How can you build an animation portfolio from scratch?

I hate and love to bring this up but we are trending towards a generalist way of working so finding a niche is not recommended. Explore every facet of the creative process and learn everything and anything. There will be some styles and tools you dislike but you are able to work with them. Your focus should be project based and what you enjoy. Never stop learning and never get comfortable.

At the core of any excellent portfolio is process. Showing great final work is expected, but demonstrating process showcases your professional skills. Your portfolio shows your skill, process shows your reliability. Having a focus can help and also hinder. Showing that you have a well-rounded background helps demonstrate that you are not a one trick pony. Have a focus, but demonstrate that the focus is something you choose.

Before start a portfolio make sure you are already versed with the core foundations, have already some good amount of hours dedicated to practice, then you start showing off your stuff. Target is important to guide your practice, but fundamentals always comes first. A portfolio with good practice showing that you understand the core principles as weight/balance, timing, spacing, physics, this will always catch attention and also shows how dedicated you are as an animator. So take time, plan, and pick carefully what you are showing, don't rush the process, be patient and open to feedback.

Showcase diverse styles and techniques. Create concise demo reels highlighting your best work. Include personal projects to demonstrate passion and creativity. Clearly list software and tools you're proficient in. Provide brief project context to add depth. Maintain an online presence with a professional website. Seek feedback from mentors and peers. Regularly update your portfolio with your latest and best work. Prioritize quality over quantity in your portfolio. Network, attend events, and collaborate to expand connections.

When looking at 3D animation, remember there are many potential areas of focus. You can be anything from a Director or Technical Director, to a Production Manager or a 3D artist specializing in any part of the pipeline including R&D. Depending on the field you choose, your specialties will require different skills.

Mastering the fundamental principles of animation is crucial for success, regardless of the software you choose. YouTube provides a vast amount of free tutorials, and for those willing to invest and wanting a more structured approach, courses like ‘Animation Bootcamp’ from School of Motion can propel you to new heights.

Understand the principles of animation. Be willing to invest time in tutorials but create your own work as opposed to work created using tutorials. Experiment with different styles.

Absolutely, grasping the core principles and foundations of animation is paramount. Proficiency with software and tools comes later in the learning process; it's almost intuitive. It's essential to prioritize understanding animation principles. My advice is to seek a mentor. Meeting with them weekly for about an hour can significantly accelerate your growth. They can help you refine your fundamentals, which is a fast track not only to improving your skills but also advancing your career in the animation industry.

In my experience, starting to learn from tutorials on YouTube is the best way to achieve proficiency. Alongside that, some hands-on practice on paper, drawing human figures or scenery, would greatly benefit your early practices. Try maintaining a schedule; aim to create something every day. Simply open the software daily and dedicate an hour to it. For those trying their hand at 3D, they should first learn the Blender 3D software, as it is beginner-friendly and not overly complex. Your initial tutorial teachers should include Blender Guru, Grant Abbitt, , Ducky 3d and Polygon Runway.

No hay mejor pretexto que este para regresar a la infancia. Es momento de volver a ver las series animadas que mirabas de joven, ahora trata de poner atención a la técnica, podrás encontrar todo tipo de trucos de edición y animación así como los fundamentos, puedes alternar este material visual con tutoriales gratuitos de youtube, aunque existen también hoy en día varios cursos que pueden ayudarte. En cuanto al programa o app a utilizar esa es decisión tuya, puedes elegir uno de tantas opciones que hoy en día tenemos los Motion Graphers o incluso combinar técnicas y herramientas.

Personnal experiment can enhance and confirm the skills you are learning from work or from anywhere else. It allows to test without most of the deadlines and strong guides, happy accidents are one of the best way to find new synthax and new ways to achieve projects. Keep all your experiment available ( like a library ) and sometimes it is a very strong and good starter for audacious and original projects.

Create unique and compelling characters that showcase your artistic abilities. Experiment with different styles and techniques to demonstrate versatility. Practice storyboarding to showcase your storytelling skills. Create short animated stories that highlight your ability to convey emotions and narrative through animation.

"Make the content you would want to watch". I ask myself one main question when deciding the subject of my next short film: "If I could experience any animated content right now, what would I choose to watch?" This is a deep question. It may be a combination of shows and movies I've already seen, created by masters of the art. It might be the latest episode of my current favourite old or new animated series, looking forward to seeing what's next. It could be just abstract colours and shapes with ambient music. But deep down, I know that whatever I TRULY want to see and experience right now, in this exact moment... ...hasn't been created yet. So. Time for me to go make it. And maybe share it with a few other people along the way.

