I agree. The point on networking and learning from others is huge. I'm not great with animating my models, but I try to see what others do and improve on my skills a little at a time. Also as he mentioned focus on the basics whether it be art, animation or anything and one you have mastered those set the next goal for yourself. I already see progress after eight months of using Blender and Unity.
Doctor! His BP is crashing, and his respiration is skyrocketing! Sure, sure. Lets check this book on how to animate him... REanimate him. Aaa? Nudge nudge.
@@rthj6446 "ADVICE" not Rules for a profession. follow what is relevant to you and your situation. That's why it's an advice not rules. don't know if your trying to be a devil's advocate or trolling, either way you are doing poorly.
I KNOW right? I watched this video was like "oh no oh gosh that's so much work so much to learn I'm scared to even open an animation program there are so many talented folks out there who started when they were like three I'll never be good enough for this" constantly and then I remembered... I'm not trying to get a job in this field... I've never animated shit in my life... I'm just watching because I consider the field interesting... I don't know what that says about me, but I feel like there's some form of anxiety problem that's gonna fuck me over at one point or another
@@corvus6178 Okay, do you see the space in between the names at 1:02? Look at the shape it makes. These names are perfectly organized to make a nice straight line from top left to bottom right using the blank space between the names. It's really pretty, man.
Glad that you pushed staying connected. I’m not an animator (whole different career), but virtually every job I’ve ever had happened because someone I know said, “I know a guy that would be perfect for this”. Always treat team members, supervisors, and competitors politely. It pays dividends
Oh I needed this video soooo badly! Really teetering on the edge of burnout at the second, and had been feeling really drained all week. Self teaching is hard and damn its difficult to find motivation sometimes. But this, this absolutely made my day! Thank you so much for making this! And its nice to hear that multitasking is a desirable skill. I was kinda worrying that rigging and unity were distractions from what I should be focusing on (actually animating). Again thank you so much!
i can understand your troubles and your suferings however if i could manage to at least do something that looks like a motorcicle in 3 months with no prior knowledge and just entering college im pretty sure you will be able to find someone who will be available to teach you. My teacher said this "we are a corporation wich actually isnt all that secret because we will be always fond of learning something to someone and teaching something to someone" you can do it.
I got my bachelors degree in game art and 3D Animation and am now going for my master's degree in the near future. I want to become a game animator and this video is absolutely perfect. Thanks for all your hard work.
I don't even want to become an animator but for some reason I find this stuff really cool I will however be recommending this video to friends of mine who do want to become animators
The thought process and workflow is amazing and something most don't really think about when watching animations/animated films. Really cool to learn from.
While I don't necessarily plan on going into the game industry specifically, I want to do Television and Film, this was still filled with invaluable information.
In that case I highly recommend you to learn about cameras, lenses, lighting and rendering including things like tonemappig and PBR workflow :^) Those things are like the respective additional skills for Film and TV compared to scripting/ coding & learning how to implement your animation in a game engine for the Game industry.
I’m pretty young, 14, and I’ve always found this job so interesting and I think I’ve finally decided I want to pursue game design and animation. I don’t have much experience except for a bit of drawing, and my lap top sucks but I’ve seen so many people start in their 20’s from no where and become game devs for massive games. This video was really inspirational and it helped me know more about a profession I might want to pursue.
Hope you're doing well on your journey! Animation is a beautiful and fulfilling art form, and you're going to meet a lot of amazing people in this field
Many people have said this before, but this is an amazing video. As a sophomore in high school, and an aspiring animator (I'm taking the animation pathway at my school), this video is exactly what I needed. I had no idea about the Animation Survival Guide, and many of the other books you mentioned, and I'm going to buy them as soon as I can. Thank you so much for the wonderful tips and insight.
for about 6 months I had to make npc characters in lowpoly (modeling, texturing handpaint style, rigging, and 4-7 animations each). I cant tell you how much I have learned in that time. and how much I improved the quality of my work and speed of doing all of it. I ended up making a character per day with 7 simple animations.
This went beyond being advice for the animation industry and to become great advice for ANY creative industry. I will never be an artist or animator, for I am aesthetically challenged, but I will be revisiting this countless times in the future.
Hi I graduated with a bachelors of science in 3D animation. I HIGHLY suggest using the animators survival kit as your bible and Animation Mentor as your practice. I did not graduate from animation mentor, but after three years of education, Animation mentor is more than Worth it. Most animators have the best turn around time between education to getting a job. It will save you thousands of dollars. I literally haven't taken any classes.... I just know this being in the industry. its worth it!
