her work. As a freelance artist (and which artist is not, in the end, a freelancer?) you need to make your work available to prospective clients so that the world can find your work and (hopefully) pay you for your services.

Concept Art for class project

Nowadays there is no excuse for not having a blog or a tumbler account to display your work. Blogs are simple to set up, they are free, and they can be easily customised to suit your own taste and design sense.

Any student who does not have a blog or website is effectively cutting themselves off from potential employment.

One of the best aspects of building a blog or website is that it helps you to organise and sort your work. What is good? What is bad? What works? What does not? And, most important of all, what gaps do I need to fill?

When I built my first website around 7 years ago, the best part of the experience was the pleasure in realising that (a) I did have some decent work to show and (b) there were many gaps that needed filling - but that this was the first step in filling these gaps. It became a to-do list of skills that needed upgrading.

Monika has already carved out her own space on the web and even attracted followers to her page - showing that her work is enjoyed and appreciated by other artists in the blogosphere. This helps to show an employer or client that her work is popular and capable of reaching an audience.

Congratulations to Monika on building her online portfolio and inspiring the rest of us with her excellent work.

----Alex

Disney Producer Don Hahn on How to Break into The Animation Industry

Don Hahn is an animated film Producer whose credits are almost a roll-call of the Second Golden Age of Animation. His films include Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Beauty and The Beast, and The Lion King. He is currently producing the much-anticipated Maleficent, due out in 2014.

In an interview with FLIP animation blog he talked about his work as a producer, writer and director. We publish here an excerpt from the interview - his excellent advice to students on how to break into the animation business. 

Don: I meet so many people who want to break into the film business as animators, writer, directors or producers and want to know how. Here's a checklist:

• Have strong work in your portfolio and clip reel, or strong writing samples.
• Be yourself, know who you are and what you do best
• Work harder than anyone else
• Be relevant, make sure your skills are up to date
• Send studios with your resume and follow up with a call
• Find a mentor in the industry
• Stay flexible, and be willing to move if you get an opportunity.
• Get into the culture: it is easier to get hired if you live in LA or NYC or London and can intern or get an entry level job at the studio you want. It is hard to get hired if you live in Kansas and don't want to move.
• Stay positive, stay persistent, stay in contact
• Don't let the obstacles scare you away. Each studio has firewalls built up in order to keep the hobbyists and fan boys out. As a serious artist, it's part of the rights of passage to get beyond those firewalls with your talent and persistence. If they don't return your call, don't like your reel, can't talk to you unless you have an agent, or don't have anything for you, see these for what they are...obstacles to keep the amateurs out. If you want to be professional, you'll find a way to break past these with time and persistence.

In short: be better, be faster, be smarter, be stronger, work harder, work longer and there will be no stopping you!

Interview etiquette - technical Do's and Don'ts

A memory stick. And a minefield

Here at Bucks we love seeing plenty of evidence of digital artwork at interview. Even more than a traditional hand-drawn portfolio or sketchbook, digital artwork shows that an applicant is comfortable with computers and, even more important - knows what they're getting into. Our course focuses mainly on digital skills, reflecting the increasingly digital demands of the job market.


That said, digital files can be a minefield. What format are they on? Will they open on a PC or a Mac? Are they huge files? Whenever I see a memory stick I wonder, can we open its contents?

Here's a list of technical do's and don'ts, which applies not just to interviews here at Bucks but also to job interviews out there in the Real World.

DO

• Use standard images files, such as JPEGs, or TIFFs
• Use standard movie files such as AVIs or MOVs.
• Compress your files. Movie files should be no more than 100MB at most.
• Name your files clearly.
• Make sure your memory stick only contains files that you want to show, and nothing else.
• Decide what order you want to show things in.

DON'T

• Include software specific files like Photoshop, Maya, Premiere or Final Cut Pro Files. We may not be able to open them. Never assume that the person interviewing you will have specialist software on their laptop.
• Use a memory stick that is full of other, irrelevant personal files. There is nothing more embarrassing than wading through someone's party pictures to get to the artwork.
• Include huge files. Movie files over 100MB may not play at the correct speed, or at all.

Most important of all, do a quick tech check before you come in. Make sure everything on your memory stick actually works.

---Alex

What Does The Perfect Demo Reel Look Like?

What does the perfect animation demo reel look like? It's not an academic question. A good demo reel is the student's calling card, their shop front to the world and a public display of talent. No matter how good or talented you may be - you are only as good as your demo reel. It is what employers will look at when they decide which of ten applicants to hire for a vacancy. A good reel is the difference between getting hired, and not.

Above is an example of what I think a good animation reel should look like. This is the work of the very talented Richard Jeffrey, who took my animation course at Escape Studios in London. Rich has done a mixture of character and creature work, and shows not just technical skill but that most elusive of qualities - the capacity to entertain.

Any student with a reel like this will not struggle to find work.

 ---Alex

In Praise of Sketchbooks

One of the best things that any aspiring animator can do is to fill a sketchbook. Fill it with drawings, ideas, scribbles, sketches - most important of all, draw everything around you. Every time you draw something for the first time - yourself, your cat, your friends, your bike - you build up a library of images in your head, a kind of visual shorthand that makes you better at drawing and observing the world around you.


Sketchbooks are also useful sources of creativity. The great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa wrote in his autobiography about the importance of filling sketchbooks, and then re-reading them at the start of a new project, to find inspiration and ideas.

Sketchbooks aren't just a great way to learn - they are a repository for your own creative output - which you can draw upon any time you like by simply pulling a sketchbook off the shelf.

----Alex

What do we look for in applicant's portfolios?

Life drawing, especially quick sketches, provides excellent training for animators

Here at Bucks we often get asked what should go in to an art portfolio, to apply for our animation course. Drawings? Paintings? Life drawing? Digital artwork? The answer is - a bit of everything. Most important is digital artwork hosted at a website or blog, so we can access it easily.

We're looking for candidates with good all-round art skills, including drawing, design and animation. Add to this a familiarity with and a desire to know more about computers, and a creative spirit - and you have the perfect portfolio.

Here's a list of things that might go into a good art portfolio:

• Sketch books, including doodles, drawings and ideas.
• Examples of artwork. This could include life drawings, paintings, and character designs. 
• Any animation, whether digital, hand-drawn, or stop-motion. These can be brought as a digital file such as a QuickTime or avi, on a memory stick or CD. 
• Fine art portfolio 
• Digital artwork, on a CD or memory stick 
• Film, video or TV work, on a CD or memory stick.

We're also looking for evidence of 3D animation, not because it is necessary to have done this in advance of the course, but because it is the best way for a student to find out if this is really what they want to do for a living. Computer animation involves many hours in front of a screen and the best way to discover if you enjoy doing it....is to do it.

Of course, the best kind of portfolio is an online portfolio. Check out our post here on creating a free blog and/or website, and start uploading your work.

One last note on interviews: well-prepared candidates should always make sure they check that any digital files they bring can actually be opened! Always do a quick tech-check before you come in.

----Alex

For more on the experience of studying at Bucks New University, come and visit us at one of our Open Days,  take a virtual tour of one of our animation studios, check out what our students think of our course, and see why we're ranked in the top 12 creative universities in the UK. Find out why we're giving free laptops to all our students, and why we give all our students free access to videos at Lynda.com. Also, see what financial assistance might be available to you. Learn which is better for animation, a PC or a Mac? Get hold of a copy of a map so you can find your way around campus, and learn about motion capture at Bucks. And find out about how our online video tutorials work.