"How to Interview" by Escapee Kevin Richards

Kevin Richards teaching at Escape Studios

Escapee Kevin Richards took our short course in 3D animation at Escape Studios and is currently working as a Lead Animator at the new Aardman Animation TV Series "Pop Paper City".  

As a production lead, Kevin spends a good deal of time interviewing junior animators and making hiring decisions.

In the guest blog below, Kevin offers his tips on how to succeed at a job interview - the second stage in the process of getting hired.  If the company likes your demo reel, they will invite you to interview - below is Kevin's advice on how to get it right.  

No1 Reason Why Animators Don't Get Hired

What is the No 1 reason why animation graduates don't find work in the industry? It's not what you think. It's not because their demo reel isn't good enough, it's not because they fluffed the interview. The real reason why animation graduates don't find work in the industry is because...watch the short video above to find out.

Work Fitness Week Mock Interviews

Mock Interviews are something we take very seriously at Escape Studios. Last week we invited our students to register for a series of mock interviews with some of our industry partners and mentors, who kindly offered their time to give our students an idea of what a job interview is actually like.  Learning how to survive an interview is an important part of preparing our students for a career in industry.  Of course, the key to success in the animation, games and VFX industries is primarily about having a great demo reel, easy to find and well-presented.  Once a studio is interested in your demo reel, the next stage is the interview.   In the short video above I explain why we do mock interviews, and what they are for. 

Mock Interviews at Escape Studios 15 October

Today is the last chance for our students to register for a series of mock interviews with some of our industry partners and mentors, who have kindly offered their time to give our students an idea of what a job interview is actually like.

Learning how to survive an interview is an important part of preparing our students for a career in industry.

Of course, the key to success in the animation, games and VFX industries is primarily about having a great demo reel, easy to find and well-presented.  Once a studio is interested in your demo reel, the next stage is the interview.  

Once the studio has called you to interview, you know they like your reel and are interested in hiring you. Now they want to know - are you the kind of person who shows up on time and is nice to work with?

Interview with Escapee Harry Pearson

Harry Pearson at the BFI

Harry Pearson graduated last summer from Escape Studios and soon found work with the animation tech startup Factory 42, specialising in immersive and augmented reality content.

Since last summer he has been working on animation for an interactive installation at a major London museum, involving animal and creature animation.

We interviewed Harry to ask him about his career since leaving Escape Studios, and what advice he might have for current students and Escapees looking to break into the world of animation and augmented reality.

The Making of "Death From Above"

"Death From Above" is a teaser/trailer created by director Jordan Coles and a group of second year animation students, working together in Module PR5001 to deliver a group project. The film is currently in festival competition, and recently won "Best Trailer" at Halicarnassus Film Festival. Jordan was asked by Will and Rowena at Escape Studios to talk a little about the making of "Death From Above"; in this interview, Jordan explains where his inspiration came from, what the challenges were, and how the team worked together to complete the project.

Mock Interviews at Escape Studios Today

Mock Interviews between industry and students

This afternoon at Escape Studios we're running a series of mock interviews with some of our industry partners and mentors, who have kindly offered their time to give our undergraduate students an idea of what a job interview is actually like.

Learning how to survive an interview is an important part of preparing our students for a career in industry.

Mock Interviews with Industry Today at Escape

"Interview"by the Animation Workshop

Today at Escape Studios we're running a series of mock interviews with some of our industry partners and mentors, who have kindly offered their time to give our undergraduate students an idea of what a job interview is actually like.

Learning how to survive an interview is an important part of preparing our students for a career in industry.

Interview with DreamWorks' Simon Otto

Above is is a great video interview with DreamWorks animator Simon Otto on animating dragons - and on animation in general. It's pretty long; runs about an hour, but if you've got some time, get yourself a cup of tea and some decent headphones and settle in for an hour of animation instruction from one of the masters.  If you want to be a great animator, following in Simon Otto's footsteps is a great place to start.

Plamen Ananiev Talks 2D Animation

Plamen Ananiev

Plamen Ananiev is our newest animation tutor, joining us next week for our very first evening class in 2D animation, teaching students to use the latest 2D animation software - Toonboom Harmony.

Why are we running classes in Harmony? Because Harmony is now one of the leading software packages for the creation of 2D animation, such as at London-based animation powerhouse Blue Zoo, which is currently crewing up a whole new division for 2D animation. 

We asked Plamen (currently working on Simon's Cat in London) to talk about his work in the field of 2D Animation - now experiencing a major revival here in the UK and elsewhere. In particular, how can students successfully break into this competitive part of the industry?

How To Break Into Character Design

BoxTrolls - character design by Luis Grane

Character design is one of the most creative jobs on an animated film, allowing the artist to give free rein to their imagination, come up with great ideas and - best of all - get paid to do it.

But how do you break into this most competitive of fields?  We asked Luis Grane, an animator and character designer whose work can be seen on dozens of animated films including Prince of Eqypt,  Hotel Transylvania, Ratatouille, and Open Season, to talk about this work and how he broke into the industry. 

Kubo and the Two Strings Q&A with Director Travis Knight and Producer Arianne Sutner

Screening of Kubo at the Curzon Mayfair

SIGGRAPH's London chapter recently hosted a local screening of Laika's latest stop motion triumph - the Annie-nominated “Kubo and the Two Strings”.

After the movie I was honoured to host a Q&A with Director Travis Knight and Producer Arianne Sutner who talked about the making of the film, and revealed some amazing insights into the work flow of LAIKA studio.

Events like this are a great way for our students to meet leading film-makers in person, and find out what makes the industry tick.

Escape Studios in The Guardian

Escape Studios is in the Guardian! Here is a link to an interview in the Guardian, featuring some questions about how to get started in the animation industry, and some thoughts on where the industry is heading.

Escapee Guy Penwill VFX Artist at DNeg

Escapee Guy Penwill was one of the interviewees at London Live recently (see the video above), talking about the BAFTA nominations, the state of the visual effects industry, and also about what we do here at Escape Studios to prepare our students for the job market.  He recently worked on Ex Machina, which last night won the Oscar for best Visual Effects. Guy's story is an especially inspiring one not just because he has succeeded in forging a great career in London's visual effects industry, but because of the remarkable chutzpah he showed in getting his career off the blocks. We asked him to talk to us about what it takes nowadays to make it in VFX.

Escape Studios Interviewed at London Live!

Above is an interview I did on Saturday with London Live, talking about the BAFTA nominees, and also about breaking into the animation and VFX industry. It was a fun interview, and it's always interesting to hear the kind of questions that interviewers want to know about how animation gets made. Claudia-Liza Armah wanted to know about The Lion King, which just goes to show how evergreen that film is, and how well it is still liked and admired - even 23 years on.

Nine Simple Ways to Blow a Job Interview

Interview, by Mikkel Okholm and Mikkel Brons-Frandsen

By the time you get to being interviewed for a job, most animation and visual effects companies probably already want to hire you.

Why? Because the thing that counts for most in getting hired is your demo reel. They are not hiring you for your good looks or charming conversation - they are hiring you for your skill and talent in digital media.

That said, interviews do matter. They are important mostly because this is the point at which many otherwise excellent candidates blow it, and throw a great opportunity away.  How does this happen? Below are some of the most common reasons why good candidates fail to get hired.