Demo Reel - Animation, Game Characters, Lip Sync

calbar

Hello - I'm new . A friend recommended this site for good critiques and feedback and that's what I'm looking for. Well actually, I'm looking for jobs, but critiques -> better work -> jobs. Anyway, I recently got a website up and my demo reel on there, so here's my latest:

Quicktime Sorenson 3, 10MB

Thanks for any feedback! I'm sure I'll be swinging any of my new stuff this way .

Rick Stirling

I'm not sure where the dmeo reel is aimed at? Is it modelling? Texturing? Animation?

Your contact details are not on screen for long enough.

calbar

Thanks for your reply ~

My reel was to show my skills in any of those areas, as I'd be happy doing any or all as a job. I hear the games industry can require "multi-hat" talent, so I hoped showing multiple skills would be a positive thing for the work I'm looking for. Do you think this was a bad idea?

As far as the contact goes, I'll look into lengthening it if critiques require a re-authoring of the reel. Thanks

rooster

I like the reel and models, nice job! Also the music in reels usually seems to be really annoying but I quite liked your choice

I imagine it depends on the type of company you apply for whether you need to be multi-skilled, smaller ones might require multiple roles, large ones probably want specialisation? I wonder if it would be worth having different showreels for different application purposes? Just thinking out loud.

I agree the contact details are gone too quickly, and the bit where they appear then dissapear when the guy comes back seems kinda glitchy as the text is still moving when it happens. I know its like that on purpose to be a quick surprise, but it feels more like a slip-up.

pogonip

Ok IMO , There probebly is not enough there to get you a character modeling job although it does look like you do it pretty well . It looks like you can rig and animate pretty good and you have some decent examples of your facial animation but your not showing anything that would really get you hired as an animator like an excellent run,jump,climp sequence .

It looks to me like you are on track to doing good Animation work I would just say IMO that you should concentrate on building solid rigging/animation demo's . Do a little variety because not ever animated sequence calls for over dramatized movement like a Pixar film .

Ohh and I really don't think it is important to use DEMO time showing texture maps . You can send along print out's of your 2D work and texture maps . Use your demo reel to show off things that better suited for movement ( model rotations,animation..etc etc )

Josh_Singh

Yes, from viewing you reel, I would say you would fit in at a smaller studio, where a jack-of-all-trades type would be very usefull. I think you have strong animation skills. Your character modelling and texturing skills are good, but not the best. My favorite part of the reel was the baretta, when I saw it I was like "great another gun model" but when it opend up and you had articulated all the pieces, it was a pleasant surprise.
Overall good work.

Xavi

Hey man, pretty sweet reel. I agree on the credits thing now that I read it but I really like the work. Great editing and overall strong work

calbar

Thanks for the feedback!

rooster: The thought of multiple "tailored" reels entered my mind as well, but I don't have enough content for multiple reels yet anyway . As for the cut at the end, I intitially had the text settle in, because I'm not too attached to that sync; more like an extras after a movie, not necessary to be seen. But I was urged to do something so people wouldn't miss it. If I did something similar on a future reel, I'd probably stick with my initial idea of not cutting the text off.

pogonip: Well, it seems like a lack of good examples is the issue. I'm getting generally good feedback on my stuff, I just need more. Oh, and you make a very good point about using the demo reel primarily for movement. I still think taking advantage of low-memory texture maps is a good thing to give props to though, so I'm thinking maybe just mention the texture sizes while showing the model, instead of actually showing the flats. Good advice!

ghost_rider & xavi: Thanks, I've been getting similar crits on my animation vs. characters... makes me want to work on making better characters, cause I'm like that . Anyway, thanks for the compliments guys .

This feedback has been very informative - feel free to keep it coming .

adam

Ha, the Carrey audio made me lol.

Scott Ruggels

Nice demo reel. Good presentation of the characters. The Lip Synch should almost be split off into it's own reel for cinematics and stuff, and the time usd for a third (female) character. (Or a four footed character). But in general,it's dynamic, punchy, short and unpretentious. Nicely done.

Scott