I don't personally want to be a professional animator, but I do want to learn more about animation, maybe even to the point of being able to express myself as a game designer through animation. There are many times I've thought to myself, "This idea just doesn't want to be put into words, if I could just mock up a quick 3d model or simple animation, it'd be so much easier to convey." I'm not there yet, but videos like this definitely help me along the way.
You can start with boxes and such in 3d programs ! When it came to scenes and creating a quick scenario as a 3D anim, we were taught to use simple boxes we'd color to recognize the characters, etc. Simple keyframing, work on camera angles, and voilà ! It gets you to polish the layout before going straight into anim and it takes no time. Besides, it gives you a good visual despite its simplicity.
18:25 ish One of my most memorable moments in persona 5 is joker landing after breaking through a window Specifically his raised hand level to the ground after his graceful roll, as if he was always in control despite being caught. This might've, probably has, been done before, but i got such a good impression of who joker was from that little roll
4:57 is mortmort. He does some awesome pixel art and has a full playlist on his youtube channel that i would highly recommend! He has even begun doing 3d animation on his twitch account! Its a small nice community he has so if you are looking to just start pixel art as a small hobby- he is your guy!
I am 15 and I want any job in the game industry and while I don’t even know how to draw I will try to pursue animation as a career This video is great to motivate me
This is absolutely amazing. I am not an animator, but I am an amateur calligrapher and designer. I love seeing and learning about other art forms because it helps inform my own art. If you just look at the tips you give without the context of animation, they still are so valuable to be a better artist or just being better in whatever area you choose. I love all your videos Dan and Carrie is an amazing editor! You both are inspirations and I am so happy I hit that sub button when you created these channels.
While I don’t intend on becoming an animator myself, it is endlessly fascinating to learn about it. I read Animator’s Survival Kit some time ago after you mentioned it, and it was a massive paradigm shift. Seeing movement the way animators do - woah. Some quality ostranenie there.
I'm a programmer by trade, and I eventually am looking to make video games (currently on that step 2 in my field). However, I, personally, have always been really interested in animation for the same reason that I was first interested in programming, and I love your content, ever since that first episode of Extra Credits. Thank you for making this video for us. It's a really well made video, and it holds a lot of good advice for people that aren't even going into the field of animation.
I'm so glad I found this video. I recently decided to dive fully into 3d animation with a focus on characters (both GAMEPLAY and cinematics). This was incredibly motivating for me.
Been wanting to be an animator since I was 13, I'm about to transfer into an animation college, Its scary seeing how good people are, but this video is so inspiring and amazing I really look forward to the future and all the things I'm going to learn and people I'll meet. Thank you for making this video, Im going to be coming back to rewatch this one quite often
Adding to the “no top” part: it also means there are undiscovered heights that are possible but nobody’s been there yet. There are no rules, it’s art, whatever you are able to invent is legit. Most of us have probably went into a creative position for that reason probably, once upon a time. Just because we realized that most roads have already been walked by the masters before doesn’t mean the masters reached everything there was to reach.
This is great stuff! Thank you for this! I would add one note: When looking at animation schools online and the graduates from those schools, consider most of them probably had some industry experience before going to that school. For instance, I was in the first AnimSquad class and I was the only person out of 10 that didn't have any industry work under my belt. It happened quite often at Animation Mentor as well with the "really good" animators having prior experience and just honed their craft even more. The main takeaway is that your learning never ends at school!
im studying this in my career and i cant say how much of this is true because im doing every single thing he says srsly im crying from how acurrate and friendly he says it because you will always find someone who will trash your work only for the pleasure of seeing you sufer but my god it feels so fking good to actually finish something and say im happy with what i did i did my best and the work i puted on it is reflected on how it looks thnx man i really really enjoyed the video and will try my best hope one day my work gets showcased here
Wow thank you so much for this video! I am studying animation but something we honestly don't really learn is how to build your portfolio etc. This was extremely helpful! I'll definitely share this with my friends at school
Well you only have to be consistent at doing the same thing over and over day after day sitting in the same spot and trying to improve yourself. Thats how you become good. If you think you will be able to make a bmw after like 2 day well you are going to quit really soon.
it's not much more complicated. Unless you're missing limbs or something anyone can learn just about anything as long as they keep at it. So stop laughing and start practicing?
