I was incredibly excited to attend this talk, seeing as Julie the us a producer and I would love to get my foot into a production assistant role.
It was very informative to hear about her experiences and I had a couple of questions regarding her journey, especially knowing she had experience with small as well as major studios.
Listening to Jenny talk about her practice truly made me less anxious. I remembered her from the Sound Workshop from the last project (and because her film My Mother’s Eyes made me cry every time).
She gave us great insight about the festival work she’s done and been recognised for and how helpful that was in her independent art practice. (Considering every single artist speaks about the importance of the festivals, I will definitely make more effort to look into them).
It was very helpful to talk to her about life after graduation, considering she completed the same course, and how to balance doing freelance work and having a day job on the side.
Today we had the chance to listen about Selom’s experience in the industry so far. He talked to us about individual studios he’s worked for and what went well, what challenged him, and why it ended (I haven’t included notes from that just in case).
It was very kind of Selom to share that insight and give us advice based on his experience so that we could learn from it. He’s also shared a list of ‘tips so far’. It was also sort of encouraging to hear about things that didn’t go to plan – such as not getting on the course straight way or making a mistake on the job.
When he graduated, his financial situation was quite similar to mine – living with a partner and paying a mortgage. This made me a bit less worried whether it was ‘too late’ to enter the industry. So I’m thankful for this.
Neeraja’s work is very captivating and endearing. Her character designs on “Meow or Never” reminded me of Animal Crossing Villagers and the musical side seemed influenced by Disney – which she confirmed.
She also expressed how the festivals really helped her get noticed and how good they were for her as an artist.
It was also good to hear what other skills she found useful in the industry.
“Don’t just sit back and expect things to come to you!”
It was extremely informative to hear about Alexandra’s experiences and what it’s like to work with directors as a composer. It is always so useful to hear the other side and the best way to learn.
We also had a chance to look at her Cue Sheets to see what kind of feedback was industry standard.
As well as this, I found Alexandra’s exercise very insightful: we drew a random ‘feeling’ and needed to find a piece of music to express it, then see if the rest of the class guessed it right. There are some feelings that will easily overlap, and others that would definitely become clearer with visuals.
I’m really thankful to Sophie for her insight into the industry. She was kind enough to bring up budgets and day rates with us. She also talked us through having a personal as well as a commercial style to be a more successful freelancer until our personal work can pay for everything.
It was really good to look at her pitch examples and find out how to market our ideas and make them approachable and exciting.
She also took some time to speak to me and my aspirations. I managed to show her my Production Schedule and express my interest in Production Management. Having learnt that I previously did sculpture and was now specialising in 2D animation, she recommended I look at applying to BlinkInk Studios as they work in many different styles.
Funnily enough, apparently last year she spoke to a student in the same seat last year who is now working in Production. Fingers crossed!
Ko’s talk made us more confident to become independent animators as she guided us through her process. She included details such as where to look for funding and collaborators for our projects.
She also showed us how she organises her route sheet to ensure we stay on top of our work. When she’s planning for her LAVS she not only writes the action but also the emotion behind it – something that I will be keeping in mind going forward. Because a frustrated person will walk differently from a tired person. And the subtext can be added to any action and make everyone’s work easier.
Sue Tong came back this year to speak to us again. This time her talk was focused more on the actual process of making the layout and the best practices regarding this.
Prior to her visit, I was considering painting my backgrounds in gouache as I feel much more confident choosing my colours through paint than digitally. However, she advised against it due to the fact that if I were to revise the shot and needed a bigger background, it would be difficult to add on. We agreed that it would probably be beneficial to me to paint my colour script in gouache but to paint the final backgrounds digitally.
Looking into Osbert Parker’s work was extremely interesting and encouraging. I had heard of him before when I worked for LIAF as he co-curated the ‘Disrupting the Narrative’ programme. His work focuses on collage and stop-motion, though he always expands on his style.
Following the lecture, we were encouraged to experiment with mixed media and media we weren’t as comfortable using. I focused on making a plasticine sculpture of the cat and recreating a final shot from my storyboard – when the girl meets the cat. The final image was digitally altered to achieve the night-time look and glowing effects. The overall review at the end of the class was positive and what I was aiming for – of an eerie and maybe a little creepy image.
It was really useful and encouraging to hear Margaux from Moth Studio talk to us and advise us about our graduation films. She encouraged us to try something we’ve been wanting to try for a while but also highlighted what studios might be looking for in our films and showreels.
Just like in your personal projects, when you work for a studio and fall behind on your work, it will have a domino effect. This is why it’s especially important to communicate effectively so that any issues can be mitigated.
