Computer Animation Arts

You might remember that back on the 26th February I introduced Woking-based DreamingFish Productions to you... I'm very excited to be able to now announce that the studio have said that after looking at your blogs, they would like to offer some work placement opportunities!  You can read more about the studio HERE So, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and introduce yourself to Animation Manager Luke Brown - luke@dreamingfish.co.uk ... tell him I sent you ;) And just in case you need it, here is a reminder of what Luke has to say about showreels - 'A good showreel is absolutely vital! No one looks at CV’s in this industry, you are completely judged on the quality of your reel. I would say keep it to an absolute maximum of 60 seconds, there is considerable drop off in views for showreels and any online video past the 60 second mark. Make sure ONLY your best stuff is in there, if there’s one project you’re not sure whether to put in your reel and are only putting it in a...

Today CAA Careers is introducing DreamingFish Productions , an award-winning production and animation company based in Woking, in Surrey. Here, Animation Manager Luke Brown talks about how he came to be where he is now, and gives some advice on showreels, employability, and the importance of promoting yourself on social media... Over to you, Luke!   How have you ended up where you are now? I actually ended up in this industry in a pretty roundabout way! I studied contemporary music at University and ended up as a music tutor for about a year or so after graduating until I realised that it wasn’t for me. One of my close friends was working at a local studio as a camera operator and wangled me a job at the studio as a production assistant. I was doing all the low-end jobs like picking up event edits and getting voiceovers recorded. I very quickly got very interested in the animations the studio where creating and spent hours in my spare time watching t...

In this feature, written for 3D World and previously published in a different form in that magazine, you’ll find tips direct from the people who see reels at a range of animation, VFX, games and architecture studios. There will also be general tips on how you should craft a reel tailored to a specific job. Eddie Leon is the President and CEO of US architecture visualisation studio Spine3D. His idea of the perfect reel is one that is diverse and eye-catching. “It should show a range of talent regardless of the position you are applying for,” says Leon. “Everything from the choice of fonts and colours in the titling to the pace of the music and editing must be chosen carefully. This helps to determine whether or not the artist has a good eye. Technical skills can be taught on the job, but a good sense of colour and composition is hard to teach. It is something that is almost natural to some artists."   He says that another point to consider is that most 3D compa...

As students, you should be making the most of all the wonderful resources available to you out there, so as part of this CAA Careers feature, I will be introducing some as I come across them.   Today's offering is the Skwigly Online Animation Magazine.  This mag is a wonderful source of advice and information, including tutorials, interviews, showreels, and details of animation festivals that you can submit your films to...take a look here - Skwigly Online Animation Magazine I will be dipping into the magazine myself and featuring some of the more interesting articles, but don't rely on me - go and look for yourselves, sign up for the newsletter, and keep up to date with what's happening out there in the world of animation!