Personal projects are probably the best way to showcase yourself. I've seen many portfolios that carefully copy a studio character or style almost to perfection but that sometimes still leaves the question "can you create or do you only copy ?" Use your downtime to tackle a problem you know you wanted to solve while working but didn't have the time or permission . For a first opportunity focus on quality not quantity !

Personal work is a great way to target weak points in your craft that you wouldn't otherwise get to develop on the job. While not a necessity, I think it's a really healthy way to continue your development. Just be mindful of managing your time so you can avoid burnout!

Find a mentor who is experienced in animation. A mentor can provide targeted advice, industry insights, and constructive criticism. Participate in animation or art communities (online or local). Sharing your work with peers and professionals can provide diverse feedback.

Sharing your creations can feel like exposing your vulnerabilities, but that's where growth lies. Constructive criticism is the spotlight that will reveal hidden corners for improvement. Embrace it graciously. Engage with your audience on LinkedIn and in animation communities. This isn't just about refining your work; it's about building connections and a community around your craft.

Do not be wary of feedback and do not take feedback negatively. Design is not art, it is applicative art. We should accept the fact that design is a mix of art and communication, therefore it is considered an applicative art. Feedback is the most important aspect in applicative arts because you are designing for the world, and they need to understand what you wanted to portray. To be a good designer, every feedback should be taken as a step to improve and learn what works.

As artists I know we tend to be quite closed and attached to our creations. However it is important to reach out to the amazing communities out there and learn from them. I believe we learn more when we share our work and are willing to listen to the criticism and feedback. Try to separate yourself from your art. If the critiques are harsh don't take them personal, the critique is towards the art not you as a person. Take the valuable comments and apply them in your next work.

Once we choose a career in the artistic field, accepting feedback is a skill to be constantly refined on our journey. This is the best way to truly evolve and recognize our mistakes. Another important fact: don't just wait for direct feedback. Try to understand how the audience reacts to projects similar to yours. Why did project A receive good acceptance and why did project B not? Keeping your eyes open at all times is a great exercise.

It is super important to treat your portfolio with respect. It's your presentation to the world. Not all your work deserves to be there, you can upload those pieces to other socials. Don't just fill your portfolio with practice pieces, homeworks and tutorials. Make sure the pieces you make and the pieces you show are the best possible for you. And keep learning! Never stop learning and improving that is the secret to a great career!

Your portfolio is only as good as your weakest piece - not your least favorite, but skill-wise. Think long and hard about whether or not something is worth showing, or if it will detract from the other items in your portfolio. It’s also important to lead with a great piece, and end with one as well - snag their attention, and leave them wanting more.

Edit, edit, edit! Quality beats quantity. Linked In insists on a longer statement. Apparently it doesn’t understand the concept.

How you curate your work shows as well how picky you are and what design style you like. It's very hard to select your best or worse designs for a portfolio, but this skill is very important as well to survive in the industry. A well curated portfolio with great projects is definitely going to guarantee you will be hired!

When creating a demo reel for future employers or clients, make sure to pick the pieces of work that fit what they might be looking for. For example, if the job is a 2D animator position, it's best to show your work in 2D animation, or if the job is heavy in acting, it is best to show a demo reel that consist of more acting animation. These are simple examples but you hopefully get the jist. For a good all round demo reel it's good to include these things; walk cycle, good acting shot, an action shot, and a character turn animation (not a character turnaround, to be clear). Also, make sure not to make your demo reel too long. A good length would be 1 to 2 minutes.

Well, you ask the AI that Linkedin is building from massive targeted data aggregation posing as rather innocent-looking questions. You can totally ask that thing.

Data miners be MINING anyone who answers these innocent looking questions and not telling anyone their intended purpose. So if you don’t want to be an absolute TOOL, stop answering these and feeding into some usurping AI tech built by faceless tech douchecanoes training their nonsense on YOUR ANSWERS. Linkedin should recognize this for the unethical anti-human garbage it is and STOP DOING THIS.

Focus on storytelling through variety and quality. Work on quality over quantity. Ensure each piece reflects your creativity, technical skill, and storytelling ability. Never ignore 4th step which is "Get feedback and improve".

It's crucial to avoid using animations created from tutorials. Although you may be proud of your creations, industry experts can easily spot tutorial-based work. Focus on developing your own unique pieces using the techniques you've learned.

"Animation isn't easy". I was surprised earlier in my teaching career when students, given the choice for their main focus between animation, modeling and rigging, or visual effects, often did NOT choose animation. This confused me for several years. I would see students with an aptitude for animation, excelling at it, and then they would announce "yep, visual efx for me!" or "I like modeling and rigging more". So I asked why. Many times. Why choose not to focus on learning animation? One answer was often repeated back to me, and eventually eased my confusion. "Animation is hard". And upon reflection, it is. But... The rewards are commensurate with the effort required. So animate. Animate some more. And enjoy the results.