The Definitive Guide To Landing A Career In Animation (based on 3000+ job applications)
Let’s face it, starting a career in animation and motion design isn’t easy.
If you’re like the majority of applicants, you’ve probably turned in tens of CVs but had little in the way of positive responses, let alone a second interview
So what are the successful candidates doing that you’re not?
To get your name ahead of the hundred other people applying for that entry-level animation role, you’ll need a killer showreel, a commitment to lifelong education, a great personal marketing plan, and tangible experience.
After reviewing than 3000 resumes for positions ranging from junior motion designers to creative directors during the past seven years, we’ve gathered a list of essential steps for candidates who want to work in animation and motion design.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to apply those learnings and put yourself in the box seat to get noticed, get interviewed, and get that job you’ve been dreaming about.
Contents
Chapter 1: Why an awesome showreel beats a pretty CV
Chapter 2: Your CV still matters - here’s how to do it well
Chapter 3: Showcase your personal brand and style
Chapter 4: Persist to succeed where others fail
Chapter 5: Promote your work here to be noticed
Chapter 6: Getting that job … and keeping it
Chapter 1: Why an awesome showreel beats a pretty CV
Literally nothing else is relevant if your showreel sucks.
Why?
Your CV won’t get a look-in if your showreel - the most tangible demonstration of your creativity and technical skill - is a fizzer.
Here’s the good news. These steps will help you fashion an attention-grabbing showreel and stand out from the crowd.
1. Always put your best work at the start of your reel - and make sure you keep your second best piece for the end, to finish on strong note. Remember, every second needs the ‘wow’ factor.
2. If you doubt whether a piece of work is reel-worthy, it’s probably not - take it out. Your reel says a lot about you and you shouldn’t include something you’re not 100 per cent happy with.
3. Although cutting to the beat and placing extra sound effects on your reel can be super badass, don’t rely too heavily on audio. Most viewers will mute it anyway because they’re in an office environment or have headphones and don’t want to be disturbed while listening to their current jam.
4. Your reel should be akin to an appetiser - you’ve got between 45 and 60 seconds to impress. Don’t waste it.
5. Avoid holding any one shot for too long - keep things moving.
6. It’s ok to create some exclusive pieces of work just for the reel... if they add value to the finished product.
7. Don’t rush it - take your time on the details. The rules of editing also apply to showreels.
All that matters is your work
“All that matters is your work,” Jumbla Head of Production & HR Steve Bradshaw said.
“That’s how you get your foot in the door, that’s how you get a job, that’s how you get freelance work - by showing off what you can do, what your capabilities are.
“Even if you’ve never worked in a studio or done any paid client work before, you’re starting from a good place if you have an amazing showreel.”
The takeaway - shelve your ideas of crafting a beautiful CV until you’ve put the work into your showreel.
It’s a sentiment shared by Jumbla Creative Director Cornel Swoboda.
“It will always be your showreel that gets you into the business in the first place,” he said.
“You should pay massive attention to it and not worry too much about gaps in your CV.”
Keep it tight and relevant
When a shortlist of potential interviewees hits the desk of Jumbla’s Co-Founder and Executive Creative Director Callan Woolcock, he looks for a short, sharp and stylistically-defined showreel to assess a candidate’s suitability for a role.
“People looking at your showreel don’t always have much time, so you’ll need to grab their attention instantly,” Callan said.
“I’d suggest putting the best stuff at the very start, cutting to the beat, and keeping it short - 45-60 seconds, max."
“If we can see that the artist has the ability to apply design and animation principles to their work in a visually satisfying way, more often than not they'll be shortlisted. We really want the designer to have a good sense of quality and understand what works well.
“As for your CV, we'll look at it after your showreel because we're more interested in what you can create.”
Applying for a job that requires skills that aren’t featured in your showreel? Jumbla Creative Director Oz Smith says you might want to consider a re-cut.
“A key thing for a showreel is to show off all the capabilities you’ll be applying in a job,” Oz said. “If you can do something that’s relevant to a job you’re applying for but it’s not on your reel, you won’t get the call.
“If you want to push yourself into a certain area of motion graphics, consider leaving out the kind of stuff you don’t want to be doing, and putting in the work that really matters. Choose what you include wisely.”
Chapter 2: Your CV still matters … here’s how to do it well
If you have a killer showreel but you’re still being knocked back for job interviews, it could be down to a barren or poorly-designed CV.
Yes, you need to put a lot of time and energy into your showreel, but once you’ve captured the hiring manager’s attention, it’s your CV that takes you from ‘candidate’ to ‘interviewee’.
“We'll only look at your CV if we like your showreel, but if I can see by the attached thumbnail that it’s a Word document in Times New Roman, I’ll probably move right on to the next applicant,” Callan said.
“We like to see CVs that are nicely designed, with a clean and crisp layout. You don't need any images, just some good typography is enough.”
