When Is the Best Time to Apply to the Big Studios?
Most students have a list of studios that they'd kill to work for. Really, like, strangle another human being just to animate Woody. I know I did. That was before I was recruited for my first feature film, and thankfully nobody got hurt. But when is the right time to apply? It is difficult to simultaneously gauge one's own work AND figure out the ‘magic time' to apply when preparing to submit to a major studio. My advice is to give up trying to find the perfect time to apply. Don't try to gauge your chances. You'll drive yourself crazy. Keep the following three steps in mind during the application process to increase your odds of landing a job.
First, the studios are not the first group of people who should see your reel. Your peers are, and when they do they will give you their best indication of how studio-ready it is. There are many communities and forums online where you have access to valuable, professional opinions. When your demo reel is completed, circulate it on the popular animation forums such as 11secondclub.com, CGCHAR-animation.com, Strutyourreel.com, AWN.com, and even the gallery in the CGTalk forums. If you are lucky enough to be an Animation Mentor graduate, you literally have hundreds of animators who can critique your reel on your workspace. Who knows, an animator working at a studio who just overheard a supervisor saying they need to bring one more animator onboard might forward your reel to the right person, and BOOM, you're all set. In a way, you should think about circulating your reel almost like a pre-application process. Animation on display for critique is almost like a mini-networking event, and is great preparation for sending it to the studios.
Secondly, the idea that you get only one chance to get into a major studio is a myth. They gladly accept updated reels from animators who have applied before. I am not saying that you should not send your best work – that would be foolish. I'm saying that if your reel reflects your best work to date, then you should always leave it up to the studios to decide if you are ready or not. The only rule to follow is that you can't re-apply without at least two major new shots on your reel, and no more than once every three months, or season. So if you applied in January, add a couple of awesome 11 Second Club shots and send in your new reel in April.
Lastly, you have no idea what a studio is looking for! Studios keep their projects under wraps and will recruit far in advance of major projects. Your reel might have some problems with dialogue work, but it also might have the exact quadruped studies that a studio gearing up for a monster flick needs. Studios frequently staff projects according to strengths they see in specific areas on a reel. Since there is no way of knowing what a studio is looking for (besides overall studio-wide stylistic choices, e.g. you wouldn't apply to Pixar with a reel full of death animations from a bloody video game), don't drive yourself crazy thinking about it.
Also, and just as importantly, major studios have caught on to the trend of hiring recent graduates for junior animation positions, a position that has only recently come back into existence. Your foot in the door might be animating "keep-alive" on background characters and cycles, which is still awesome. In this case, just the very fact that you are a recent graduate or have no credits yet is the biggest influence on your hire-ability! In that case, it would be silly to not submit your reel when they were looking for new animators anyway!
I have experience with these many facets of recruiting. I applied three times to Rhythm & Hues before I got in. My reel was not good enough the first two times. It's as simple as that, but through the process I met the recruiters and demonstrated how much I wanted the job. Just remember, it is a human process you are going through so try to be relaxed. Imagine a recruiter's enjoyment when he/see sees a reel from an animator who wasn't quite up to par last year, but who clearly took a rejection as a sign of needing to work harder. Before re-applying, the animator put all their effort into correcting animation mistakes, and added many new, skillful shots to the reel. Recruiters go bonkers. When it comes down to it, recruiters are the people with whom you will develop a rapport and relationship as the process unfolds, and nothing excites them more than imagining how much you are going to continue to improve under their roof.
So relax! If your reel is between 30 seconds and two minutes, has only your best work on it, and if you haven't already applied within 3 months, just send that sucker in. And I'll sleep easier knowing you aren't out strangling somebody for the gig. :)
Rock on,
Kenny
Kenny Roy is the founder of Acronyx Arconyx Animation Studios in Los Angeles, Calif., and a mentor at Animation Mentor. To learn more about Arconyx Animation Studios, check out the site: http://www.arconyx.com