#creativeenterprise

+RehabStudio (Creative Intern Placement)

DESCRIPTION

We love the enthusiasm, passion, drive, naivety, stupidity, fresh thinking, free thinking, curiosity, and tea making ability of youth.

So if you have all of that, we’d love to see some of your work, thinking or ideas. There’s no rules as to what to show us (or how you show it to us), but have a look at what we do to get an idea of what might make us go “That’s cool, can we just rip it off?”.

And what will you get? You’ll get to experience life in +rehabstudio, and leave knowing a whole lot more than you did when you arrived. We promise not to stick you in the corner and forget about you or make you take Borris the office dog for his walk.

RULES

A placement runs for 3 months

We will pay you £300 per week

You need to have a portfolio (We like looking at them)

We do look at everyone who says hello, but we don’t always get a chance to say hello back. Sorry ) :

REQUIREMENTS

No shrinking violets

A love of creativity

A love of technology

Hungry to learn

A sense of humor

DESIRABLE SKILLS

Be able to communicate your ideas through sketching and writing

Be confident presenting your ideas

A working knowledge of some tools e.g Photoshop

A genuine passion for creative technology

BENEFITS

Payment

Training

Mentoring

Mainframe Studio

Mainframe is a creative production studio working with forward thinking brands to create innovative commercials and branded content. A 15 year heritage in motion graphics and animation has evolved into a 360º offering including production, direction, animation, post-production and VFX. Working directly with brands such as Dyson, Mtv, Virgin and Harrods we have created an efficient working model allowing the client contact with all levels of production. Mainframe's directors and creatives are regular contributors to industry press and top awards judging panels.

They seem to be a very progressive company, always creating work that moves with shifting technology. And this open format approach to their work is shown again in their hiring process, simply posting this open call to applications:

This module excited me as I always had an idea of the maker-doer that I wanted to be, but wasn’t sure how to brand and market myself to potential employers.

I wanted my CV to have a design aesthetic which supplemented the content. I felt having Glenda Martin talk about how to construct a CV and what areas I should bring across really influenced how I approached the CV in terms of language and points which sold myself well. The other speakers also inspired me a lot in terms of the similar risks they took in applying for jobs and the hunger they had for their careers, throwing themselves into learning new softwares etc.

In terms of showreels, I was inspired by my contemporaries in international universities creating reels that allowed their emerging talent to shine through. I personally preferred minimalist showreels arranged by project. I hope to update my own by the end of the coming summer with a lot more of my personal work.

I spent a large portion of my time on the website as I really feel a well crafted site is the key to catching employers attention in the new digital age. My current site is full of content which sells my strengths, however, I need to work on streamlining this into a simpler format, so information can be processed easier.

I focused on international companies for potential placement, particularly in London and Canada. Tendril Motion Design Studio in Toronto is currently where I aspire to join, under their opportunity mentorship programme. I’m carefully considering the financial implications of living and working abroad for a year, however, and deciding whether Ireland would be a better fit for my current means.

I geared my cover letter towards Tendril, balancing it first as a summarised “about me” then focusing a lot on their current projects and the general energy they bring to the work they create. I feel it genuinely shows my interest and appreciation of the companies work.

My mock interview went really well, as Alec gave me feedback that my content was all sound and that Paula Campbell was very impressed with me. My years of experience of performance exams with interview questioning gives me a natural flair in interviews, as well as a relaxed demeanour and confidence in answering questions.

Tendril

Tendril are my forerunning company in Canada for applying to for placement. Their Opportunity Mentorship programme sounds perfect for a placement year type set up.

“The first step to great work is working with people you admire and respect. We take the challenges you bring us, reflect, brainstorm and bring back thoughtful, beautiful, often crazy ideas, opening up a dialogue and iterative process. The door to our studio is always open. Call on us to pitch, write scripts, plan out story beats, dive into visual development, storyboard, and design characters. Think of us as an elite creative development team for hire.”

“Whether it’s character animation, live action, motion graphics, a channel re-brand, or photoreal 3D animation: we want it to be beautiful, exceptional, and make people feel something. With a thirst for high production value honed by years working for a wide range of international clients and our own program of experimental works, we are equally comfortable behind a camera directing live action as we are hunched over our sketchbooks, designing, writing, or delving into complex 3D graphics or visual effects.”

