How to get Work (Freelance/Staff) in Animation
Kiel Figgins
3dFiggins.com
2009, June



Getting work in Animation, whether it be a Staff position or Freelance, is all about who you know and who knows you. Pretty much exposure will get your name out there and start getting you recognized. You could have the most amazing portfolio, but if no one can see it, it doesn't help much. If you've got a site going, that will be a huge help (if not, get one and come back). But chances are, even if you have a site, you need to work it more. Below are some key elements to help get the most out of your site.

Web Site
  • Create a Links page.
    Link up with artists, producers and coworkers you've worked with. Not only does this up your ranking in search engines (sites link to each or more links to a single site), but shows involvement with the community. Not to mention, someone may notice you've worked with a friend of their and hit them up as a character reference.
  • Who You Are.
    Make it very apparent who you are, what you do and that your looking for work. State your looking for work or specifically freelance, I'd suggest putting this information in the header of your site, viewable on every page.
  • Have a "News" or "Updates" section.
    This section should be on the first page you come to when visiting your site. This are is good for showing whats been updated or giving any sort of feedback for returning users. People won't browse your entire site just to check if you have something new hidden
  • Resume Page.
    Your resume page should have a proper html header: Name, Job, Location, contact info, Availaibilty. Make multiple versions available, such as: HTML, PDF, Text are solid base ones. Not every one can open Word Documents, nor can they download files, so HTML is pretty universal.


    • Online Forums
    You need to be out there, posting work, providing feedback, reading threads, staying current with what everyone else is doing. I would suggest hitting up: www.cgtalk.com, www.cgchannel.com, www.3dtotal.com, www.gamasutra.com on a daily basis. With those forums in mind, you should be posting at least one post of feedback per day and at least one new thread of your own once a week. Personal projects are great thread starters, as are discussions on latest trends. When using the forums, the whole idea of is that it's free advertisement. So to get the most out of it, I would suggest:
  • Have a user name be your name, time to drop the artsy/high school nick name and use the big boy voice
  • State as much real info as possible on your profile. Programs used, location, job title, and so on will help make your posts and presence more legitimate.
  • Only post professional comments, steer clear of flaming or debates. When you post constructive, concise or engaging feedback, other professional that are trolling forums will notice. Even though you did post work, your feedback or insight is note worthy.
  • Have a signature that has a link to your website, name, job, availability and that your interested in freelance. After reading through your proper feedback, your signature can lead the reader to your site. You can also use your to present other threads, such as a Work In Progress thread to your latest personal project.


    • Finding Companies / Clients
    The majority of freelance is handled in house, as in you come and work the contract at the studio, however some work is handled remotely. Maintaining remote freelance as a steady source of income can be a difficult task, but could be doable, your just going to have to be really on top of the game.
  • On gamasutra there is an A-Z company listing of all known / registered game studios. I would write each and every one (either using a custom email if your really interested in the company or a template where you fill in the blanks for the more low key ones). You can knock out 20 or so every other day and start getting out there. Mention your skill set, what your looking for and how you can aid their company.
  • There are a slew of job postings on cgtalk, scoop them out
  • GameDevMap.com is another listing you can run through.
  • creativeheads.net is a weekly newsletter of new jobs
  • The whole idea about hitting up these companies (after you've got a few other aspects in line) is exposure and getting on their list of possible contacts / outsourcers. Expect to hear back from a small fraction of them.
  • Google. Say you want to work for Naughty Dog, you could apply to their website directly and be funneled with the rest of the applicants or you could side navigate that. Try researching / googling Naughty Dog producers, animators and artists, see if you can find any of their personal websites. Contact them directly. But this is a different type of contact email. You don't start off by saying your looking for work, rather start by praising their work, just dropping in to say hi, ect. Keep it short and sweet, ask questions to give them a base to reply to. When/if they reply, then provide some information about yourself. Once a conversation starts, then mention your situation and if they have any info, ask they keep you in mind. Try not to be too forward or fake. As this is a double edge sword. If your too aggressive, now theres someone inside that studio thats not a fan of you and may nix your chances if your name is brought up to them.

    • Working backwards.
    As you find individual artists you like or aspire to work at their position/job title, take a look at their resumes. See what jobs and studios they've worked at before and what they've done to get where they're at. Start googling and contacting those companies. If they attend lectures, conferences or other events, look into those as well. This is a great way of finding studios and other companies to work for.


    Aspects to figure out before you start sending apps and intro emails
  • Get your website as polished as possible
  • Figure out your realistic day rate / hour rate, both high end and low end (what you would like and what is the bare minimual you'll settle for)
  • Get the latest versions of the programs you've listed on your resume working on your home machine so you can hit the ground running
  • Are you willing to relocate? could you relocate for an onsite contract for a few weeks? months?
  • Get your passport up to date
  • Your website is going to be used heavily for file transfer and project storage, make sure it has the bandwidth and storage space necessary


    • Upcoming your chances
  • Personal Projects. These show you enjoy the craft past the pay. Try to start working on projects for yourself that you can use to direct at other markets, such as broadcast.
  • Get AIM. Even for professional use and leave it on 24/7 with your away or status message stating your looking for freelance. Make sure your aim name is your real name and that your profile has your site listed in the info. Make this AIM contact info available in your Forum posts and profile.
  • Throw a dog a bone. When your first starting out, and trying to gain as many contacts as possible, sometimes you will presented a project that is for free or trade. This type of exposure goes a long ways, especially when you apply yourself at it as if it was a paying project.
  • Never too good for a project. There are students pouring out of school and aggressive junior artists clawing their way up that will do the same work for next to nothing. Once you start saying 'no' to projects, you start shutting doors. Even aiding a little, a single model/rig/animation/ect to a project or taking a low bid or unfriendly timeline, will keep your seniority status and keep you up to speed. I'm not saying don't have boundries and preferences, but helping someone on a pitch for a game, could make you the primary contact if the pitch is successful.


