Plans for after uni

One of my biggest fears about graduating was deciding whether i should live here or move back home. I decided it would be best to try remain in leeds after uni, because there is more oppourtunities for work here. I intend to get a part time job here in the mean time to support myself, while also applying for internships and entry level motion design jobs. I am particularly interested in BlueZoos 2d background artist internship, which i am going to work on my portfolio in order to apply for. I would be willing to move around the country if i get any job or internship offers. If i dont get any offers, i will ask the studio for feedback on how i could improve my application, CV or showreel. I intend to alter my showreel depending on the studio i am applying to, to showcase the skills they are looking for in an applicant. Once i get more well known i wouldnt mind becoming a freelance motion designer or background artist/illustrator.

Study Task 3, Contacting professionals - Francis.j.m

I came across francis.j.m's work through the motion design school instagram i follow, who occasionally post professional work. I really liked his style and decided to ask him how he got into motion design. He told me he had worked under some freelancers to begin with to gain some experience of what its like to be a professional, and advised me to work with someone, even in some cases for free to gain experience. I had never considered doing this before and it has inspired me to ask around any freelance motion designers to see if they would be happy to mentor me after uni. 

Leeds based motion design studios

I have been researching and identifying possible studios local to Leeds which i might be able to visit to talk with the people who work there and see what it is like to work in a studio. Hungry Sandwich Club and Little Motel are both motion design centred studios in Leeds. I really like the style of both  studios work and intend to contact them to see if i could have a studio visit, and ask if they have any internship programs which i could apply to.


Hungry Sandwich Club

Study Task 3 - Reaching out to professionals

In the past few weeks i have been reaching out to motion designers to see if i could ask them some questions. I contacted Rosy Turner, who used to attend our university and now works in the industry. I asked her things like how she got into the industry, what she thinks a studio looks for in a showreel/interview, what advice she has for someone trying to get into the industry etc. She gave me really good answers to my questions which have been very helpful in planning my exit strategy.  Some of the points i took away were;

• Tailor your showreel to the studio youre applying for
• Be enthusiastic at interviews
• "they are not just interviewing you for the job, you are also interviewing to see if the job is right for you."
•  put the hours into learning the software - dont limit yourself
• Keep updating your social media platforms. Post work in progresses, illustrations, updates. The more frequently you post the more relevant you are in people’s eyes.
• listen to Motion Hatch and School of Motion podcasts
• motion design is in high demand at the minute

Software

This year i have made an effort to try and learn new software, in order to expand my skillset and to make myself more employable. Here are the softwares ive learnt;

- Illustrator- i started using illustrator last summer as i was curious about what i could create with it. I am so glad i started using it, because it lead me down the path of motion design, animating my vector illustrations in after effects. I find it really fun and use it for personal and uni work. It is really intuitive and i always like the results i get when i use it.

-After Effects - i used to be really intimidated by after effects and found it very difficult. This year i started focusing on stuff i am interested in creating on it, like bringing my own illustrations to life, and ive been following tutorials which have made it so much easier to grasp and less scary. It is now my preferred program to animate in.

-Storyboard Pro - i have only used this in the workshop we had with David Bunting. I am not a storyboard artist at all, but i found it a well structured program and a good thing to add to my CV when applying for internships or entry level jobs.

Updating Linkedin

I have recently been working on updating my online presence on LinkedIn and reaching out to people in the industry through it. I have updated my skills and also began uploading my recent work there and making more connections with people. I still have more to upload and aim to post on it as often as i do on my art instagram. Here is a link to my updated profile. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-meehan-84557a153/

Visiting Professional - Kate Lander- Brown Bag

We recently had a talk from Kate Lander from Brown bag studios. She gave us some tips on becoming employable. Although i am not that interested in pursuing a career with brown bag, as they don't focus on motion design, I found this talk really useful and informative. Some of the things she told us included;
-To look for internships and entry level jobs - She said it was probably a bad idea to go freelance as soon as we graduate, because no one will know who we are or our work, so working for a studio is better in the meantime until you become more well known.
-Start being professional in other aspects of your life - i found this a good tip and it is something i have been trying to adopt myself.
-She explained that the speed at which you work is very important to the company, because setbacks can cost the company a lot of money.
-She advised us that we should make connections with professionals whos work we admire on linkedin, and see whether they would give us feedback on our work.

Looking at job requirements

I have been looking into possible jobs id be interested in for once ive graduated from uni. Most of these are jobs as a motion designer. I have noticed many motion designer jobs require knowledge in Cinema 4D, so this is something i would like to get into and learn more about to make myself more employable.

Creating a Twitter

I have finally created a twitter. I will use this to post my personal work and also to follow artists i like and retweet their stuff, in the hopes of maybe getting noticed by them.  I have linked my vimeo as well and uploaded my showreel to allow people to view my work.

Creating a Vimeo

I have created a vimeo to put all my animations on. I think it is more professional than youtube and i prefer the interface. I hope to upload on this regularly, maybe every time ive finished an animation. I have a link to this on my twitter.

Internships

Below are some of the internships i intend to apply for soon. I would love to get the background artist one at bluezoo, but i know i will need to update and put together a portfolio for this. I also have been researching motion design interships, such as the ones below at framestore and Melodoo. All of these internships are in London, which makes me want to apply even more as i find the idea of living there for a while very exciting. 

Creating an Art instagram

I have finally got around to making a separate instagram for my art work. I found the idea of doing this intimidating for a long time, but now i feel i have got to a level of confidence in my work in which i am more comfortable doing it. I think it is nice to be organised and have a separate account for this because before i would just upload my work to my personal instagram which isnt very professional. I aim to upload about once a week and so far i have stuck to this.

Business card design

This is a design i have created as a business card for myself. I created the logo, an illustration of myself, on illustrator. I have used this logo on multiple social network sites and thinks it works well to illustrate who i am and what i do. I intened to get these business cards printed soon.