As part of my business module I was assigned to look up 5 companies that I would like to work for and write up a report. For the second part it has to be featured on my blog:
Intro
I will be highlighting the research that I have done
regarding looking for potential work positions and opportunities for my career
after I graduate. The companies I will be looking are Atomhawk, Cartoon Saloon,
Hands Up, Fudge and CD Projekt Red.
My Goals
My personal goal is to have a successful career in in art
and the media industry. In definition, successful means I would like make enough
money to live off and be content with the job that I have.
I would eventually like to run my own business that
contributes to my community through art and media. I will not go into
logistics, but my idea would be to run an art café with a gallery with weekly
art and media based workshops to help all ages people have a good informative
experience with art and media.
I believe art is culture and culture is what defines and is
fundamentally what makes us human. It us something the everyone needs, wants or
creates whether it be written word, music, that new designer sofa, ceramic
pots, a fine painting, a comic book, an animation or a film. On this basis is
the reason I would like to work in this industry; to bring art to people.
In terms of working in the art and media industry I think I
would best suit a more art based rather than media heavy career, I would prefer
to be looking more into illustration, concept art, storyboarding and perhaps
layout artist as oppose to a full-on animation role.
It is important to me that the potential company or studio
I work for upholds the similar morals and values I have, it would be a bonus
for the company to participate in voluntary work that is beneficial to its
community.
My Inspirations
I look up to people like Fiona Staples and Stephanie Hans
who are two immensely successful illustrators in the comic book industry, and I
would argue two of the more well-known female artists in that industry.
I have always been influenced by my Nan, Patricia. She invoked my personal interest of mythical and superstitious tales, particularly Celtic, through giving me books on Celtic folklore and other encyclopaedias on mythology as well as well-known fantasy series’ such as Dragonlance and Lord of the Rings. This has stuck with me through my life and most of the things I create have been influenced by mythology from around the world. My current 3 scenario film project, The Tales of Edra & Phobos, was inspired by Scottish folklore, the films lead on from my last film about a Wizard, Out of Time.
I have also been recently influence
by Imaginism Studios’, Niko and the Sword
of Light. It is an interactive animated comic book about a little boy that
fights monsters. The layout is that of a comic book but each panel plays
through until you are prompted to watch the next panel, at the end of the page
you can swipe/click & drag to turn the page. This has given me extra scope
of what is possible for me to as a career in the future, I am currently making
my latest project, The tales of Edra
& Phobos an interactive comic/animation. A note on Imaginism Studio,
they have a full team and on their site there is no option to apply for any position,
however it would be prudent to contact them in the future if only to gain
advice for making my own interactive animated comic.
My style and skills
I have had a keen interest in art and design for most of my life usually sticking to drawing and painting, furthermore my family taught me to sew, knit and do pyrography (art of burning images into materials such as wood) but art as a career was only really considered in my late teens where I studied fine art and art & design and honed and accumulated skills such as most of my skills; ceramics, glass work, metal work, woodwork, sculpting and making paper.
My best traditional skills would have to be, watercolour
painting, acrylic painting, oil painting, graphite drawing and pyrography.
For the locations I would preferably like to remain in the
UK for the next few years to build my reputation and improve my skills with
smaller companies and studios before I progress to more established companies.
It would be ideal if the company was based in the UK in the early years of my
career as it would be closer to my family.
Cardiff for me is ideal for a good start, I would like to
travel but that would be much later into my career, I would like to work in
Canada for companies such as Mercury Filmworks (Ottawa) or Imaginism Studio
(Toronto) if possible or perhaps somewhere in Europe closer to the UK. However
I would not like to work in a very large city such as London or for a large
studio such as DreamWorks or Pixar, I feel that scale would be too much for me
to deal with currently, I may feel differently in ~5years.
S.W.O.T
Strengths
In terms of my soft skills I would say that, I am very
driven; I know what I want and how to get it and I have gained lots of work
experience in the past with various companies for example Onside Creative, a marketing and graphic design company. I have
worked for a couple of theatres and done a lot of voluntary work in the art
industry predominantly the Buxton Fringe festival. During this time I have
acquired great experience regarding working as part of a team and thinking on
my feet.
