We were lucky to have another industry professional come in to speak to us today, and I think it was my favourite one of the year. Bianca gave us a candid impression of the industry by touching on hiring, freelance, taxes and so much more that we will face (both positive and negative) in our futures. I took a lot from this talk and left feeling much more positive and hopeful about my future.
I have a very self deprecating nature when it comes to my work, so it was lovely to hear that who you are as a person counts for more than the work you do; that if you can work well in a team and interact with people pleasantly to create friendships and trust within the industry, you will be favoured for a job. A theme in these talks has been to be nice. It's encouraging to hear that I am striving towards an industry with, generally speaking, it's priorities in place. I am personally leaning towards pre production more than being an animator and this often causes concern for me but she also told us that initially "they hired me more for my illustration skills than my animation because I sucked". Bianca also encouraged us that if you don't have a set style (like her) it can work to your advantage if you are able to mould to briefs. A lot of the time there is pressure to constantly be drawing everyday and this can become intimidating but it was refreshing to hear from an industry professional that infact, it's okay if you don't want to draw all the time after constantly working.
In regards to time after graduation, we were given some great advice on how to present ourselves in the industry to put our best interests first.
-Entering the industry is an intimidating thought but we were reminded that people break through at different rates, and that that's okay. Often you will ease your way in unless you have pre-existing contacts.
-Do an internship
-Try to be financially independent after graduation
-Get an accountant if you're not a maths head
-Make sure you have all agreements in writing- invoices, deadlines etc- this will save you if anything goes wrong
I found her to be a very honest and inspiring speaker who has clearly persevered with so much strength to get where she is today- working in freelance for 5 years and only having 2 weeks not knowing when the next job is amazing to me. It's encouraging to see such a strong woman in the industry who has morals and expectations set in stone which has helped her progress rather than hindered her. She mentioned her personal struggles which just helped in illustrating that if you have the drive you can make it. She said that even if you've been in a dark place, to lift yourself out and have faith.
She told us to always respect ourselves as artists and the worth of art - never do anything for free (except in a case where she worked for charity). Because at the end of the day, you can do free work for yourself and it'll be something more passionate to you.
When taking work, consider: money, if it'll benefit your portfolio and whether you will gain satisfaction for it.
Lastly, another poignant part of the talk for me was that you could never imagine or plan where you will be in five years time- she would never have guessed at art school that she'd be working as a storyboard artist.
Don't settle on who you are now.
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