Tell us a little about your background. Have you worked in the industry before? Have you been through the studio interview process before?
Matthew Garward:
I've been obsessed with animation and special effects for as long as I can remember, but since I was convinced I couldn't draw, and I was in Australia, I never thought of it as a career. So I ended up in computing and have been programming for over 11 years. 2 years ago I decided I was bored by my programming and realized I could pursue my dream after all. So I took a drawing class and an animation class at a local community college to test the waters, and loved it. In the class, I did 3 short (and very bad) traditional animation projects, and I had opened Maya 3 times before Animation Mentor started.
So I've never had an interview in the entertainment industry before.
Animation Mentor:
How did the interview with ILM come about?
Matthew Garward:
ILM advertised that they would be interviewing at Siggraph, and if anyone wanted to try to line up an interview ahead of time, to send in reels. I had finished up my first real demo reel between classes 5 and 6 in preparation for Siggraph, and so I thought, why not give it a shot? I sent the reel in about 4 weeks before Siggraph. I didn't hear anything and had given up, but on the Friday before I was leaving for Boston, I got a call from The ILM recruiters to set up an interview on Tuesday morning at Siggraph.
Animation Mentor:
What was the interview like? How did you feel going into it? How about coming out of it? Was it what you expected?
Matthew Garward:
Before the interview I was very nervous. It didn't feel real, and since this was my first interview where I was NOT wearing a suit, it didn't even feel like an interview. But I was nervous, under-caffeinated, and completely "geeking out". ILM!
The interview was conducted by three people: a recruiter, and two people I would potentially be working for in an animation team. The interview started with a question I was expecting: that I was making a huge change in career, why was I doing that? What was my background? And then a lot of questions about Animation Mentor, which surprised me. (What was it like, how was I finding it, who were my mentors, etc.) Towards the end the interview was more about the type of work, project-based employment, benefits, and what San Francisco was like. At the end I was able to ask questions, but I couldn't really think straight, so I took advantage of the chance to ask an associate animation supervisor from ILM what I could do to improve my reel.
Coming out, I felt happy and cautiously optimistic. Getting the interview at all was more than I had hoped for, and it had felt positive, but I've had interviews before and how I feel coming out doesn't usually mean a lot. I think mostly I felt relieved, but happy for the experience.
Animation Mentor:
What was it like to hear the good news!? How long did it take to hear back from the studio?
Matthew Garward:
Getting the good news was awesome! Hehehe! I got the phone call on a Sunday almost 3 weeks after the interview... while we were visiting the museums in the city. Sitting out the front of the Smithsonian trying to take notes on the offer details was all pretty surreal. But it took all my strength to not say "YES!" right away and actually be sure to really consider the offer details and make sure I should take it.
So instead, I called back 3 hours later to say "YES!" I mean, come on... ILM!!!
Animation Mentor:
Any other advice for fellow Animation Mentor students about to begin the interview process?
Matthew Garward:
The reel was what got me the interview, so make sure your reel is solid with only your best work on it. (BUT... try to get your reel ready at times when it won't impact any of your assignments. Like, for example, the animation on your short film. Trust me. :) )
Once you get an interview, be courteous, humble, be a bit of an extrovert, and most of all, be yourself. Your reel already showed what your potential is, the interview is to see what you are like and if you can communicate and if you'll fit. Most of all, enjoy it!
Animation Mentor:
How do you feel Animation Mentor got you ready for this opportunity?
Matthew Garward:
I had no animation I would consider showing a recruiter before I started, so without Animation Mentor I would have had no reel to send out! In the interview, the acting was one of the main things being scrutinized, but also all the animation principles like timing, posing, weight, and so on. So the type of work done in the assignments not only helped to make up my reel, but all the earlier assignments helped as well. Constant feedback from mentors and students is one of Animation Mentor's strongest points in my opinion, and my assignments and my reel owe a HUGE debt to everyone who critiqued my work. (Thanks everyone, I wouldn't be answering these questions if it weren't for your feedback!)
Animation Mentor:
What will it be like for a new animator coming into the studio?
Shawn Kelly, Animator, Industrial Light & Magic:
"Aw, he'll be fine. It isn't like the animators will do anything too mean to him when he arrives... Sure, he might get a wedgie or a swirlie or two, but for the most part, he won't get razzed too much. Though there is the "deleting his animation and make him start over" ritual, and of course we'll have to lock him out of the building in his underwear, but honestly, stuff like that would only really happen to him once a week or so. My advice to Matt would simply be this: be yourself, have fun, and be sure to wear clean underwear on Fridays."
Charles Alleneck, Animator, Industrial Light & Magic:
Yeah, it'll be great to have Matt here! We're always happy to welcome new animators. Someone's gotta do the really rewarding shots like animating the toes. I certainly won't do it.... I can't be bothered with it. But those toes aren't going to animate themselves. Actually I refuse to animate more than four or five poses per shot, so it'll be great to have some young blood around here to fill in all those annoying inbetweens.
He'll have a great time here! And hey, if some of this turkey sandwich I'm eating happens to find its way into the receiver of his phone, where it will be discovered weeks later, well, it's all part of the business, right? Or if some live mice end up crawling around inside his computer. And hey, nothing says "Welcome to the Studio!" like being involved in a real live video reference shoot! I've got this shot of someone getting kicked in the crotch that could really use some reference footage, and I think that has "new animator" written all over it!
So I for one am really looking forward to having Matt around. New animators bring lots of fresh perspective and good ideas to a studio. And they provide so many valuable services! Oh, about that.... I like my coffee with three sugars and 1.5 tablespoons of half and half, no more, no less. And... HEY! WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT THE EYE CONTACT?!?!?!"
Rick O’ Connor, Lead Animator, Industrial Light & Magic:
Some will be more nervous than others, some will pick up the training quicker, some will go through a state of "God, this is so difficult to figure out, was it a mistake to accept employment here?" and the number of variables goes on. So an individual's first week is their own to discover. However I can let you in on a tiny ILM animation secret tradition that everyone hired as an animator must go through in order to be accepted into the company. Failure to participate will lead to your termination and you'll blacklisted in the industry from that day on. Once again, I stress to you, please keep this secret to yourself because just like in Vegas, What happens at ILM, stays at ILM.
You ever hear of a character named Jar-Jar Binks? How about Yoda? Draco the Dragon or Davy Jones? Well, here's the secret, for the first week here, a new animator must speak in the voice of all the characters ILM has animated in the past, and they are never allowed to break out of character. Not only must the animator speak in the character's voice, but he/she can only use dialogue that the character has spoken in the films. For example; in dailies you're asked to make a few changes to a shot and you respond "Okie Day!" (1) then you're asked how long the change will take and you say "The dark side clouds everything, Impossible to see the future is." (2) They then say that they need it at the end of the day so you succumb to the request "Ah, well it's better than death I suppose." (3) in a very thick Scottish accent.
See, it's a simple task but an ohhhh so important one so study up on your character voices and be prepared to NOT do any of the above because I'm a big liar. None of that is true, but it would be super sweet if it was! "Roger, Roger." (4)
1.Jar Jar
2.Yoda
3.Draco the Dragon
4.Battle Droid