I am good at coming up with ideas and then applying those
ideas to see what works. I am also focused and can full attention to the job at
hand this also unfortunately means that I may neglect other things that are not
project focused. I take constructive
criticism well and always listen to improvements I can make and act accordingly
I would also say that I usually have good time management skill however my
stress management skills need a little more work.
In terms of my learnt skills I consider myself to be “Jack
of all trades, master of none” in traditional art and illustration, my
strongest medium is watercolour paint and ceramic. Regarding industry I was not
very apt at learning software and I only really got the chance to learn various
software when I came to university, I had dabbled in using Photoshop and a free
software called GIMP.2 (it is very similar to Photoshop) when I got my first
graphics tablet in Sixth Form. Since my first year of university I have learnt
how to use Photoshop and Premier very well and I would say these are the two
software that I have
become the most comfortable using however, I still feel I need to practice
using Premier as there are other skills in this software that I haven’t fully utilised.
I have got a good grasp on After effects and Flash/Animate
to some extent but I know that there is much more I can learn in both of these.
I am currently using TVPaint and it is by far one of the hardest software I
have used with the exception of CelAction
both of these need a lot more practice if am going to be proficient
enough accepted into industry.
Weaknesses
Personally I feel that I don’t come across as a confident
individual even though I may feel confident in myself, this issue with the
communication of my body language and expression has left me hard to read and I
think this has contributed to the reason I seem shy and unsociable. This will
be an issue for me approaching industry or any employer and I may need some
sort of coaching to appear confident and get rid of my seemingly non-gregarious
nature. It is true however that I am quite reserved but this might not
necessarily be a weakness or strength just a part of my personality.
Soft skill issues I have that I need to work on are letting
my time management skills slip when I am stressed, the key factor of this would
be to manage my stress better in turn I would not need to worry about my time
management.
I struggle with my words in reading and writing as I have
not been properly diagnosed with dyslexia but it is highly likely I am. This
may present an issue when applying for a job or having to pitch ideas, as I
have a stutter when I am stressed, these issues can be fixed with time and
practice but they are very crucial skill I would need in the media industry
especially.
To develop my skill in industry I would have to work on my
skills in different software, in the main body of this report some of the
companies use software that I have never heard of and are crucial to obtaining
a job potion at this company, I would also have to develop my current software
skills to a professional level before applying to prestigious companies that
will expect me to be experience and of a professional standard and would not
offer any prior training.
Opportunities
A few of the
companies I looked into offered internships,
Cartoon saloon had a great many options to choose when applying on their
site.
A lot of my
research come from what I have found on Artstation where I found a lot of activity
from CD Project Red and Atomhawk over the last couple of months regarding their
job positions.
I have
followed a lot of appropriate social media including all the social media links
that my chosen companies had to offer and I have been liking and commenting on
some of their work on sites like twitter and Instagram, I have made steps to
create accounts that my chosen companies use and what they use most, for
example; using Blogger instead of Tumblr to blog my work, this means I can
follow and be followed back by these companies. These are only small steps but
I think it also helps me build a good to profile the company from a far. I will
contact these companies directly and use what I have research to re-build my CV
and tailor my work to these companies.
I attended
the London Job Fair on February 1st 2017 this was very insightful although it
was mainly aimed at people going into television and production I found some
useful knowledge what should be in my CV and attended the CV Clinic to make
further changes. I talked to people in industry and found that there were
internships, over all the experience was inspiring especially when I heard
stories of how people got to where they are now one man had been a runner/gofer
and got the chance to operate the camera and now that is his full time job.
This opened my eyes to the opportunities available and you only really need
your “foot in the door”
I
have also found this site called Upwork (https://www.upwork.com/)
made for freelancers, the concept is you type in your area of expertise and
view posts their advertise commissions. For example, you type in “Comic book
commissions” refer to figure 1 for an image of results. Then you decide, as the
freelance artist, to take any of the jobs or not. You can scroll through the
adverts to find what applies best to you, then approach the customer.
