Why Animation Grads Still Need a Website

Why do animation graduates need their own blog or website? Because it remains the case today that having your own blog or website is still the best way to own your own professional slice of the internet. Your blog or website is your showcase for your talent; you can style it and curate it any way you want, and show the world what you are capable of.  The video above explains why our animation graduates still need their own online space to show their work. 

What is The Animator's Resource Kit?

We're recommending this very useful animation blog - The Animator's Resource Kit, a useful one-stop-shop for lots of animation materials, including reviews of some of the best and most useful animation rigs.

It has plenty of information on subjects like links to animation forums, communities, animation competitions, Maya rigs, tools - and places to submit work.

Thinking Animation - Free Rigs

We're liking the animation resources website "Thinking Animation". Among other things, the site is a great source of free animation rigs, including some cool stuff you can't easily find elsewhere.

Fancy working on Rocket from Guardians of the Galaxy or even Elsa from Frozen? You can download the fan-made rigs, and test them out, perhaps even animating a line of dialogue from the film.

Bucks Animation BA Has Moved to a Shiny New Site at bucksanimation.com

We have a new website! https://bucksanimation.com/ . The BA (Hons) Course now has a new site where you can see recent student work and get more information about the course. We have been putting in a lot of work behind the scenes to make sure that 2016-2017 is the best year yet! If you wish to apply then hurry, there are still a few places available in clearing.

If you are looking to study at our online MA in 3D Animation please continue to check this site: http://animationapprentice.blogspot.co.uk/

CGMeetUp post Free Maya Rigs

CG MeetUp - full of great resources for animators

CGMeetup have posted a list of free rigs for animators to download and start using themselves. Here at Bucks we encourage all our students to try out new rigs and see where inspiration leads you. There are more and more excellent free rigs being released into the Maya community and this only helps our students to produce more and better work. To find the list of free rigs, follow this link.

Learn The Art of Film at www.lavideofilmmaker.com

We live in an age in which it is possible to learn almost anything online. All you really need is the determination to concentrate - free of distractions - and dedicate enough time to learn the subject properly. Film is no exception to this, and one excellent site that we highly recommend is www.lavideofilmmaker.com, a free website with all kinds of excellent resources on how to make movies. Any serious student of film should navigate to it, bookmark it, and drink deep from the well.

Akshay Ohari's Online Business - Futpacks

Futpacks.com by Akshay Ohari

Akshay Ohari is a student at Bucks who has launched his own online business, carving out an entrepreneurial niche for himself in the rapidly expanding world of online digital media.

Futpacks.com already has 45,000 subscribers, appealing to fans of the wildly popular FIFA video game, made by EA games.

We asked Akshay to talk about his new business career, and how he got started.

Miles Skarin Self-Starts His Freelance Career

Animation image by Miles Skarin

Miles Skarin is a first year animation and VFX student at Bucks, but he is already tackling professional freelance work, creating websites and animation for musicians, bands, and record labels. 

Miles already has an impressive client list - including major artists such as Jethro Tull. We asked him to talk about how he broke into the industry, founded a successful freelance career - while still in his first year at university.

Finding work at animationjobs.com

animationjobs.com

Nowadays there are lots of great websites to check for the latest news on who is hiring in the animation industry.  One of the best new sites that every animator should be aware of is www.animationjobs.com. The clue is in the name, and they have plenty of listings for the latest vacancies. Best of all, you can sign up for an email altert, and have them let you know what's new. So polish your CV/Resume, make sure your demo reel is up to scratch, and get out there and start applying.

How do you find an animation internship?

Cinesite is one of many Soho VFX houses which offer internships

Finding internships is not easy. And yet, in an increasingly competitive world for graduates trying to break into the creative industries, it is an important step on the ladder to a successful career. A successful internship brings experience, contacts, and direct understanding of what is needed to get a job with an animation company. So how do you go about finding an internship?

New Year's Resolutions for Animators

What should an animator's new year's resolutions be? Animation is a huge and growing business, a far cry from the cottage industry it used to be even twenty years ago. But it is a competitive world, and good animators need to work smart to stay on top of their game. So here's a checklist for some simple ways to maintain your edge.

Who needs a website?

Create a blog - it's free!

Who needs a blog or a website? Only everyone who is a freelancer. And, in the entertainment industry, we are all freelancers. Jobs for life, if they ever existed, are long gone, and for most of us a gig that lasts a few years is a long one.

Student Showcase - The Art of Monika Dzikowicz

Monika Dzikowicz is a 3rd year student at Bucks who has developed a very strong portfolio in visual development and concept design. She draws well and has practiced her craft to develop her skills as a concept designer, visual development artist and storyboard artist.

What do we look for in applicant's portfolios?

Life drawing, especially quick sketches, provides excellent training for animators

Here at Bucks we often get asked what should go in to an art portfolio, to apply for our animation course. Drawings? Paintings? Life drawing? Digital artwork? The answer is - a bit of everything. Most important is digital artwork hosted at a website or blog, so we can access it easily.