Your CV is an opportunity to showcase your brand and communicate important personal information, like your:
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Goals
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Career objectives
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Education
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Previous employment
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Capability using different software.
“You’ll also want to describe what you’ve done for each job listed,” Oz said.
“You need to stick in a potential employer’s mind - they want to know what your skillset is and what role role you took in any collaborative work.”
Stick to the script
While it’s good to include details of previous jobs, make sure they’re relevant - nobody wants to hear about the voluntary week you spent at a petting zoo back when you were 15 years old (unless you’re applying for a job at a petting zoo).
“Don’t add the three weeks you worked at the service station during summer break either. Only include things that are relevant,” Cornel said.
“If you don’t have anything, most employers will understand that graduates have just started their career.
“And don’t forget that you’re applying for a creative job, so avoid writing a stiff ‘businessy’ CV based on a Microsoft Word template. Instead, choose a nice font, use plenty of white space, go for some icons; make the whole thing pleasing to the eye.”
Steve says it’s vital to showcase what you’re actually good at. Don’t make the person reading your CV have to join the dots.
"Jumbla looks for a certain speciality - everyone here has something they’re really good at,” Steve said. “We still try to mentor and teach people all kinds of technical skills to develop our team into well-rounded motion graphics designers. But most people are hired because of their biggest strengths.
“Ask yourself - what is your speciality? You need to get that across in your CV and your showreel.”
One element of job readiness that many candidates overlook is industry knowledge. Oz says it’s vital to keep your finger on the pulse so you’re aware of what’s going on in the creative world.
“Technical aptitude is important, but so is demonstrating that you’re up-to-date with the latest trends and best studios,” he said.
“Trends are often technically driven, so having an overview of this will help your application too.”
Chapter 3: Showcase your personal style
While we’re accustomed to the idea that businesses have a ‘brand’, we’re less inclined to think the same about ourselves. But the truth is that everyone - including you - has a brand, whether you’re aware of it or not.
Your personal brand manifests in your actions, your appearance, and importantly, in your design style.
You can use this to your advantage career-wise as a point of difference between you and ‘the others’.
“It’s important that designers have strong personal brand collateral,” Callan said.
“This means applying design knowledge to anything they use to promote themselves, including a showreel and CV.
“Having your own logo or brand-mark is a good start because it helps you stand out instantly and gives us a good sense of your design ability before we even look at your work or read your resume.”
Oz says developing a personal style and brand is a long journey that requires a proactive approach.
“The more you get out there, the sooner you’ll discover what works for you. You’ll then find your own voice and what sets you apart,” Oz said.
Chapter 4: Why persistence is the key to succeeding where others fail
The world is littered with ‘could-have-been’ animators who packed up and became a barista after their first few rejection letters.
Don’t be one of those people.
“I’ll get at least 100 resumes sent through for a job opening, which means there are going to be a lot of disappointed people,” Steve said.
“They might get disheartened and move onto something else, but that’s not how you break into the industry.
“You need to keep improving, keep applying, and then eventually, something will happen if you’ve got the talent and passion for it.
“A lot of the guys that work here, they didn’t just apply and get a job. They applied, got rejected, applied, got rejected, applied, got an interview, applied, got an internship, and then, at the end of the internship, they didn’t get hired, and then three months later, they finally got a job here. It’s a process.”
You’ll also need to keep experimenting, building your skillset and creating new work to stay fresh and maintain your appeal as a potential hire.
Never stop working
“Try to keep up the momentum from uni with passion projects and dailies…whatever you can do to improve your skillset and avoid falling behind, get it done," Callan said.
It’s a sentiment echoed by Cornel.
“Follow other artists, read interviews, do tutorials or workshops. Play around with a new piece of software or plugin and get out of your comfort zone,” he said.
Don’t be afraid to take an unconventional approach to landing your dream job. You may be surprised how far a little initiative can take you.
“Set your sights on companies you admire and create work which you think they will appreciate, without copying them,” Oz said.
“Send out your reel and try to pester them as much as you can, without being annoying. Self-promotion and networking are things you’ll have to cultivate.
“In short, keep doing cool things, always be putting the best stuff on your showreel, and make sure you’re getting yourself out there.”
Chapter 5: You’ll miss the boat if you don’t promote your work
They say death, taxes and change are the only certainties in life.
Here’s another for creatives - you’ll be invisible if you don’t share your showreel.
There are a few places Steve looks when he’s searching online for new talent.
“If I’m looking for people, I’m scouring everywhere – DeviantArt, The Loop, Behance, LinkedIn,” Steve said.
“I never know where I’m going to find someone with a piece of work that makes me go, ‘Damn … that’s the guy or girl I want to work here’.
“And if I do see a showreel I like, the first place I head is the person’s website. If they don’t have a website, I’m like, ‘Why don’t they have a website?’
“Your website should have everything – pre-production sketches, artwork, anything you’ve ever done that’s good should be up there.
“Vimeo should have every video you’ve ever done. Because if it's someone I really like, I might have a look at their progression, how far they’ve come and in what amount of time.
