Animator: How to get in the Game Industry

Early Days

• Back in the early days
• Developers were working on coin operated arcade games, becoming a tester was a common way of getting into the industry. 
• "Wow awesome, I get paid to play games" became a dream come true for some teenagers. 
• And this was be a great opportunity to learn from the pros, and make your way to becoming an animator. 
• But, as time moved on game studios became bigger, acted more professional, and turned it into an industry business. 
• Now a days
• It's very rare to becoming a tester and move up the ranks. 
• Currently studios are looking for top talent to fill up their developing roles like Writers, Artists, Animators, Designers, Programmers, etc. 
• Becoming an animator for the game industry has become competitive and challenging. 
• But, I believe if you work hard, build a network, and keep on learning, you can accomplish your goals.

Animator's Role and Requirements

• Go online and check out any Video Game website like EA or Activision, and see which have what Associate Level or Contract jobs they have.
• Each one of those jobs, has a list of Responsibility and Requirements that they are looking for in a candidate. That's gives you a guideline to follow when breaking into the industry.
• What are the Responsibilities they look for in an Candidate?
• Create High Quality Key Frame and possibly Motion Capture Animations.
• Have a good sense of Posing, timing, and Weight.
• Self-driven, good communicator and a great team-player. 
• Take Feedback and Direction to meet production deadlines.
• Problem Solve with development to work out technical issues.
• What are the Requirements needed for this position?
• Portfolio Website
• Strong Demo Reel, showing animations of human / creature physical movement, and has a sense of weight and timing.
• Each animation has to demonstrate the understanding of the Principles of Animation.
• Have the ability to demonstrate character acting, is a plus. Many animators have traditional film background.
• You don't need to have the best music / lighting. Many experience animators prefer to see animations only.
• Resume
• 1 or 2 years of professional experience.
• Degree or Certificate in Animation.
• Be familiar with tools such as Maya or 3D Studio Max.
• Positive Personality
• Be able to contribute to a creative environment.
• Excellent in Communication.
• Have a Passion for animation and video games 

Foundation Education

• My first advice, is to build a solid foundation for yourself and get an education on what job you would love to do Modeler / Animator / Concept Artist. You have options on Local Schools, Recognizable Schools, or Online School.
•  Local Schools
• Check to see if your local University or Community college has an animation program. Most major cities have an Art Institute, which gives you a general knowledge of animation and tools.
• This would be a great place to start and explore if this is something you really want to have in your career.
• Highly Recognized Schools
• There are several schools that are recognized by big Film and Game Companies. They have a high reputation rate for alumni getting jobs in the industry.
• A few school I can think of are, Ringling, Cal Arts, Savannah Arts, and Gnomon School.
• Online Schools
• If your bounded to the city you live in, and have a busy schedule, Check out Online Schools that specialize in Animation, and are taught by Industry Professionals. 
• You can get that direct Network with someone who already in the industry, and build a social network with students and alumni that are in the online program.
• I highly recommend Animation Mentor, IAnimate, Anim School. 
• From my experience, I took Animation Mentor, after 10 years in the industry. It has further my education, to explore new animation work flows and theories. Having that 1on1 with my mentor, I was able to get good feedback and continue to learn. On top of that, the friends I have made, added more to my Animation Network.

Network

• Social Network
• Facebook
• Linkedn
• Community Network
• A great way to learn and share knowledge, and get feedback on your work.
• 11secondclub.com - Animators Website for Film, its a great place to learn about animation and compete with your peers. They have a big library of resources to point you to the right direction to meet you goals. You can also compete in their monthly contest, where everyone is given the same 11second audio clip, which all animators will use their imagination and create something great. 1st place winners, not only get the recognition from their peers, but also a Free Professional critique from Animation Mentor.
• Polycount - 3D Modeler website for games, its inspiration to see game related  3D models. Sometimes people on that site are looking for animators to bring their characters to life. 
• Social Events
• Local 
• Sketch Groups
• IGDA (International Game Dev Association)
• Meetup.com (Austin Animators)
• Conferences 
• E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo)
• GDC (Game Dev Conference)
• PAX Prime (Penny Arcade Expo)
• Parties 
• And of course, at all these event, there will be some sort of party brewing somewhere. And this is a great place to just hang out with people who love games.

Portfolio

• Build a Website.
• Website should be clean making it easy to navigate.
• Portfolio should be well organized and divided into categories.
• Demo Reel
• Have it simply playable on your website.
• Avoid codecs that are not compatible to an average PC user
• Reels can be anywhere from 30seconds to 2 minutes, its all about quality over quantity. 
• Recommendations
• Free Service Website, Blogspot.com is a great place to promote your art work. It's easy to create with presets layout, divide your content and keep it organized, and its simple to upload images and videos. And you can view it on any computer or tablet.
• Free Video Website, Vimeo and Youtube are good good to use. Both service has the ability to stream your Demo Reels. I like using Vimeo, because its less distracting with no advertisement or non related videos being promoted. Its easy to upload content and post them to your website or to any community forms and Facebook. This is great, because you can have friends and family look at your stuff and give you feedback.

Job Hunt

• Apply to companies that best fit your qualifications.
• Expand your Network, to build peers, critiques, and professionals.
• Keep updating your portfolio, and make sure its easy to read.
• Take any opportunities that is related to your skill, it does not have to be games.
• Carry a business card with your web link, you never know who you run into to.
• Keep on learning, even after you got a degree in animation.