Study Task 6 - Cost Of Living

I think the thing with doing this cost of living spreadsheet, is that it gives a bit of perspective to the little purchases. The big ones feel big, but little things - getting some bubble tea, buying a new lipstick, and small stuff like that - really add up in the long run. It's kind of painful to look at and realise this is all very real, but it's also important to not lose my head about it. This helps me in knowing how much I should be charging for my work. I'm currently charging 10 pounds an hour for illustration work, and I don't plan on upping that until I leave university. Even then, I plan to take up whatever part time work I can find in order to just pay the bills and be able to live, and then whatever I can get on top of that creatively will be how I continue to build my portfolio and profile. 

Study Task 5 - Social Media Pro

Current social media accounts: Personal Facebook, personal Twitter, personal Tumblr, personal Instagram, art Instagram, professional Linkedin. 

Personal Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram: For connection with friends/family, to share content I enjoy, to create a place for the regular "me" to exist online.
Professional Linkedin and Instagram: To share art and WIPs, to create professional relationships, to get commissions and build a digital portfolio.

I also set up a Hiive account but it didn't seem like a very popular platform, so I would rather focus on having a good quality Linkedin and Instagram since these platforms will find bigger audiences and have a wider reach. 

My art Instagram is mostly focused on my illustration work, though once I start making better set pieces and props I want to share them as well, photographed properly. I'm not currently timetabling posts, though I definitely need to be engaging with these social networks more frequently and posting more often. 

I should aim to post to these at least once a week with the work I'm creating - this will also motivate me to continue to create work, so that I have something to post. 

My linkedin is definitely more "professional" than my Instagram, which is fine, since linkedin is how I will get to connect with industry professionals. 

Study Task 8 - Commissions / Freelance

After the seminar on commissions I thought about my day rate. Since I usually charge £10 an hour, I think that £80 a day sounds sensible, since a working day is around 8 hours.  I think this is fairly reasonable as I am definitely skilled enough to be earning a little more than minimum wage, but I don't want to charge too much until my skills get to the point where I am comfortable charging that much. I think once I graduate this will change, as I'll need to pay for my rent and food (whereas I am living on student finance right now). Through research, it seems like a junior creative should be earning 25,000 a year, which is roughly £13 an hour. However, I also need to consider that I'm not going to be working 8 hours a day, 5 days a week consistently, unless I find a proper studio job right away. I think it's more realistic to pick up a second job in order to pay bills while still developing as an artist, and growing my skillset.

I used a Microsoft template for the invoice as it was the easiest way to get the template, and then just adjusted each part for my own need - putting in my own address and day rate, as well as an example of a commission.

I found the contract really difficult to write up. The examples I found online are ridden with legal jargon, so I tried to write one up that still sounded very authoritative, but still understandable to someone who isn't familiar with legal-talk. I'm sure I've missed an important point or two, so I will have to run the contract by a few people to check it looks ok. It's quite difficult to cover all bases, but I know it's really important, so definitely worth taking some time over to make sure it's perfect.

Study Task 10 - Showreel Time

For the showreel I used mostly clips from this year, with only one from the last year - the Applied Animation brief. I was concerned that I wouldn't have enough content from this year, as my strength is mostly in pre-production, but I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to find enough range, using clips from my COP Practical and smaller animation tests.

I think it displays the range of my skills - it was important for me to get in the props I made in Into Orbit, as well as the digital compositing. I also wanted to show the best shots from the current Applied project, and get in a few other bits and bobs. I also animated a little intro and outro to show my kind of "brand".

Here Comes Bod

Recently I was introduced to a children's TV show from the seventies, called Bod.

I've fallen a bit in love with Bod, perhaps due to the poor quality of the animation. It was the 1970s so I can forgive. But the character design is something else. The blocky bodies, the little legs, the basic colours. It is so wrong, yet there is something so strangely appealing about it.

