One of the most important things to show yourself off and get work is a show reel. I made myself a showreel in easter of 2022 so I could apply for internships. I was unfortantly unsuccessful but my showreel was also very basic, as it was before i had made any films and only had my animation excerises on it.
obviously my work has improved alot since then. Ill try to put together a quick attempt at a 2023 showreel so i can apply to summer internships before they close applications. I would like to have someone look at it properly after deadlines and make sure I’m show casing the best of my work.
https://youtu.be/ieaYjUlzEG4
I would love to but more 3D and mixed media work in this reel but I’m afraid my experiemental stuff isn’t very strong and I need to work on it some more. I think thats something I’m going to try and focus more on after the course and in my spare time. I really love maing films and I know that i will need to apply for commercail jobs but I dont think I’ll ever stop pursuing passion projects in my spare time, and hopeful passion projects will just make more employasble as I learn new things.
Something I would love to do is work in the EU speciaically the Netherlands as I have many dutch friends especially working or studying art and animation. Luckly for me I have an itialian passport so even with Brexit I should still be able to move and work in the EU.
Studios in the Netherlands So it turns out there are lots of animation and game studios in the Netherlands. Alot of the studios are 3D, or mixed media. 3D is something I’ve wanted to work more on now I’m more confident as a 2D animator so this might be something worth working towards for the future. There are also alot of advertising Studios in the Netherlands. Obviouslt they arent all animation adverts but there are exapmples of animation in most fo there showreels so it seems like there is possibl;ity for freelance work too.
Phunk Studios
Phunk is an Amsterdam based animation studio. They create advertising and and produce films and serises for around the globe. They seem to have an enpahisis on 3D animation but from watching their show reel, they also have some 2D work and seem to be pushing more into combining both Mediums which is something I’m very interested in. They definetly have more of a house style that is very bright cartoony and suited for advertising. They seem like a much newer company, its defintly someone i would try to reach out possibly in the future as I like their style and it could be fun to explore even just for a freelance project.
Submarine
Submarine is another Amsterdam based company but unlike Phunk they seem to veer more into film making than advertising. They also create a bigger varriety of work using many different mediums and styles. They have 2 more offices in both London and Los Angeles, so there is potential for moving around. They also produce Live action work such as documentries and really seem to encourage experiemtnation and exploration of differnt mediums, having a whole section on their website for “hybrid” movies.
Bohemia Interactive
I mentioned before that the Netherlands is home to alot of game studios. I think i managed to find at least 5 whitch only a cursory search, which seems like so much for the size of the county, though I guess the same could be argued for animation studios. I don’t have a huge interest in working on video games, as I’m not a coder and usually the realistic style of most triple A games doesn’t interest me. But in looking into these studios alot of them are looking for concept artist of character designers and modelers. Something I think I would quite enjoy and could apply my knowledge to.
Paladin
I really ment it when I said there were alot of games companies. Something alittle different and more appling to me style wise is Paladin’s work. they make app games and more child friednly conctent havuing worked with brands like Nintendo, Netflix and Bandai. The work on Tamagotchi makes me particularly excited, as that was a huge part of my childhood. Their base of opperations is The Hague which is such a stunning city. Its not an industry I know alot about but with the amount of oppurtunities its defintly something I will be looking into.
So I was first introduced to The Lines work through Gorillaz, on the music vdieo for Humility. I’ve been a massive fan of Gorillaz since I was a kid and so when they returned in 2018 and I saw they were working with a new animation studio I was so excited and started researching into them and all their ongoing projects. It was crazy to me when I got on to the same course Tim McCourt, one of the founders of The Line, also did.
I know that the line have a very popular intern program. I’ve applied a few times just in case, while knowing I didn’t really have the skills or knowledge to help or be of use. I will of course keep applying and hope that now I know more of what I am doing.
I also know they are very good for hiring talent and people with distinct styles and strengths.
I know this is a long shot and a big dream of mine. But honestly if I had unlimited resources I would love to create my own Studio and just start making films.
Places like The Line and small shows like Smiling Friends and seeing the success and just amazing work they put out really makes me want to see if this is a possibility for me in the future.
There are obviously a lot of questions I have and I have no idea where to even start with this research or who to reach out to for more information, but I’ll see what I can find out.
