Animation Portfolio Feedback & Critique

Caramel_Slices96

Hi All! 

[This my first time posting here, if I'm in the wrong place etc, just point me in the right direction so I'm not covering old topics]

Bit of Background:
I've recently just finished my degree in Computer Games Modelling and Animation, like many others I'm looking to get involved in studio work to begin building experience. 

I want to pitch myself as a 3D Animator and thus have tried to focus my portfolio as such. I have included a link to my online portfolio which features the three pieces of work I consider both relevant and the best. From my standpoint, I believe the videos for each are overly long and thus the viewer ends up skipping through. Additionally, the animations could be presented better however I'm stuck for ideas. 

The environment piece titled 'Railway Workshop Interior' was included as many of the animator positions I've applied to stated they wanted generalist qualities and environment examples. 

Finally, I do have an ArtStation however this is mostly filled with my environment work from my course, the website is solely a focus of my animation specialisation. 

Any feedback, criticism, tips, tricks and pointers is more than appreciated! Thanks for taking the time to have a look! 

Links:

https://www.oscroftcreative.com/

AnthonyAnimation

Hey, welcome! You have some cool stuff and your instincts are correct. If I click a link to your site I want your reel right there ready to go. The reel should be 1:00-1:30 at most focusing only on animation (if that's your specialty). 

In game stuff is OK, but you want the viewer to be able to see the animation clearly and without distraction. A simple playblast will do.

Keeping your reel short forces you to pick your best stuff. You'll want to focus on body mechanics and readability. Acting shots don't hurt either. Look at some reels of people already in the industry, this will give you an idea of what to aim for and also help with ideas for composition, etc. If you have any questions don't be afraid to ask!

Einar

Adding to Anthony here and he's completely correct. Especially on finding your reel, having to look for it is a huge mistake, make it center easy to find right out of the box.

This vimeo group has many examples of how to do demo reels: https://vimeo.com/groups/gameanim
Look through many of them to get a gist of what impresses you and what doesn't.  You will quickly see patterns in presentation, timing and the type of clips that are used. Learn to judge demo reels, and you will be great at making them!

To me your reel shows your game and art assets more than your animations. People should be able to know what you wanna show them without you telling them.

Caramel_Slices96

AnthonyAnimation said:

Hey, welcome! You have some cool stuff and your instincts are correct. If I click a link to your site I want your reel right there ready to go. The reel should be 1:00-1:30 at most focusing only on animation (if that's your specialty). 

In game stuff is OK, but you want the viewer to be able to see the animation clearly and without distraction. A simple playblast will do.

Keeping your reel short forces you to pick your best stuff. You'll want to focus on body mechanics and readability. Acting shots don't hurt either. Look at some reels of people already in the industry, this will give you an idea of what to aim for and also help with ideas for composition, etc. If you have any questions don't be afraid to ask!

Thank you very much Anthony! I see where your coming from, perhaps rearranging the pages on the site to have the video ready to play on the homepage would be more effective! 

Appreciate the advice! 

Caramel_Slices96

Einar said:

Adding to Anthony here and he's completely correct. Especially on finding your reel, having to look for it is a huge mistake, make it center easy to find right out of the box.

This vimeo group has many examples of how to do demo reels: https://vimeo.com/groups/gameanim
Look through many of them to get a gist of what impresses you and what doesn't.  You will quickly see patterns in presentation, timing and the type of clips that are used. Learn to judge demo reels, and you will be great at making them!

To me your reel shows your game and art assets more than your animations. People should be able to know what you wanna show them without you telling them.

Thanks Einar! I'll have a look at the link you provided, condensing the portfolio to tighten the focus on animations, and having them directly accessible appears to be the general consensus.

Many Thanks! 

Caramel_Slices96

Quick Update! 
Hi all

I thought I would post this as a reply rather than starting a new thread. I have took the feedback both Anthony and Einar provided and produced a new showreel. 

Before I go ahead and modify my site to accommodate this I would like some feedback on the latest version if possible? I have made this reel with the following points in mind:

• One minute or under in length
• Solely focuses on animation - no environment clutter
• My 'best' animations at the start, followed by my 'good' animations, followed by more 'best' animations

I have provided the link to the video below, once again, any time taken to provide feedback is more than appreciated! Many Thanks!

Video Link - 

tholmes3d

This is a great start.
For the character running at the beginning, you could put all 3 angles in one shot. This is often more visually interesting because it fills the screen, and let's you show the cycles for longer without jump cuts.

AnthonyAnimation

The section 0:24-0:48 can be removed if you're focusing on animation. Yes there are parts being animated, but it's not necessarily showing animation as a skill. I'd still say that part is more focused on modeling. As with what @tholmes3d was saying, you only need to show multiple angles if it benefits the shot. A simple walk cycle can be shown in one 3/4 perspective.

Caramel_Slices96

tholmes3d said:

This is a great start.
For the character running at the beginning, you could put all 3 angles in one shot. This is often more visually interesting because it fills the screen, and let's you show the cycles for longer without jump cuts.

Thank you for the feedback Tholmes! I'll have a look into presenting the animations in this style! 

Appreciate the reply! 

Caramel_Slices96

AnthonyAnimation said:

The section 0:24-0:48 can be removed if you're focusing on animation. Yes there are parts being animated, but it's not necessarily showing animation as a skill. I'd still say that part is more focused on modeling. As with what @tholmes3d was saying, you only need to show multiple angles if it benefits the shot. A simple walk cycle can be shown in one 3/4 perspective.

Hi Anthony

Many thanks for the additional input! I understand where your coming from with the mechanical rigging and this time would probably be better served dedicated to more organic movements. 

As for producing this 3/4 perspective that both you and Tholmes have mentioned, are you familiar with the process or could possibly link me to a tutorial. I use Adobe Premier Pro to compile the clips.

Once again, appreciate the response! 

tholmes3d

I think what Anthony is saying is that usually a 3/4 perspective view will show all that's needed about the animation, so unless there's something that can only be seen from a different angle, they aren't necessary. A 3/4 view just means the camera is viewing from a 45 degree angle in front of the character, aka halfway between a front and a side view, aka the first shot in your reel. It's good advice so you don't waste the viewers time.
When you do this I'd also repeat the cycle again to give us time to digest it. Currently it's a bit short.

Caramel_Slices96

tholmes3d said:

I think what Anthony is saying is that usually a 3/4 perspective view will show all that's needed about the animation, so unless there's something that can only be seen from a different angle, they aren't necessary. A 3/4 view just means the camera is viewing from a 45 degree angle in front of the character, aka halfway between a front and a side view, aka the first shot in your reel. It's good advice so you don't waste the viewers time.
When you do this I'd also repeat the cycle again to give us time to digest it. Currently it's a bit short.

Thank you for the clarification Tholmes!