I feel this while it can be short lived and perhaps not a
stable foundation, it will be great for building up a reputation and doing
small job while looking for work, it will also give great experience regarding
working with people and freelancing skills.
Threats
Personal threats to my career would be, implied in the
nicest way, my family. At some point I will have to move back to my hometown
and look after my parents they will be in their 70’s by the time I am 30 and I
feel this will be the pinnacle of my career; I will be experienced and
hopefully well known in the networking community. I would be more than happy to
put my career on the line to look after them, this “issue” may seem like
paranoia or an over-thought scenario however it is the most prominent thing
that could “hinder” me and my career.
The only other threat is myself, I will have to keep up my
own motivation and aspirations for the years to come, this will be highly
linked to my financial situation and if can improve on my software skills in my
own time and keep up-to-date with the ever changing and fast paced
technological advancements in the industry.
Creative Skillset
The skillset website was very insightful and I have found that there are a number of roles that I would be happy to do for a career. Although I feel I am at my best with as a purely art based profession such as illustration or concept design here are a few career paths that I would be comfortable with. But there was not much on the site regarding illustration careers. The roles that I have chosen include:
2d Drawn animator
(digital and traditional)
Requirements:
·
have good
drawing and animation experience
·
have a feel
for movement and timing in order to produce convincing animation
·
have
creative and artistic qualities, along with plenty of patience
·
have strong
observational skills and acting talent, for character animation
·
have good
communication skills
·
have good
team-working skills
·
pay close
attention to detail
·
be highly
organised
·
be able to
take direction
This seem very achievable to me and I know I am capable of
all these qualities.
Inbetweener (digital
and traditional)
Requirements:
·
possess excellent drawing skills, to
be able to adapt to the style and technique of different productions
·
be able to take direction
·
pay close attention to detail
·
have good team-working skills
·
have good communication and
presentation skills
·
have a high degree of patience
·
show respect for the procedures and
requirements of a particular studio, production or pipeline
Again very achievable.
Storyboard artist
Requirements:
·
be able to tell a good story
·
be highly film literate, with a good
understanding of layout, composition, sequential drawing and editing
·
have excellent drawing skills and the
ability to adapt to a wide range of styles
·
be able to work either independently
or as part of a team
·
be able to take direction, and be
prepared to make changes to your work in response to constructive feedback
·
be able to follow established designs
and produce consistent work, drawn on model
·
have good communication and
presentation skills
·
have good computer literacy
·
be familiar with relevant storyboard,
graphics and editing software
·
be conscious of any relevant
technical or budgetary restrictions
·
be able to work calmly and efficiently to tight deadlines
I would have
to work on following established designs but everything else is achievable.
Storyboard assistant
Requirements:
·
have excellent drawing skills and the
ability to adapt to a wide range of styles
·
be able to work either independently
or as part of a team
·
be able to take direction, and be
prepared to make changes to your work in response to constructive feedback
·
be able to respect studios' working
practices and be discreet if working on a confidential project
·
understand the disciplines required
to produce clear storyboards from which other people can work
·
deliver accurate work on brief and on
time
·
have good communication and
presentation skills
·
have good computer literacy
·
be familiar with relevant storyboard,
graphics and editing software
I have
highlighted in red the areas I would have to study in order to progress and
achieve my desired career.
The Companies
Atomhawk,
Atomhawk
is a digital art and design company that have worked on many productions a few
of these include; Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie, concept art), Injustice: Gods
Among us (Video game, concept art) and Guardians of the Galaxy (Movie, Concept
Art).
The
services they provide include concept art and production, marketing art, user
interface and UX design, graphic and logo design and motion graphics.
Atomhawk
works on a lot of productions for movies and video games that I am interested
in, I believe that I would really enjoy the working on the preproduction
process as a concept artist for these productions as much as I enjoy
playing/watching the finished production. Another reason that this company
appeals to me is its location, being based in Northern England this offers me a
convenient start to set up as most of my family lives in north England making
it much more practical as a career option.