How To? So firstly I’d need to register my business. For a Studio I couldn’t register as a soul trader, which is what I’ve been working as before with selling art and freelancing. I think I’d need to register the Studio as a Limited Company. That way you can hire an accountant and your personal finances are separate from the business. I talked to my uncle who started and runs his own business and he addvised me to use Campanies House, to check if the business name is avalible and there are also a bunch of research and advice avalible for start ups.
I’d also have to look into types of insurance I’d need for the business. I need to have Employers liability insurances if I was to start employing people outside the initial start up. Other than that I think the only other insurance that would seem like a good idea would be Cyber insurance
I’d also need consider if we would work from a sit or we would work from home. Obviously this is an additional cost that would be considered a luxury and wouldn’t be viable until the Studio was making any money. If we work from home you can also claim back things like heating, electricty and Wifi on tax.
Going back to potentially employing people. Id need to look at how to do payroll, playing for National Insurance and so on. These are all things I think a professional could help me with, but I should have some idea of what they are at least are talking about and what goes into it. Also hiring an accountant would be expensive and the more I know the easier it would be to save money. Apps like Quickbooks and just doing your own book keeping will save you money but also be an easy resource to share with an accountant.
Creating a Client Base A studio is a nice idea but its pointless without a client base. I’d love to just use this Studio to make make movies, but that would require a lot of time and money. We could probably get some from funding and investors but in the long run this would be a passion project we might have to run on the side of commercial projects. But looking at places like The Line and Shotopop most of their work comes from music videos and advertising.
Funding The Uk has very few film funds in comparrison to other countries like France and Japan. I know the BFI, Film4, and the BBc have a few funding options you can apply for. There are also a few regional options. I remeber my boss Gustavo applying for a bunch of welsh film grants while we were storyboarding for his current film. It would probably be worth reaching out to him again in the future and seeing how easy or it was to apply.
The more I look into companies the more Freelancing seems to be the best option for me. I was really lucky to attend a networking event hosted by Shotopop. I ran to a few old students as well as getting to connect with people from ShotoPop, Run with the Golden Wolf, The Line, and Psyop.
Everyone was really friendly and gave some great advice about startiong in the industy. Getting jobs mostly seems to be about just knowing people, or being persistant with messaging and showing work.
After the event I looked more into Shotopop and how they employ their freelance workers. I reached out to one of their current freelancers, Freya Hotson and asked her a few questions about how she got the job and what it was like.
1. How did you manage to get work with Shotopop? Did they reach out to you?
Actually, this time I reached out. The start of this year has been scarily quiet all round, with lay offs at the big CGI studios, cost of living etc. After a boom period in covid suddenly everything disappeared so I was emailing around studios to find work and got lucky.
2. What is the reality of freelancing? Is there alot of team work? Or are you just left to your own devices and dealing with a director
I’d say every project and every studio is different. It’s also really different post-covid now 85% of people are working remotely (myself included). Some studios the director will be sitting with you, you’ll have coffee together, they’ll regularly check in and and see how shots are progressing (this is when we were all in house). But other times the director could be based in Paris or LA (especially on commercials) so you’d essentially never see them and spend more time liaising with the producer or your animation director/lead. I’d say these days you are often left to your own devices most of the time, but you’ll check in with your director 2/3 times a day It really has changed a lot over the last 2 years. Luckily I’d already made the contacts and worked in London for 10 years when covid hit, I imagine it must be very hard to make connections now.
3. How long does a project usually last
I’d say the average would be 8 weeks? It can be as short and sharp as 2 and I’d class a ‘long’ project as 6 months+. 6 to 8 weeks is probably the norm.
4. How easy is it for you to adapt styles to each project? Do you have to spend a day doing studies ?
Mmm, good question. I think most people tend to gravitate towards work that is more in ‘their style’/the style of animation they most enjoy. It can be really hard to adapt to some styles, when I worked on Love Death & Robots I really struggled to nail the style the whole time, it was really tough. I think you get used to having a short-cut way of working around difficult characters/models, which just comes with practise. Everyone cheats a little! These days there isn’t really any breathing space in schedules to have time to ‘get to know’ a character, unless you’re working on a feature film. It’s really hit the ground running.
5. What advice would you give to students or people starting in the industry?
Lots! Some things I still have to remember – everyone will progress at a different rate than you, don’t compare your progress to other people’s. It’s a very competitive industry, be kind and pull each other up. Sometimes you won’t get a job and your friends will and it really hurts, but everything works out for the best in the long run – sometimes it’s a blessing in disguise! That and – life drawing, life drawing, life drawing! It’s so good for you, it’s the best thing you can do for animation.
