Week 12 - Conclusion

Reaching week 12 we are nearing the half way point to our final year, my showreel is complete and I feel ready to present it this week. In my first blog post back in week 1 I stated that the job role I wanted to aim for was the role of an animator. This job has been a dream of mine since I was 9 years old when I discovered for the first time you could draw cartoons for a living and get paid for doing so. Since then I've been fascinated by the development of animation, I would watch the DVD extras of Monster's inc and Jimmy Neutron and be simply amazed with how they would go from a simple drawing of a character to the final 3D model in the film. As I got older the more i discovered about the development of animation. It wasn't till getting to University and actually working on my own projects in groups, I then realised how hard it really is.

The whole course for the past 2 years and a half have been preparing us for the industry and the key to getting into the industry is to have a showreel/portfolio that shows off your best work and the skills you have. This is what this module is for. Preparations for this module started with me watching other peoples showreels that displayed their own animation work. These showreels helped me to start planning what work I would like to show off. I had done a few animation related work over the summer however nothing I felt was worthy of going into my showreel. So I started from scratch. I went about using work from other modules from this term and next for example Game Development by using my work from that module to present in my showreel.

Looking at my final block out showreel, I'm happy with the content that I've included. I want to begin work turning my storyboards into final animation the first weekend of the Christmas Holidays. This will consist of building the props like the the roller coaster kart and blocking out the poses for the character.

What's my plan for beyond PPD 1? Well there's PPD 2 which will involve me actually working on and making the animation I have planned in my showreel, this work will begin over the Christmas holidays. The sooner I start the work the better as when we start back again in January we'll have a brand new module to start and I'll be well into my dissertation by then too. The other reason I will start my work soon after I finish this term is if I do have the time near the end I would like to possibly work on some more short animation clips to go into my showreel. That's of course if I have any time spare at the end.

But thinking even beyond PPD 2 for example post graduation, what happens then? Mystery? Looking back over my previous posts for example my blog referencing the graduation speech Rich Moore gave to graduated students. In that video a famous directors speaks confidently that his first job in the industry was working as a prop artist for the "Care Bears Show". This was a job he admits isn't what he thought he would be doing before he graduated but that job helped him break into the industry which lead him to a completely different path to The Simpsons.

Relating this to me, I wouldn't be put off ever working on a project similar to the "Care Bears" as the end of the day it's a job in the industry. Experience is key in the industry, countless job applications I've looked at relating to the job role I'm aiming for all at least asked for 1 - 2 years experience in the industry. This I don't have, so to turn down a job or project because the concept or theme doesn't appeal to you is the worst thing  I think you can do, as it'll give you experience in the industry. This route into the industry does appeal to me and I would be more than proud to be starting a career that's been a dream of mine.

Exit Plan
My plan for when I leave and finish the course would be to have a finished and well presented showreel displaying a lot of the animation related work. This of course wouldn't be the end of working on my showreel, I plan to continue working and making the showreel the best it can be. A job related to the video games industry would be an amazing opportunity, but however I know it is tough to get a job in the industry straight away from leaving university.

This may lead me to possibly apply for jobs that aren't related to the industry but just as a way to get income in and still continue to work on mini animation projects to work and add to my showreel. I think it's important to do this as it'll keep me improving my skills and help me keep aiming for that dream job in the industry.

Week 12 - Block Out Website

For my showreel I want to create a web page as a base location for the showreel to be placed. A lot of the showreels I've watched earlier in the term had a basic website and home screen displayed the showreel. They also had links to art work and details about the artist including a copy of their CV. I wanted my webpage to have calm colours and not be too load and over the top. I remember one of the first portfolios I looked at on this module, the background colour was bright yellow and I just felt too distracted from the work.

Here's the plan of how I would like my webpage to look like. In total I'm only using 3 colours cream, white and blue. I've also included blocks at the bottom that will lead people to my 2D art work, a copy of my CV and a page where I can briefly talk about myself basically introducing myself. Of course in the is where I would like my showreel to be placed. I want it to be on the first page you enter, as it'll make it much more easier for people to view my work.

This is all could and will change as time goes on and it'll also depend on which host web page I decide to use and the features each has. This mock up above is a target for how I would like my we page to be.

Week 12 - Showreel Presentation

This week I presented my block out showreel to Jon and the rest of the class. In the presentation I briefly discussed why I'm interested in the job role of an animator, talking about the cartoons that influenced me. Next i moved onto talking about what I found out from watching other peoples portfolios on the internet, mentioning that I found the animation related showreels to more like sketch shows that really did entertain me. Which is a good thing as that's what a piece of animation should do. Finally I played my showreel a few times to the audience. I was happy with the reaction and feedback, there was confusion however at the beginning with my first piece of animation to where it was actually set. But once I explained in was set with the character in a roller coaster and not wanting to go on the ride it was clear and it got a few laughs. I have been making a few tweaks to the character diorama (middle) part of my showreel, as part of the feedback I got was that part went on too fast.

Nearing the end of my presentation I talked about that I would be starting to turn my storyboards into full animation by this weekend and over the Christmas holidays. Something I would also like to do If I have the time is to add possibly more animation to the showreel, that's of course if I get on well the animations I plan to do over the holiday.