Hello, I wrote a fun script about birds singing, and I need to work with an animator. Just learned about Blender (from the Oscars!) and was hoping to find a willing person. Eventually we could be paid, but right now it’s a labor of love.
THANKS!
Michael Baker
Welcome!
There are frequently people coming here and making similar posts. Those projects rarely succeed.
You have just learned of Blender’s existence, so am I to assume you aren’t a 3D artist and have no idea of the amount of work involved? I want to temper your expectations of what’s possible. Here are a few points and questions I am thinking about.
First of all, do you have any knowledge of 3D animation from outside Blender? I want you to understand that it’s a lot of work and isn’t like AI generated video where you just push a button. Many outsiders seem to expect it to be magic where the computer does most of the work, but it really isn’t.
How long is your script? Is it for a short of a few minutes at most? I hope so, because a feature length movie would take at least a team of 15-20 artists a few years to make if you want any decent level of quality.
Does your movie have many characters? Characters are complicated and need lots of work. Especially human characters, they are unforgiving to animate and cannot be rushed.
If you ask for volunteers, you will most likely get begginers looking to gain experience. The experts know to avoid this kind of project and won’t work for free.
Do you have experience making any movie? Even something that’s not animated? I would want to know if you understand the logistics and organisation needed. You would need to handle the files and make backups of them. You would need to communicate and coordinate with the artists. You would need a plan to make sound, music and voice acting if needed.
If you work with volunteers, there is a risk that artists will leave the project and be replaced. This complicates things if you aren’t a Blender user yourself, because different artists might work with different mismatched techniques and styles. Any production of a decent size would usually have artistic and technical directors to deal with this and uniformize the production, but you can’t do it yourself if you aren’t a proficient user.
What level of quality are you expecting? There is a reason big animation studios need years to make a movie. Something more crude looking can be made much quicker, but will still be work.
excellent input given! this should be pinned as a warning when someone creates this type of volunteer job post!
Thanks so much for the clarification! Yes, I’m new, just learned about this today. To answer your questions:
I have Zero knowledge of 3D animation And I know it’s very difficult work.
The script is three pages long. Hopefully it will reach 6 minutes.
There are 2 main characters, 2 supporting characters, and as many extras as we can.
I’m happy with a student, considering what it costs to hire a professional (I’ve dried outside Blender and realized I couldn’t afford to pay that up front.
Yes, I’ve made four short films. You can see them all on my website: dialitbackfilms.com I’ve been on several movie sets as a professional actor.
5a) I would arrange for all the post work, sound editing, music, etc.
Yeah, I know that’s a difficult challenge for sure.
I realize Pixar is the gold standard, and I’m not aiming for that. But I would like it to be watchable. That was my main criteria for my shorts - it has to look like it belongs on a big screen.
Ultimately I am looking for a student/beginner who wants a smaller project for practice. I realize that’s a long shot.
Thanks again for that valuable insight.
You have a background in film, that’s good and does increase your chances.
One thing I could add. The 3D animation process is divided into multiple steps, some of which can be done independently to some extent. If you can find, lets say, someone to make the characters and someone else to make the sets, these two jobs can progress at the same time (you would just need some reference images to give the two artists for a consistent art style).
If you lose an artist on the production, the best time may be in between steps. If you have all the sets and characters fully built and the artist(s) drops from the production, you can find someone else for the next steps (rigging and animation) and give them the files and it should be fine as long as the previous job wasn’t botched.
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The steps of a 3D production from your end:
1- Pre-production. Writing the script, deciding on an art style.
2- Modeling. The sculpting and fabrication of the sets and characters. Can be done by multiple artists if they are coordinated on art style.
3- Rigging. Turning characters from rigid statues to useable puppets that are ready for movement and prepared for animation.
4- Preparing for animation. Recording the voice acting. Even better, recording videos of actor performances, making a crude version of the full movie (no need for sets or costumes, just filming the performances is good). Having a pre-recorded performance from the actors will help inform what the animators need to do and give them a timing and poses to start from.
5- Animation. Replicating the acting performances in Blender, creating all the movements of the film. The voice acting is already recorded before this step, so the lips of characters can be animated to match. This can be a labor intensive step, especially if you want quality, and might need someone more specialized.
6- Special effects. If you need water, fire, smoke, destruction etc. in the film, it’s the time to add it. Depending on the complexity, this might need help from a specialist.
7- Rendering. This is the step where the scene is lit and the final images are generated. This step needs lots of computing power and waiting, as the lighting needs to be calculated for each frame of the movie, a virtual simulation of photography. Better be sure you have what you want before commiting to it, because you are going to wait for the images to be generated each time. It pays to make a low quality preview first to make sure the sequence of each scene is correct.
8- Editing. You assemble the generated images and edit the movie the same as you would a live action movie.
Thanks again! Should I rewrite the posting so it just shows the one layer at a time? I don’t know your software works to spark some interest.
Hi, i would start with looking for a concept artists for the characters and the environments, Then modellers, Riggers.
And don’t forget to offer incentives/rewards. 
If you can find a motivated artist who knows the whole process, that’s great.
Though it might be easier to do it in steps, starting by completing the sets and characters before even thinking about the following parts. You might even get better results by having multiple phases to the project with different specialists, rather than having one “Jack of all trades” artist.
Another great suggestion - thanks!
Hello, I’m in a similar but complementary situation. I’m capable of handling the technical aspects of a series, but I need help shaping the scripts. If you’re interested, we could collaborate—I can help you with modeling, rigging, and animation, and you can work on the scripts for my series.
That sounds great!