They
currently have 1 listing of a concept artist position on Artstation.com, this
position is listed as permanent. To gain more knowledge of the company I have
followed them there social media and on their artstation site. During this time
I have noticed there have been many job positions over the past few months
mainly consisting of concept artist jobs. This offers the opportunity and
foresight that there will be other jobs in the future and experience with the
company experience will be available regularly. The company also offer
relocation assistance for a lot of their positions.
The
software that is preferred is summarised on their advert; Photoshop, After
Effects, SketchUP, 3ds Max, Modo. The requirements I would need for this
position is stated below on the application form:
ATOMHAWK ARE LOOKING FOR A TALENTED AND
EXPERIENCED CONCEPT ARTIST WITH A BROAD STYLE RANGE WHO THRIVES ON NEW CREATIVE
CHALLENGES.
Skills Required
·
Fluent with Photoshop, and a high capacity to learn
new tools
·
Strong art background in traditional art skills
·
Anatomical knowledge
·
Architectural knowledge
·
Mechanical design knowledge
·
Good sense of light, form, tone, palette
·
Must be able to paint/sketch at speed
Skills Considered a Bonus
·
Experience with 3-D software (Z-Brush, MODO, 3DSMax
or Maya etc.) a plus
·
Good knowledge of videogames and films
·
Experience working within a videogame, agency or
film-production environment
Education and Experience
·
A portfolio that demonstrates a potential to meet
industry standard level of art
·
Professional art training is desirable but not
essential
Personal
Specification
In addition to having
a good foundation of artistic ability, the role requires working as part of a
team and so enthusiasm and good communication skills are needed. We are looking
for a grounded and pragmatic team player. Confident without being arrogant,
this person will want to play an active role in building an awesome culture within
the studio.
You
can apply for the positions straight from artstation where there is an
application link and the above information is provided.
I
believe that I meet many of the requirements as I have a lot of this knowledge;
I have a keen interest in many games and a lot of the productions they have
worked on include some of my favourite films and games. In terms of the skills
required I think I have great skills in all of the areas especially Photoshop
and having a strong art based background as I have mainly focused on studying
fine art which has given me the appropriate skills for speed painting, drawing
and artistic values however I must admit that my speed painting is now a little
rusty as I don’t paint as much as I used to. For the past few years I have
mainly focused on character/creature design that has mainly revolved around
studying human and animal anatomy as well as conduction my own nature studies
for backgrounds and other mise-en-scene items. The areas that I would struggle
with, however, would be architecture and mechanical knowledge but I am keen and
willing to learn about both of these things.
The
key areas to build up on would be my portfolio (and show reel if necessary) and
gaining experience in 3D and VFX software. Overall I think I have an average
chance of getting this job due to my inexperience and rustiness on some of the
software that is required.
Hands
Up,
“We
make websites, animations and films for people that want to change the world”
This
Company has a lot of job variation and media uses, specialising in animation,
web and film. They do a lot of work for charities and corporations, producing
short films or adverts on world events, causes, and current affairs.
Hands
up are all about making charity money go further, being a charitable company
their day rate is low and they solely work with freelancers that work remotely
from their homes, they state on their website that there “are very few
overheads, a cost saving that is passed on to you”. They stand for making
causes well known and they are fundamentally united in making the world a
better place, they state they are “future-minded” and have forward thinking
business model that can tailor the best team for each project
Being
as I like charity work, this company matched my values and interest for
bringing awareness for good causes. Furthermore a lot of the artists that work
here work from home and their meetings are usually Skype based, this is
beneficial to me as the location is flexible however there would be some travel
to their HQ in London from time to time, this minor inconvenience is out weight
with the practicalities and diversity of how the employees are hired and work
for their location receptively.
In
terms of careers, they are currently looking for more applicants especially
digital project managers, there are also other jobs currently that they will
take the CV and/or show reel and portfolio of applicants including web
designers, web developers and animators. In terms of upcoming projects, there
are none listed but there is never a shortage of causes, events or current
affairs that could be brought forward.