“You never know where someone’s going to find your work. They could be jumping on YouTube and typing in ‘2D character animation of an onion,’ and if you’ve got an onion animation in your portfolio, you could get lucky. Who knows?”
Deciding what to include in your portfolio
Deciding what to include in your portfolio can be agonisingly difficult, especially with less than a minute of vision to play with.
And if you don’t have enough content to fill that time? It’s near impossible. Here’s what to do if you find yourself short on the raw material for a killer showreel.
“The first step is to identify the styles you like, then create a mix of content in that vein to include in your reel,” Cornel said.
“Most people who are fresh out of uni lack confidence, thinking they haven’t created enough cool material to land a job in the industry. Don’t worry too much about that."
“Think about what kind of designer you are and what kind of designer you want to be. Every generalist always has some sort of speciality. Focus on that one thing and don’t try to be too many things at once.
“At this stage, it’s all about getting the quantity needed to convince yourself that you can cut together a badass showreel from what you’ve already created.
“Finally, be visible and update your Vimeo, Behance, Artstation or Instagram portfolios. Do a clean-up and delete old crap from your early days.”
Chapter 6: Getting that job … and keeping it
You’ve made it to the interview and you’re ready to show off your extensive industry knowledge, skills and prior work experience.
The competition has likely dwindled significantly by this stage, and your chances of getting the gig are greatly enhanced.
So what will the interviewer be looking for when they sit across from you to discuss the role?
Steve says at this stage of the process, it boils down to personality.
- Are you going to fit into the studio?
- Are you going to be a good team member?
- Are you a good communicator?
- Do you have the ability to hit a deadline and understand a brief?
“Employers are looking for all of those type of things,” Steve said.
“On the other side of the coin, having an attitude like you know it all won’t go down well.
“You need to show that you’re easy to work with, ready to learn the processes of the company you are applying to, and you're a good fit for the culture.”
In terms of preparing yourself for questions, make sure you’re aware of industry trends and be ready to talk about what makes you tick creatively.
“One of the questions we always ask is ‘Tell us about what you’re like, what artists you like, what studios you like. What passion projects are you doing at home?’,” Steve said.
“If you’re already working on passion projects, following studios and artists, we’ll know that you’re going to love coming into work every day; you’re going to love every project you have.”
How to keep your job
Steve says there are a handful of things you need to do to ensure you have a long and productive stay at your new employer.
“Once you get a job, how do you keep it? By hitting your timelines and nailing briefs,” Steve said.
“The people who move really quickly through the ranks in animation, not just at Jumbla, but everywhere, are the people who see a brief, devise a concept that nails it perfectly, and deliver on time and on budget. That’s what clients want.
“While there’s a lot of opportunity out there, it’s also super competitive. It’s a tough gig to get into, but once your foot’s in the door, it’s a great career.”
Chapter 7: Why lifelong learning will make you a success
If all of this sounds like hard work - it is. Only knowledge and self-improvement can fuel your career progression and success.
While everyone else is on the couch or out at dinner you need to be experimenting, watching online tutorials, attending industry events - whatever you can to give yourself the edge.
And the kicker? You need to do it for the rest of your life.
"Being a motion designer is a path of continual learning. It’s a constantly moving landscape and there’s never a set way of doing something,” Oz said.
“Getting out there, experiencing different ways of working, and learning about new processes or techniques is a limitless endeavour. The more you get out there, the sooner you’ll discover what works for you. You’ll then find your own voice and what sets you apart.”
Cornel says dedication and patience are essential components in the pursuit of lifelong learning.
"Experience is something that comes with time and it can’t be gained on a crash course,” Cornel said.
“It’s obtained by taking risks, dealing with various situations, making mistakes and learning from them.
“Experience strengthens your self-confidence and leadership skills. It gives you the ability to make better judgements and foresee future outcomes. It’s one of the benefits of ageing.”
A structured path to getting and keeping a job in animation
One of the greatest investments you can make in yourself and your career is building your skills in a hands-on and practical environment.
Jumbla Academy is a collection of six animation and motion graphics courses developed by our Creative Directors to help budding animators, graphic designers, studio owners and freelancers enhance their workflows and output.
"Gaining relevant experience is really important for budding animators and motion designers, and this was one of the biggest motivations for establishing Jumbla Academy,” Callan said.
“We work on the theory that if you’re exposed to a studio environment with 'real-world' projects, briefs, and deadlines, you’ll have less of a learning curve when you step into full-time employment.
“Employers like it when they can give you a task, and you can do it really well - with little supervision.”
After opening its doors in 2016, Jumbla Academy has just undergone its most significant evolution with the introduction of six new courses catering for beginners to advanced practitioners.
From the basics of motion design, to C4D, Maya and complex techniques, Jumbla Academy’s 10 and 20-week courses cater for artists with diverse backgrounds and career aspirations.
See which Jumbla Academy course can help you get ahead in your career.
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