How Can You Tell if Our Course is For You?

free 3D software

A career in animation and visual effects is not for everyone. A lot of what we do day to day involves solving software problems, trying to make stuff work on a PC or a Mac, and cursing our computer when it doesn't. Being a digital artist isn't for everyone. One way of finding out if this is something you would like to do for a career is to do a couple of tutorials online. A great place to start is with the 3D software Blender - it's completely free, and there are many free tutorials out there to get you started.

Free Blender Tutorial at YouTube

To begin, go to the Blender homepage at www.blender.org and download their free software. It's easy to do, and quick to install on your laptop, or your friend's laptop. Any reasonably modern machine should be able to run Blender.

Next, go to YouTube and search for Basic Blender Tutorials.  What you want are the most basic tutorials available, that teach you the really simple stuff, assuming absolutely no prior knowledge of the programme. Below is one we like, which teaches you how to model a coffee cup. To do this tutorial you will need a PC (it's not so good on a Mac) and a three button mouse (or Wacom tablet).




If you're running a Mac, you might try this Mac-friendly tutorial below instead. The author gives instructions for both platforms (Blender is slightly different on a Mac vs a PC), so if you are on a Mac you are more likely to be able to follow the tutorial without running into problems.



If you can follow one or both of these tutorials without giving up in despair and wanting to chuck the computer out of the window - a career in animation and visual effects might be for you.

A willingness to learn, an openness to embrace new software, the desire to combine technical and artistic skills - these are the hallmarks of a good digital artist. If this sounds like you - you will most likely enjoy our course at Bucks.

---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.

Should Artists Ever Work For Free?

Scofield Entertainment

Should artists work for free? This is a knotty problem and a subject on which people tend to have strong feelings. Students and graduates do of course often work for free, taking work experience, unpaid jobs or internships which do not pay actual money, but which offer training in the industry and real-world experience of what the world of work is like.

The trouble is, there are many people out there looking for a free lunch. The trick with working for free is to ask yourself what the benefit will be to you, and whether or not it's likely to be worth it in the end. In this very funny 2009 video by Scofield Entertainment, some film-makers have cooked up a very entertaining satire on on the "Work For Free" culture of much digital media today.

The video essentially poses the question: what if the folks asking for free stuff from digital artists were trying to get hold of real world items like food, haircuts and DVDs? How far would it get them?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2a8TRSgzZY




On a personal note, I have worked for free on many occasions, and I still do. The questions I always ask myself are: do I have the time to do? Is it a good cause? And, if so, is it worth it?

I have done many charity jobs over the years,  some of which have been very rewarding in non-financial ways (I'm doing one now, a design for a invitation for a charity auction). Charity work can be fun, and you tend to meet a lot of great people.

A design for a deckchair for London's Parks

When I was teaching myself story boarding, I did several storyboard jobs for free. Not charity work this time; just practicing my skills on a live project. So it's really about doing a cost/benefit analysis. Do you want and/or need to do it? Do you have a better offer? Can you afford to do it? In the end it comes down to a personal choice.

A charity gig in 2012 for "The Big Egg Hunt" in London. Like the cows - but with eggs

But if a total stranger asks you on the web to do free stuff for their amazing new project which is going to be The Next Big Thing, the answer should generally be "no". In the end, you need to be able to trust the people you are doing favours for, and know that they aren't just taking advantage of your good will.


--Alex


For more on how to survive and thrive in the animation industry, read this post. Also read about what studios look for in a great demo reel, and read our guide to student demo reels. Hear what London's Blue Zoo has to say about finding work, and take a look at this video on portfolios by Sony Pictures Animation. You can also watch Alex's ten minute video on creating a great reel, and read this post on the perfect demo reel. Also, check out our guide to animation careers here, and also take a look at this map of digital studios - a great place to start your search for work in the business. Learn the nuts and bolts of freelance life by reading our guide to invoicing clients, and our guide to putting together a great CV. Also download the free Escape Studios guide to careers in VFX.

Bucks Animation featured in Digital Arts Magazine

We're famous! Today's edition of Digital Arts Magazine online has run a piece all about our new course at Bucks, focusing specifically on our revolutionary technique of "flipping the classroom", inspired by the work of American educator and entrepreneur Salman Khan. Click here to read all about it. We're at Computer World too!

---Alex

(Editor's Note: for more on "flipping the classroom" at Bucks, check out this piece all about our video tutorials. To find out more about Salman Khan, the educator who pioneered the technique, read this post. And for a general introduction to our new course at Bucks, click here.)