That first tip: What kind of animator do you want to be? I never asked that before. But as i kept watching this video it became more and more apparent that as much as i want to get into animation i never once asked that of myself. This is definitely gonna be a saved video for me. Im gonna keep referencing this video for a long time.
Thank you so much for this really insightful video! While I'm just a hobbyist animator who never intends to apply for a job in animation, I really enjoyed watching this video and learning quite a few things. Heck, your tips at the end are, for a big part, true for any job, even. I'm actually working on a pixel art game on my own, and am currently working on character animation for that game. I'll try to make the general animation info you provided in this video to good use! Thank you again for this great video!
This video just give me the motivation I needed these days. After weeks being in bed crying for not having a goal in my life, this remind me what I want to do and what I love. Thank u so much. I'll work to get better and achieve my goals.
The effort you put into production of your videos is something else Dan and much appreciated. As someone who is learning 3D animation and rigging late in my uni course, a lot of information presented here was very helpful and made me look at the craft in an even greater light than I already do. Having struggled with being able to motivate myself to get better in other areas of art and building connections with others, the latter part of this video in addition to hearing that even the greats are constantly learning was more reassuring than you know. All of this as well as many other elements of your video admittedly struck an emotional chord with me, partly aided by the lo-fi renditions of various game themes. In short, thank you for the pool of knowledge you've put into your video and for being such an inspiration overall.
Aside from all the amazing information in this video, the editing is just. amazing. The part where all the other contributors were named, and how the names all aligned so perfectly, while also keeping it interesting by doing "unveiling" them out of order? That's the good stuff.
I'm mainly a game designer but I've always liked concept art and animation as well and this video, even thought I already knew most of those points, is quite inspiring for me to invest a bit more in those fields. A varied skill set is imho a good thing when you're prototyping games all by yourself and when you're searching for that first job, plus it compensates not having been to a famed school by showing you're always learning and can help on many fronts in a small studio. Last but not least, you're doing a better job when you know what and how the rest of the team does :)
hardly a coincidence that people interested in animation will buy basically its BIBLE, AND watch videos about how to animate (probably all of the referencing the book) occasionaly those moments will follow in fairly quick succession.
I’m in my senior year of animation and game design, I want to be a game 3D animator and right now I’m working hard to make that dream real. I’m in a internship with a production company and I just got an interview for my first contract gig. And I’m still wanting to get better.
@@kim-pw9ob Good overall although like every part of the entertainment industry it can be a very heavy workload. Many people burn out because it promotes overworking and not everyone can keep up. As for price besides tuition prices It depends how much you have to pay for living there (for me it was abroad so including travel and food quite a lot) take into account if you can get any scholarships or not. Also it's been 5 years so prices have likely gone up even further. If you have any specific questions VFS staff is usually glad to answer (take in mind the timezone difference for calling though.) Overall I would say I really liked the comradery of working towards goals together with my classmates but if you're looking to specifically/immediately get a job out of it. It's very much not guaranteed. The networking doesn't give you a acces to work visa if you're planning to stay. Chances are you still have to do a 4 years study afterward. And idk how old you are but with resources online you might come just as far for way cheaper. But if studying by yourself is difficult you can maybe find an animation course mentor/join an animation resources discords. Also schools in Europe might be cheaper then Canada and America but can also be way harder to get into/portfolio accepted if we're talking like Gobelins. A lot of things to take into account, like what languages you know or plan to learn as well. If you have more questions feel free to DM me on insta (same name but + an s so thinthles)
The arrangement of the names of everybody who's helped is very aesthetically pleasing. Huh, technical animator sounds cool, didn't know that was a thing, but makes sense. Great video, a lot of this really applies to any (or most) fields of work :)
Can't wait to be done with my general programming degree so I can start learning to animate. The teaching is so poorly handled and the subjects at hand are so outside my area of interest, I need to branch out. Add to the fact that we have to come with our own laptops because the uni's PCs are worse than potato GlaDOS in Portal 2, and I seriously regret enrolling. Thank God for that one internship I did last summer that showed my I actually enjoy game programming, otherwise I would've dropped out entirely. Sorry for my rambling, I needed to get this off my chest.
@@spliter88Because I still need to finish university, and I have 4 pretty demanding courses plus my degree to worry about. If I started learning animation, not only would I burn up, I also wouldn't learn it well and most likely screw up the rest of my courses in the process.