And if we move onto the animation, there is an absolute disregard for all of the principles of animation 80% of the time. Look at those hats fly up in surprise! With absolutely no easing in, nor easing out! But again, there is something oddly charming about it. 

Solid weight? Never heard of her. Look at these guys go! 

What is really impressive is how, maybe once every episode or so, there is a bit of actually good animation. Like their whole budget for the episode goes on a bird flying away, or a letter on the breeze beautifully flapping, and the rest of the episode was animated by poor animation students paid in biscuits. 

Still, I have an affinity for Bod and the poor animation. It is almost charming, and goes to show that you don't need a whole lot of complex scenery or animation to create something that warms the cockles of your heart. 

Study Task 4 - Networking

10 Networking Opportunities

Online

1. Direct Messaging artists/animators/professionals on Instagram to connect and talk
2. Connecting/following on Linkedin
3. Joining networks such as Leeds Illo and Girl Gang Leeds
4. Messaging family contacts (Tom Barnes, Tristan Oliver)
5. Engaging on Twitter

Face-To-Face

1. Get an internship
2. Talk to folk at Manchester Animation Festival
3. Talk to artists at booths at comic conventions
4. Go to meetups for networks
5. London International Animation Festival

I've been able to connect with a lot of professionals on Linkedin, as well as people from university. I connected with a few people from my internship, which is a great way of keeping in professional contact with them. Lots of people haven't replied to my requests though, which makes me feel it isn't a very active way of getting to connect with professionals. 

Study Task 2 - Personal SWOT Analysis

After the session, I have been able to identify some real strengths and weaknesses in my own practice and self. This came from my own analysis and my peers' feedback.

My overall strengths lie in my time management and organisation. In terms of artistic strengths, I have also identified that I am strong at character design, colour theory, and that I have a unique art style.

My weaknesses is that I lack confidence, and this comes from my own anxiety about my work and interacting with others. While I have definitely been able to handle my anxiety better over the last few years, it definitely still holds me back from time to time. Technically, my weaknesses lie in the fact I tend to give up easily if I don't achieve success quickly, and that I often doubt myself and compare myself to others.

While comparisons aren't always bad, I tend to view them negatively, always comparing my art to others' and asking myself why mine doesn't look that good. Of course, I can rationalise it and understand that other artists may have been working longer and harder than I have, which means they have refined their style more. Still, I do find it difficult to deal with the fact that I am not as progressed as others.

Study Task 1 - Who Am I Now?

What have I learned so far?

1. How to use Dragonframe
2. How to animate within Photoshop
3. How to manage my time within a project
4. How to evaluate my work
5. That I need to engage with further work/activities creatively

What do I want to know more about?

1. How to use Adobe After Effects more
2. How to use lighting properly
3. How to design backgrounds in 2D
4. How to create puppets for stop motion
5. Creating sets for stop motion

Skills that I think are my strengths

1. Time management
2. Organisation of a team
3. Character design
4. Visual communication of concepts 
5. Keenness to research and learn more

Things I want to improve

1. Basic animation cycles (walking, running, etc.)
2. My depth of knowledge in certain areas of interest
3. My ability to work with others
4. Character design (in terms of range of character)
5. Expressions in characters

Practitioners that demonstrate my interest in animation

1. Barnaby Dixon (Puppeteer)
2. Lorelay Bove (Artist/Designer)
3. Shiyoon Kim (Character Designer/Concept artist)
4. Pes (Stop motion animator)
5. Glen Keane (Concept Artist)

Websites/online resources that demonstrate my areas of interest within the creative industries

1. Skwigly Online Animation Magazine (http://www.skwigly.co.uk/)
2. TED Talks (https://www.ted.com/) - Ones relating to storytelling, visual communication and design
3. Lindsay Ellis on Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/user/chezapoctube) - Video essays relating to animation
4. Animators Resource (http://www.animatorsresource.com/) - Tips on animating with video tutorials
5. Pinterest (https://www.pinterest.co.uk/) - Character design reference and guides on animation skills