Professional Practice (Week 1)

In the beginning of my education within animation I have been introduced and shown the many different pathways that the career of an artist’s/animator can take and how rewarding it can be. Careers which I have been introduced to include concept artists, character designers, character animators and the one that I would be most happy to have a career within, stop motion animator.

Stop motion from an early age has always been something that I’ve been drawn to as I have always enjoyed creating concepts and drawing up how different characters move, develop their personality and the little details like their hair, posture, clothes and how this adds to who they are. However, I have always found that just drawing the characters and designing the backgrounds, lacks a hands-on approach and I have always wanted to make the concepts which I’ve drawn out of other materials.

It was by luck most of my favourite movies happened to be made in claymation and upon seeing the immediate difference between classic 2D animation and stop motion animation, I saw that these models were actually puppets and where moved and positioned each frame in order to animate the story. This arts and crafts way of making characters from scratch and after a development of different concept ideas and character designs, was the combination I had been looking to experience a career within.

David Sproxton - Morph

The description of a “Stop Motion Animator” is that an animator should present the skills of being able to draw, develop concepts and be able to develop their work within digital animation or puppeteer. A stop motion animator would create their storyboard sequence of their characters movements through a continuous change of the characters positions in each shot of the camera and then develop them to a create a smooth moving picture sequence.

This form of animation is called digital manipulation and holds a unique and jumpy presence but provides the familiar style and skill of making any inanimate object appear alive and as if they are moving by themselves.

Stop motion animation is something I’ve always imagined is timeless and holds a classic and unique look that no new age technology can produce today. Stop motion animators are making a career of something most people have created in their childhood, as most children have sat and made their toys or intimate objects come to life with their own movements and story.

Throughout the entire process of mind-mapping a character, designing and re designing, then to make the character out of clay and the robotic skeletons and faces used to portray the characters range of emotions. Then to have to move the character each shot, with little to no error, shows this type of animation is tedious and strenuous and is the most rewarding form of art. Stop motion is something I admire to do and from what I have researched to what different companies and employers ask of their stop motion animators, it is noticeable the similarities in requirements across all sites and gives me an idea that once you have learnt the skills and what it takes to animate stop motion, that many jobs will respect this career.

Some of the jobs I found on indeed and glassdoor included junior 3D animator, assistant animation apprentice, animation intern and junior rigging artist. These are all the jobs that are starting at a mid/low level of skill and would be jobs that I would be hopefully able to be applying for after I have finished university.

Assistant animation apprentice was the job I was interested by the most and saw that the job works mostly from the desk, although the applicant will also be required to spend their time both physically helping any production or background set ups and any 2D, CGI or stop motion backgrounds and animation that need to be worked on. This applicant will be required to help out the team they are working with, by making sure everyone is happy and able to work, making sure the environment is clean and safe and to develop and include their own creative designs into the groups work and projects.

This position within this animation company seems like the best route and first job for any inspiring animators, as it gives you experience and knowledge within many aspects, problem solving and creative issues that would regularly happen within any busy studio.

You get to help the director and team personally with any tasks they may have, help out and even include your own work to the team’s creative flow, their projects and get to be there for all background work, not only the beginning and end.

Although stop motion may be one of the least popular forms of animation today, after searching on LinkedIn for someone’s career path who inspired me. I was happy to see how many people enjoyed their career within stop motion, but also how many people found it an important skill to have obtained within their career.

https://www.hannahbrooks.uk/

Someone who’s education, career and animation journey stood out to me was the artist ‘Hannah Brooks’ who has worked with Aardman Animations and studied in the University of Bournemouth.

Hannah Brooks began her career in the University of Bournemouth, studding Animation Production and has had an amazing career of being hired into the company Aardman Animations and has shown how consistent hard work, improving her skills and dedication has seen her climb the career ladder to now be sitting as a supervising assistant animator.

Hannah Brooks has worked hard and over many years to achieve the ranks she has as an animator and has shown that no matter at what stage you begin your career, you can always move on, improve and achieve what you are willing to with consistence. Hannah studied a beginning year of art and design in the University of Bournemouth and continued on the study animation production, graduating in 2016.

During her time in university Hannah was then chosen to attend an experience project within Aardman Animations, where she developed her skills in stop motion, sculpting and test animation. She must have impressed the company as she was then hired straight into their company after graduating university and began her career. She started as a Trainee Assistant Animator developing her skills in more difficult designs such as wire frames and mouth sculpting and was soon then promoted to a Supervising Assistant Animator.

She worked on sets including Shaun the Sheep: Armageddon and Early Man and was trusted with the sculpting, advising the team on puppetry, promotion and was the main creator for the popular pigs featured in the series. She has now since been chosen to be the only Assistant Animator on The Amazing Adventure of Morph and is sure to show her employers how she promises to further develop her skills and career.

This is her showreel and shows some of her amazing work!

https://vimeo.com/346013616

Hannah Brooks journey says to me that there are many ways that you can get into your desired career and that just because you have different levels of skills and within different aspects of animation or art than others, that it doesn't mean there will not be room for you somewhere in an animation production team and pipeline.

I myself struggle with the drawing aspect of animation, as I can draw and animate most simple concepts and 2D pieces of art. However, I don't have the best skills set when it comes to intricate designs or realistic concepts and have always used drawing as a steppingstone within my animation and creative flow. This then helps me to create the sculptures or puppets I needed for my stop motion animation. I would find more joy in making and sculpting backgrounds and characters from scratch and enjoy the timely process of each picture to picture frame and each tiny moments of the characters.

I hope that what I have taken from Hannah's career is that if I keep working hard enough and testing my skills and developing what I enjoy, then I will find a career path and a job that suits me best and to also gather as many contacts and try out different workshops, placements and experiences, because you may never know where it can take you.