I've been following the studio's motion graphics and animated work for a while now and I am blown away by the wide variety of mediums in which they convey a narrative. The focus on not only storytelling but the experience really appeals to me as I have come to believe that well crafted narrative and carefully considered design can create truly immersive outputs. 

Image Engine

Image Engine’s passion for filmmaking, flair for visual storytelling and technical wizardry feeds into all our previs projects. Our dedicated team supports filmmakers with creative shot planning, problem solving and budgeting, as well as the crucial visuals required for turning great ideas into stunning reality.

These are the current job openings at Image Engine. I like their general attitude to taking on new talent as they state their belief in building careers. 

“With our mission to always seek challenging projects, and with a supportive management structure that likes to nurture growth and recognize talented individuals, Image Engine is a great place to work on your resume.”

ICON Creative

ICON Creative Studio is a high end visual effects and animation studio located in Gastown Vancouver, Canada, housing over 130 modeling, animation, lighting, visual effects and compositing artists along with full service production, design, creative and management teams. 

Why work here? At ICON we constantly invest in raising the bar of our productions and fostering our people. If you are a passionate artist capable of sharing success with others, we'd like to hear from you.

These are just a few of the reviews employees have give of working at the studio. and these are the job listings for the studio at the moment:

http://www.designyourway.net/blog/inspiration/motion-graphics/34-of-the-best-motion-graphics-studios-and-their-work/

I found this great article for the top motion graphics studios from the international scene, scope for any country of the world I could want to go to for placement. However, the price of living and working abroad varies drastically from living and working in Belfast.

https://the-dots.com/companies/Animation-VFX

I found this great little indie site which advertises smaller sized companies in the design for animation and VFX sectors as well as the big name studios. Its the most comprehensive list of what studios exist out there and most importantly which are hiring.

http://vfxjobs.com/

This is a direct forum where you can see recent VFX jobs from around the world posted, however, may be beyond the scope of an undergraduate student at the minute.

Big Leagues

Double Negative

“Dneg’s Feature Animation Division was launched led by ex-Dreamworks Associate Producer, Tom Jacomb.

Our new division’s intent is to create an integrated front end / back end pipeline to work in tandem with IP creators and filmmakers in the creation of high end animated features. Here at Double Negative, we have the infrastructure, pipeline and talent to provide unparalleled support for our new division and are currently working to augment our core team of animators and artists with additional artists specifically focussed on Animated features (based out of our London HQ).”

Pixar offer season internships. They also offer longterm residencies for recent graduates:

“Residencies are typically offered in Technical Direction or Studio Tools. 

Residents: • Work alongside Pixar employees as full members of the team • Are recent graduates from a Bachelor's, Master's, or Ph.D. program • Work for a 1-year term starting in winter or summer, coinciding with school graduation dates

Pixar Technical Undergraduate Program participants:

• Take a 10-week summer course in Technical Direction • Receive direct mentorship and training in a hands-on classroom environment • Are typically undergraduates at the early stages of their career

Class Task: Possible Interview Q’s 

(Natasha and Abigail) 

What can you do for us that other candidates can't? 

If a conflict arose in a group project, how would you deal with it? 

How would a job at this company fit into your future career path? 

How comfortable would you be in a leadership role? 

What current personal projects are you working on? 

Questions to ask them 

What is the mobility of the position within the company? 

Where do you want to see the employee you hire in this position in five years?

Interview Points

Tell us a little about yourself

Student of Animation

Background of art, design and performance

Huge interest in hearing and crafting stories from a young age

Huge interest in the experience design sector of industry, i see myself first and foremost as a multi platform designer.

Founder of a social society of Creatives

Why should you get the job?

If you hire me you’re making an investment in an individual who will dedicate themselves completely to each and every project that comes my way, who is hungry to experience new platforms and mediums and ways of telling a narrative or crafting an experience. My current company project demonstrates my willingness to dive into a new project and new technology through my ongoing creation of a VR experience to accompany children’s storybooks, and learning the new VR language to tell a story.