There
is not list of requirement as I would have to enquire first. Who to contact: There
is an application page on their website where I can apply. You can fill out
their form and inquire about jobs and give them a call on 020 8133 0191 or email hello@handsup.co.uk.
Fudge,
“We’re a full service design, animation and production studio. We
work with companies big and small turning their vision into a reality in the
most fun and engaging way.”
They
are a design, animation and production studio that work with a variety of
companies such as Dune, Virgin, Disney and Samsung. Providing the following
services listed on their website:
On
this page each profession links to an overview of how they are used and what
will be provided each service and what to expect as a worker in this
profession. I am interested in this company because of the wide range of
services it provides meaning that there are lots of opportunities that I can
apply for. The positions that I would apply for on this list are as follows:
·
2D
animation
·
Creature
design and animation
·
Animated
explainer videos
·
Animatic
production
·
Animation
storyboards
·
Animated
idents bumpers and stings
In
terms of requirements, they would like a wide range of skills, however, there
none are specified but it is mentioned if your skills are in After Effects and
other software or traditional animation you have a shot with the studio. From
reading the rest of the information on the services they provide it is evident
they have a wide range of techniques and software that they use, although
unspecified this is a great opportunity as they would consider any applicant
that has a high level of skill in a certain software and may even consider a
person of my standard. However there is a small hitch, there is lots of mention
of 3D software which is arguable becoming more popular than digital and 2d
animation, I would have to take this into consideration of things I would need
to work on before applying.
Upcoming
projects and available positions: current placements include Business
Development manager (healthcare) and assistant producer. However Fudge implore
potential employees to send their CV speculatively as well as their show reel
and portfolio, they do not offer internships or unpaid work experience as they
are a smaller company that has a lot of enquiries about work placements.
To
apply there is a link on their website and a place to upload your CV you can
make an enquiry too on their “quick contact” page. Other communication methods
listed are their two addresses:
Cartoon
Saloon,
Cartoon
Saloon is an animation studio that makes a mix of traditional and digital 2D
films and shorts.
My interest in this company was
sparked by films they have created such as Song
of the Sea and The Secret of Kells,
with their strong use of combining traditional and digital media yet managing
to leave the film looking artfully organic and naturally colourful.
It has been well covered on
social media that Cartoon Saloon and
another 2D animation company, Mercury
Filmworks (Canada) have joined to form a new studio, Lighthouse Studios based in Kilkenny. This has created 140+ jobs
and the prospect of many other projects in the not too distant future.
Currently Cartoon Saloon is in the
process of creating another film called The
Wolfwalkers, however this has been in production for at least 2 years.
Although
you can apply to a wide range of jobs on their site, even speculatively they
implore people not to send them content;
“We are currently developing our own slate of
exciting projects here at Cartoon Saloon. Unfortunately, for legal
reasons, we cannot accept any unsolicited scripts, artwork or bibles. Please
don't send in your work as it will not be read or returned. We are happy to
discuss projects from agents and publishers. For more information
please email info@cartoonsaloon.ie”
To
apply for a jobs however there us a section on their site that allows you to do
so, there is also an advert for jobs that are actually available:
We are looking for an Animation Artist to
join our Cartoon Saloon team in Kilkenny
Start date: April/May 2017End Date: end
of 2017/beginning of 2018 with possibility of extension
Requirements below;
- Experience
in a fast paced animation production
- Preferably
at least 1 years’ experience on digital TV series projects
- Hardworking
and enthusiastic.
- Good
knowledge of Moho (previously Anime Studio Pro) software would
be preferable but is not required.
- Otherwise,
experience in another Digital 2D Animation Software such as CelAction or
ToonBoom (bone animation) and/or CGI experience with Maya or 3D Max are
required.
- Excellent
people skills: good team player, communicator, able to work calmly under
pressure and without constant supervision.
- Must be
organized and have a good eye for continuity and detail.
- Must be
able to take direction, respond well to notes and pitch creative/technical
solutions to potential problems. Please note that potential
candidates may need to complete a small test.
