When I started this course, I had very little knowledge of the professional processes in the animation industry or the roles involved. I didn’t even know how to animate, let alone which roles or studios might interest me. All I knew was that I was passionate about 2D animation and dreamed of working at studios like Disney or Pixar. Watching Klaus by SPA Studio sparked my interest in the innovative use of 3D lighting in 2D animation, while Arcane fascinated me with its blend of 2D and 3D techniques and its unique artistic style. These approaches align closely with the kind of work I’d love to learn and contribute to in the future. Unfortunately, I haven’t yet researched which London-based studios adopt similar styles, though I do have a list of studios to investigate further, which I aim to complete by the end of this course.
During my research, I discovered a website that provides a comprehensive list of animation jobs, which I found to be highly useful. I plan to review each role and explore the associated studios in detail during my Christmas holiday.
Find a job in Animation or VFX
Working on the LIAF project and currently on my one-minute film has given me greater insight into the people, skills, and processes required to bring a project to life. However, I’m still uncertain about the specific role I want to pursue in this framework. During the LIAF project, I had the opportunity to act as an assistant director, contributing as an effective member of a client-based project. It was an intense, time-limited experience, which didn’t allow me to explore every part of the filmmaking process in depth. At the same time, I assisted second-year students with their final project, gaining some experience in pre-production by supporting in the character design development process, and in production by cleaning up and coloring some shots.
In terms of my drawing skills, particularly during life drawing classes, I’ve found that my strengths lie in character design, clean-up, and capturing movement—areas where I feel most confident. However, I recognize that my weakest skills are in post-production and producing/marketing, as these aspects were primarily managed by our director during the LIAF project.
Throughout this course, I’ve come to realize that I struggle with time management and need to develop the skills and mindset required to handle time-sensitive projects. This experience has motivated me to focus my research on roles where I lack familiarity or have skill gaps, as well as roles I’m more likely to pursue professionally. The roles I currently plan to explore in more detail include:
Pre-production:
• Art Director
• Storyboard Artist
• Character Designer
Production:
• Animator
• Clean-Up Artist
• Compositor
Post-production:
• Editor
This focus may evolve as my research progresses, but for now, these roles either align with my interests, represent areas where I lack knowledge, or both. I’ve been using resources like ScreenSkills’ animation job map to help map out potential roles and pinpoint where I’d like to gain further experience and understanding.