Why do you want a job here?

I've been following your studio's motion graphics and animated work for a while now and I am blown away by the wide variety of mediums in which you convey a narrative. Your focus on not only storytelling but the experience really appeals to me as I have come to believe that well crafted narrative and carefully considered design can create truly immersive outputs.

What are your strengths?

I’m a social driver, a real people person. I’ve been told by one lecturer that other students have had peaked performances when working on projects with me due to the way i manage projects and people in motivating them to create their best work.

I also have a keen drive and hunger to try new things and learn how to tell narratives through new mediums, which from what I’ve learnt from your company is how you approach many projects to push the limits of new technologies.

Weaknesses?

I would say that the weakness that i’ve learnt from the most over the course of my studies is time management. Studying on a full time course alongside working part time in a restaurant and founding and chairing a new university society left me with a lot on my plate, teaching me how i really needed to improve on how i balanced my time, which I feel i have accomplished well.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Tendril, the company in Toronto, Canada that I am applying to, shared this post on their social media. It was a gift they received from a prospective employee who personalised graphic designs to the company, including their logo and setting of Toronto, and sent them framed. The clever side of this, aside from winning over the affection of the studio, was to include the designers QR code in the designs in order to make his website directly linkable from his gift.

I really liked this guys header for his website, showing his place of work and the tools he uses to create his content. Similar to how the website design in a previous post used CGI animation incorporated with the logo to show off their skill set, I think a CGI scene similar to the above would be a real eye catching image to greet someone visiting my site, and show off a little personal touch through the objects/scenarios I include.

This was a social media marketing storm, as Lindsay Blackwell started a campaign to get herself hired as the first Social Media Director of the University of Michigan. he created the site with the “dear lisa rudgers,” with the content to the right of this changing depending on the tab, but lining up perfectly with the logo to make an online cover letter. Even the video matched perfectly.

This create step in making a cover letter and getting her name out there earned Lindsay an interview for the position and multiple job offers, ultimately offering her a better position. She kept fans and followers of the process engaged with a live update page on the site, highlighting just how keen a social marketer she could be and the fresh mindset she brings to selling herself for a job.

Graeme Anthony, a PR practitioner looking for a job, uploaded his professional information toYouTube rather than creating a traditional cover letter and resume. Anthony's interactive video application included a breakdown of his skills and timeline for potential employers. It showed his video-producing and editing knowledge as well as his ability to use online resources, and gave an insight to his personality and creative flair.

In the end, it helped him land a job at Manc Frank.

Alec Brownstein decided to buy ads that would appear when specific people searched for creative directors' names, or more importantly, when said directors Googled themselves.

Compositing Reel:

I really liked this as a reel as it showed the nature of the breakdown shots incredibly well at points, conveying well in a short space of time how the compositor’s process works in creating a piece, and the wide range of content he has produced. He scrambled some shots from the same short over the course of the video to break it up but I would have maybe kept maybe one or two together in order to make the reel feel less repetitive. 

It also came across how proficient Miguel was in using After Effects to create the reel.

Generalist Reel:

I really like the simplicity of this reel, its clear from the very non-intrusive caption which elements they were responsible for. However, my critiques would be that the shots maybe change too quickly before I have time to read what responsibilities Kristin had, and process the content accordingly. I would also make the contact details at the end of the video slightly larger and easier to read for video format.

Lighting and Compositing Reel:

As this reel was composed by project it made it easier to process what the responsibilities were as well as the shots generally being longer. The inclusion of a brief breakdown at the end highlights that Masha understands the process well and including softwares used throughout shows her wide range of proficiency in multiple platforms alongside her ability to execute certain elements of a CGI piece of work.

Animation Reel:

As animation reel is included directly in the title, it informs me from the start what elements of the reel to focus on. I also enjoyed the structure of the reel going by project as it highlighted Jacob’s ability to transfer animation skills between different character rigs within the one scene, and how he considers actions and reactions as a dialogue in how he animates.

He focuses clearly on complex animations as well as smaller facial reactions showing his consideration to all elements of detail in his process. He also used his last shot well to transition to his contact details, showing his consideration for narrative of the reel.