Due to employment restrictions, we will only
be able to consider application from residents within the EU.
Please email your application,
including samples of work/portfolio and CV, to jobs@cartoonsaloon.ie and specify 'Animation_application_your name"
in the Subject.
I
would apply speculatively at first and I would much prefer to build up my
reputation and gain more experience and then apply for a jobs such as this.
Where I may hit the mark on some of the points, points like “experience in a
fast paced animation production” I could not truthfully say I have done, I
would also need to work on my CelAction and try and gain access to ToonBoom to
be a preferable candidate. Furthermore as mentioned I have barely any
experience with 3D software and would have to look into this further.
CD Projekt Red,
CD
Projekt Red is a well-established and well known company mainly known for the
Witcher gamer series.
I love the Witcher series and
they is currently a job advertisement on Artstation for a Comic Book
illustrator for their Witcher Comic book series. This is a job that I would
love to do but it would require more experience on my part. There are many
upcoming positions on their site too. Their current project is on a game called,
Gwent which is a card game featured in their video game Witcher. There are both
2D and 3D digital animation jobs available as well as the above mentioned comic
book illustrative as well as other jobs including illustration.
The most
realistic job that would apply for would be the Comic book illustrator job
being as it is where I think my expertise would lie:
THE VISION
CD PROJEKT
RED is looking for an exceptional, talented and experienced Comic Illustrator
to join our Gwent team. The perfect candidate works well in an environment of
people who are passionate about creating great art, takes constructive
criticism very well and can complete tasks by the assigned due dates.
DAILY
RESPONSIBILITIES IN A NUTSHELL
·
Creation of high quality comic illustrations made in accordance with the
current mainstream western style of comics.
·
Responsible for original ideas and composition of comic illustrations.
·
Maintaining the production pipeline and meeting deadlines.
·
Working closely with Design Teams.
·
Following the Art Director’s guidelines and maintaining a coherent
style.
REQUIRED
SKILLS & EXPERIENCE
·
At least 2 years of professional experience in creating
comics/illustrations.
·
Excellent comics and storytelling skills with an eye for perspective,
colour, lighting, mood and composition.
·
Advanced knowledge of Adobe Photoshop.
·
Must be able to independently handle the full production chain –
pencils, inking and colouring. Although sketches and inking can be done either
traditionally or digitally, colours have to be done digitally only.
·
Experience working in a wide variety of styles but also able to work
within an established genre.
·
Outstanding creativity and a very strong commitment to a project.
·
Excellent communication abilities.
·
Ability to communicate in English.
NICE
TO HAVE
·
Degree in Art.
·
Experience in the gaming industry.
·
Avid and passionate gamer.
WE OFFER YOU
·
A modern and relaxed studio atmosphere with cutting-edge technologies.
·
A chance to work in an international environment in a booming industry.
·
A competitive salary and project based bonuses.
·
Private health care & multiSport card.
·
From 20 to 26 days of paid vacation per year.
·
An exciting chance to work on one of the most acclaimed role-playing
games.
·
A step by step assistance and ‘Relocation Package’ for foreigners
willing to establish in Poland.
·
Polish lessons for foreign employees.
I
have highlighted the bits that I would have to work on in red as some of these
are only obtainable through time, I would not be able to apply for this job
seriously, but it would nice to enquire. I can apply to this job from their
site or through Artstation where they will have access to my (currently none
existent) portfolio.
Five years from now
Five years from now I hope to be pursuing my art/media
career and building up my portfolio and perhaps show reel. I hope to have a
moderate presents online and can be well known within my networking community.
I have already
started to build up my online presents through my Facebook page where I post my
art and animations as well as a blog were I have sections to post my university
experience and projects as well as my own projects and other miscellaneous
pages like “how to” crafts and film reviews. As previously mentioned joined
many social media platforms, keeping the as professional as possible. My
professional social media accounts include, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
I have a small portfolio but it is quite outdated now and
needs a serious revamp, so during the next year after graduation I intend to
create, study and animate as much as possible to get a professional standard
portfolio and show reel.
