Hello, I finished an animation and I would like to ask if I should try to apply for an animation/modeling job. I can’t say if the level is ok or if I shouldn’t even bother people with it… Please let me know what you think. Here is the video:
To begin with you may wish to pick just one of modelling or animation - simply as both are demanding areas and being a generalist is a tall order. Animation wise you have some good poses in there, which is an excellent start.
My advice to you is to go have a look at some of the reels and work posted on forums frequented by professionals. That’ll give you a general idea of what sort of standard you need to reach. I’d recommend the 11 second club (which is animation focussed), and also cgsociety (covers animation, modelling, and almost everything else!). Don’t be put off by these forums, there are some amazing artists there as well as beginners. Look for the beginners.
And what sort of background do you have? Are you familiar with the fundamental concepts? Anatomy, proportion, topology? Weight, timing, overlapping and secondary actions? Have you done any lip synching before? I only ask because these are not demonstrated in this clip, but are the sort of thing an employer will be looking for and asking about.
Have a look around and see what you think.
Hello, thanks for the reply 
I have studied informatics which kinda has nothing to do with what I want to do now. I just finished Design and Digital media programme. It was quite general, a bit from everything. But we had some basics in modeling, animation, texture… So I don’t really have much of a useful background… I worked on this animation for my dissertation. I went through a lot of materials concerning topology, proportions, timing, weight… Throughout the course I did some 3D projects, I would say my modeling and texturing might be advanced/intermediate. This video is my first animation with characters. And I haven’t done lip sync yet :(. I would like to focus on animation but I know that I need to learn much more… Therefore I was wondering if I should apply for a job in this area or do something else (to feed me :D) before I gain more skills.
If animation is what you want to do I’d at least start to enquire about jobs. Find out what you should have in your reel and what employers are looking for… Talk to the animators if at all possible. However I also think there is still a lot of work to do. Your posing is great, but the movement needs work. Again, check the forums used by industry types and see how you stack up.
So… I’m assuming you’ve had little exposure to animation, and I apologise if any of the following sounds patronising.
First and formost, the underlying principles are the same for all mediums, although the individual techniques may differ. Cel, stop-motion, CG, etc. all rely on the same set of basic rules.
As a starting point I’d suggest reading up on the 12 principles of animation. Why 12? Well, it is somewhat arbitrary. They’re originally from the book “The Illusion of Life” by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson, who were old-school Disney men and are still very highly regarded. I’ve seen lists a lot longer, and lists a lot shorter, but they all boil down to the same few familiar concepts. A brief summary is here.
As far as actually working in a CG environment goes, a lot of people reference Keith Lango’s site. Although personal experience amounts to anecdotal evidence, I found his notes to be very helpful in organising a workflow. His tutorials are here. The big thing to keep in mind is that in CG you are still creating individual images, so the same principles still apply.
On an artistic level and to keep the inspiration going, try and find a few animators you like and see what they’re up to. Try this blog, which has some thoughts on Tissa David’s work, and John K’s blog which has a lot of good analysis going on. For someone a bit more new-school I quite like Jordan Krahn as well. And of course Aardman do a lot of varied stuff (beyond Wallace & Gromit), some of it very left-field.
Lastly, don’t be put off. There’s a lot to learn. It’s hard. It will take a long time.
Hope this helps…
Thanks a bunch! This helps a lot