What Do You Want To Know?

Obviously, there are a good mix of people here from the animation industry, both young and old(er), newbie to seasoned. For those who are dying to know anything and everything about working in animation, ask away on this thread. Myself (11 years experience), along with many others in the industry will try to take a crack at your answers.

For the record, I work in the commercial/broadcast side of the biz. Others have worked on TV shows and internet. Do we have any feature peeps? If not, let's try and get 'em here.

Ask away.....(or not)...

Tags: animation, animation biz, work

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Permalink Reply by Elliot Cowan on August 2, 2008 at 5:13pm: George Pfromm is one of your teachers?
He's a fucking terrific illustrator.

You are Dutch yes?
Keep in mind that there's lots of animation work in London, where you are able to work being a member of the EU.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph Sutter on August 2, 2008 at 5:23pm: Yes sir! He is a great illustrator, and an awesome person to boot.
It was a pleasure having him for my 2D animation class this semester.

I am aware of the animation oppurtunities in London and possibly even France, I would like to gain work experience over here (the U.S.) for a while though.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Tricia on August 6, 2008 at 2:57pm: Hiya-

Here's a question for you, how do you pitch a show to adult swim? I know I can't be the first thats asked that one! Any info would be awesome! thanks!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ralph Sutter on August 6, 2008 at 11:12pm: I've heard that adultswim's idea of a pitch would need to include character bibles for recurring characters, a story that can be ongoing, and perhaps the script or outline for a pilot.

Nothing too dramatic. However, I've also heard that adultswim has the habit of taking one's pitched idea and really making it their own. Forcing the artist to lose a lot of creative input.

Again, a lot of what I just said is based on hear-say from and with other animation students. I am sure other members can give you a more definite answer.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Peter Weatherall on August 8, 2008 at 7:33am: I`ve been writing songs/music and animating them (I`m mainly a musician - but turned to animating them to get more of a public airing of my stuff) for about a decade now. For the last 2 years I`ve been making a weekly animated music TV show broadcast on the public access (we call it community) TV network across Australia and New Zealand) in the vain hope of getting a job in the TV or Media industry - I`ve been unemployed for the better part of the past decade. Apart from selling the occasional DVD or CD off my websites I haven`t had any success - even in getting TV production companies/ TV stations even to respond to inquiries/submissions. Some of my recent stuff (a series of science songs/animations) aren`t bad - you can see them at my science website www.simplescience.net - so I wonder how you get your toe in the door of the industry? Any advice/hints?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Patrick Mallek on August 8, 2008 at 9:44am: There is no ONE answer to the "magic question". Every person who gets "in" has a different story to tell. My main advice would be to enter, get accepted to and attend Film Festivals. Seeing your work with a live audience in invaluable, as are the contacts and general experience. My first break, like many of my contemporaries, came through the Spike & Mike Festival. But if you get in a good fest, even if you win, don't be complacent. A foot in the door isn't an "in", it's what you do from there that will determine your fate. Be persistent, be confident and most importantly, be yourself.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Solomon Mars on August 31, 2008 at 2:42pm: As a 2D animator with a basic understanding of 3D, is it better to be a generalist or focus on one skill? I've heard mostly that generalist get more work, but some of my professors are pushing us to slim our portfolios down to focus on one skill. (I think that some groups at SIGGRAPH were saying to o this, so my profs went right along) Are major companies getting into looking for generalists? I probably would prefer a small studio, but as it stands I am a generalist.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Vincent Veidt on August 31, 2008 at 3:34pm: Market yourself both ways. In your portfolio, show that you can do a little of everything, but highlight the aspects in which you would like to work or have most talent in. Also, it helps to know what the studio wants.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Solomon Mars on August 31, 2008 at 5:01pm: ah... yes. that makes sense. How would I find out what a specific studio wants? Do they generally post there needs on company sites?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Vincent Veidt on September 1, 2008 at 1:49am: Ask around RAW, odds are that someone has worked wherever you're applying; if not, they probably know someone who has. This industry is all about networking.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Solomon Mars on September 1, 2008 at 12:50pm: cool, thanks. I'm so glad that CF is around. everyone here acts so professional, and are very helpful.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Chris Battle on September 8, 2008 at 12:44am: Hey guys: If any of you out there want some basic info about breaking into the field of animation prop design, I took part in a multi-artist interview on the subject in the latest issue of Animation Magazine that I posted up on my blog. There some good advice to be found there.; ▶ Reply to This