Breaking In: Improve Your Portfolio to Get Into the Animation Industry as a Designer
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Breaking In: Improve Your Portfolio to Get Into the Animation Industry as a Designer
Details
APPLICATION GROUP 1
Applications Open:
1/29/25
THIS CIRCLE IS PERFECT FOR
- Those looking to break into the animation industry as a BG, Prop, or Color Designer. (I can provide general advice for those wanting to be character designers as well, but have less insight than someone who is specialized in character design)
- Recent grads with some internships/freelance and are looking to transition into their first full-time position
- Specifically, those looking to improve and edit their portfolio work
WHAT TO EXPECT
- Portfolio & Website advice
- How to build confidence
- Tips on navigating the workplace
WHAT NOT TO EXPECT
- Advice or instruction on boarding, directing, writing, or animating
- Detailed advice on character design (my specialty is in prop, BG, and color)
- Extensive networking/personal contact information, I plan on having a guest speaker or 2, and am happy to provide pertinent resources as situations call for them
- I cannot guarantee a job, nor can I provide personal information on industry connections at a whim
Qualification Criteria
Student (final year)
Aspiring Professional (0 yrs of experience)
Day / Time
Times Per Month:Â TwiceÂ
Day / Time:Â Thursday at 7:00 PM
Timezone: PST
* You must meet the qualification criteria AND be able to attend the posted day/time of the circle (please note the timezone posted)
CIRCLE DESCRIPTION
Are you looking to get your first design job in the animation industry, and you know that your portfolio could use some tweaking? Have you gone to portfolio reviews and felt like you just weren’t getting specific enough advice as to why you haven’t been able to fully break in yet? Then this circle might be right for you.
In this circle, we’ll dive into ways to improve your portfolio work and some of the fundamentals of setting yourself up to get a job as a designer in the animation industry. We’ll cover:
- Portfolios & Websites
- Professional Etiquette and Industry Expectations
This circle will be a great resource as you start to navigate this career journey. It will be a place to learn about how the industry works and to help you identify and plan for your next steps. We’ll discuss and boost any skills you need to make that final push to get your foot in the door. This circle’s chief priority is in giving a helpful guide for how to improve your work for those who have just started their venture into the industry, or are on the cusp of breaking in.
ADDITIONAL Application Requirements
Please submit the following as part of your Application Profile:
*(AFTER you click to apply, you must go into your member profile and complete the member-specific portion; these requirements should be submitted through that profile):Â Â
- Portfolio
- Resume – Education, Any work/internship experience
- List/short description of the top things you’re looking to get out of the mentorship
Circle Leader
Jenny Cho
Jenny Cho most recently worked over the last 3 years as a color designer on Hamster and Gretel at Disney TV Animation. However, her design career started in theme park, and experience design doing concept imagery and illustrations. She’s now been working in the television animation industry for roughly 7 years juggling different positions ranging from storybooks for focus testing, background design, prop design, and color design.
When she’s not working on various professional projects, she likes to exercise her creativity with nerdy hobbies like crafting and model making.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Current Title: Designer
Studio / Employer:Â Freelance