    • Collaboration
    Falling in line with personal projects. Collaboration allows you a great way to get two (or more) birds with one stone. Working with other artists expands your network, betters both of your portfolios, provides you with stronger assets to work with, and allows you to focus more on your individual craft instead of having to spread yourself out to create outside of your field. For example, if your a modeler, you'll know that a strong concept will make a better, more memoriable model, so try teaming up with talented concept artists. Heres a brief break down:
  • Concept Artists: hit up modelers and offer your services for character designs, break outs from existing concepts, detailing, matte painting or character variants. Concept artists can also host their brush sets on their sites or online as well as painting or process tutorials.
  • Modelers: Hit up concept artist and see if they have character sheets for their concepts or if they would create them if you modeled those characters or environments. If your more focused on environments, again hit up concept artists and matte painters, but also you can build an environment that fits an existing character even if that character belongs to someone else. A full Env is way more impressive then a turn table cylinder.
  • Setup Artists: Hit up modelers, they have tons of tpose characters, awesome vechiles/props/mechs. Over your services to rig them up and give the rig to them for animation or posing. If at all possible, post your free rigs on your site or online, this will gain you a lot of fan fare and get your name out.
  • Animators: Hit up Setup Artists, let them know you animate anything they rig and are willing to provide feedback on user interaction, workflow or preferences
  • Lighting Artists: Hit up animators or modelers for their scenes. Surely you can light the beauty shot of the characters or take an animation scene and give it mood lighting.

    • Once you get these personal/group projects rolling, you now have a more upscale personal project that you can post as a Work In Progress thread on your forum(s) of choice, which again gets more traffic to your site and more eyes from employeer's on your work.

    Budgeting for Animation
    Budgeting per second of animation shows a misunderstanding of the assets being requested. Animating a bouncing ball for six seconds is nothing like a crowd scene. Even per character is off putting (bipedal character for six seconds vs the same character with 30 dreadlocks for secondary). If a per second agreement must be reach, I'd recommend asking a lot more up front in terms of assets. Animatic to see the camera, timing and action, character sheet to gauge the complexity, then figure out the hourly rate from there base on your expected schedule and how it fits in their timeline. I would convey this information to them, and suggest working hourly (due to revisions and variations, not to mention you could give them rough estimates based on the shot and you skill level), but if they wish to work with a lock price. Charge them per shot after getting the details required and set a strict revision clause. Something like: I'll show you the blocking, you approve that, then the polish, approve that. Direction changes / Revisions are handled hourly, major changes are handly hourly or billed as a new shot.

    Payment
    Payment can be a number of options. Usually I go with deliverables unless I've worked with the client before. Animate a shot, get it approved by only sending them movies. Then ask for payment, once payments received, send the actual maya file. You could do with with 3 shots or characters or however the break down works. As you get more comfortable and consistent with a client, you can start doing larger increments or payment at the end of the project (though i only recommend this with a legit and established studio).

    Overseas
    Working overseas can be very difficult. Work Visas, cultural/langauge differences, immigration, passports and a slew of other restrictions and regulations apply. Working remote, you'll stand a better chance, however. If you really want to work In House at a foreign studio, there are some things you can do to up your chances:
  • Learn the language. Being bi-lingual is a huge asset and will tear down a lot of walls.
  • Get a Passport. If you get an offer from a studio or are in an interview and they ask, having your passport ready and up to date can be a huge deciding factor. Getting a passport takes time, time that may be crucial to the proejct your applying for. The company may very well go with someone else based on availablity alone.
  • Awards, Achievements, and Experience. Some immigration laws require that when hiring outside of the country, that the candidate have a skill set that cannot be found withen the country. Having Awards, such as winning CG competitions, school awards, and the like can show that you are exceptional and have noted ability. Achievements, such as interviews, featured artists, front page plugs and lectures all show your involvement with the CG community and that you stand out in your field. Finally, Experience. Having a proven track record in your field, whether it be film, games, or broadcast, for the job your applying for a heavy selling point. When applying for a job in your country certain exceptions can be made, however, dealing again with certain immigration laws, it may be literally required that you have those two or more years of professional experience, before they can even bring you on.


    • Ending Notes
    -first job, plan to work in house (unless your very talented or the studio is offering remote work), until the company and you know each other and can create an acceptable workflow
    -know your client, what their asking you to do
    -go interview (phone or in house) to gauge workflow/ fit
    -Expect to do an art test regardless of your skill
    -half of getting the job is your attitude
    -dont take it personally if you dont get the job , sometimes you just dont fit their needs
    -follow up with a phone call if possible, more viable then another email.
    -don't rely on AIM for business, use emails. Email's have timestamps and can be archived and recalled easier.
    -state phone number, immediately available. You want to get phone calls, not emails.
    -If you need a work visa, passport, green card to work for a studio, your chances of working there are much less. Cannot work with a student visa.
    -Have a nice, presentable package ready to go. Nice demo reel, resume ,sheets for a hard copy, Its all about first impression. You got your shit together.
    -be involved with the local community (disccusion groups, events, meetings, schools) meeting face to face can be a great selling point and relationship builder
    -Don't work with out a contract or even start working till papers have been signed.


    Other Opinions, Further References, Typos, and Grammer Issues please contact KielFiggins22@gmail.com