I cried and got chills from watching this video. Thank you so much! I'm currently studying to become a game designer and came across your channel, so now I'm really passionate about game animation as well. This just makes me wanna learn more and more.
“Your reel is only as good as your best shot.” That applies to anything in the creative vein- carpentry, lighting design, photography, animation, anything like that. Heck, I’m not even an animator, but I am in a creative field, and all this seems like good advice to me.
I'm not any sort of visual artists but I follow channels like this, Scribble Kibble, and Dan Root because I find animation to be immensely important. It's both what can be improved the most in games currently and a vital aspect to their very existence. Everybody should understand animation at some level rather than just assuming it's a logical process.
I've seen a few of these videos here and now that I'm coming into the industry I need to know this stuff more than ever. This is a very helpful video and so are a lot of NFP's other videos. These are really great. Thanks a bunch.
Becoming an animator was my childhood dream, I've moved on for many reasons, but I still love watching great animation and playing great games every day.
Incredible video. I want to be a game director, but all the knowledge I can learn about all fields is so great to know. This is a great video for anybody int he gaming industry, in my opinion.
Great video. I'm doing a small solo project with 2d animations, and keeping the scope down (Thanks Extra Credits!). I'm more into programming/narrative, and this video had a lot of useful resources. Time to buy a book or two. Thanks!
When I finished the first part of the video about becoming a game animator I thought: "Eh, this is cool but it's not for me, I'll go watch something else". But guess what, I stayed thorugh the end. The explanation really clear and well done, the pace just the right point, and the images that go with what you're saying make a good match. It's one of the best presentations in format video I've ever seen. Really great advisory video there.
this is just what i needed haha im about o go into school for 3d modeling and animation so this will help me set appropriate personal goals while in school i think
Im a student of CGI/Animation in Argentina and i gotta say, this is really useful and inspiring. The way you put out the TIPS/Info is very good. Im lucky to have watched this on my last year of studying because im trying to prepare a demo reel right now. Thanks a lot!
I actually never wanted to be an animator and I will never be an animator but this video is very interesting! It helps a lot for people who want to be animatimors. (I actually clicked because I thought it was a Zelda Video) Edit: And those Zelda songs in the background are just too good.😍❤
This is really comprehensive and has a ton of useful knowledge. Its also a reality check regarding how much work I have ahead of me. Thanks for taking the time to help out the community with this video.
While I'm pleased as punch to see Bournemouth Uni was on the list of good animation Unis, I feel obligated to say its awesome course has been disbanded (due to funding). Falmouth Uni is a GREAT up and coming one though! With a focus on games. Thanks for the video. Really motivating. Had to take a year or two out for family reasons and really hitting hard with the applications.
I wanted to thank you for making this. For a long time, I've just been getting better at drawing, thinking that would be a very important dealbreaker. I'd been learning about animation for a while, but had never attempted it until about this time 2018. Thanl you for helping me realize further aspects of the industry, and what's really inportant to becoming a good animator.
I just started leaning 3D animation on free software called Blender, & I find you can go very far with just that & youtube videos, the Blender community is amazing. All you need is a basic gaming PC & you can install a number of free software/dirt cheap software.
I'm glad I found this channel. I'm currently in school for 3D animation but I have done more modeling, UVing, texturing, and lighting then actually animation. 3 months exactly and I've been in school for 1yr 3 months, I have 6 months to go. I feel stuck and considered modeling or compositing, but I see now that if I want to animate I need to learn it myself and not rely only on my school to teach me. Thanks for the info!
So much great advise! Thanks ~Learn the craft - create your own - make friends and learn from the people in the Industry - never pleasurize and accept creative criticism so you are awesome to work with!
Funny how I am currently working as an animator professionally but I'm still watching this because I'm a bit bored and reaching another art block, knowing that most people want to have what I want really makes me motivated in trying harder. People caring about this things kept me going and I love how some of my animations inspires other to try it aswell. Anyways for those who are getting started, my advice is to record and post your animations, regardless if you are not happy with it getting criticisms will teach you, getting praise will motivate you and chances are there might be a developer who is looking for an animator and happens to think you got what it takes!
I wanna start, but i have no skills in animation or how to create anything for that matter. I don't know where to start. I'm already on a course (Not in uni) on something completely different, but animation has always sparked my interests. I don't know what i should do because I want to do this, nut a part of me wants to do something else, but i don't know what.
I know this is late, but as someone who just started 2D animation with stick figures as a hobby(big fan of Avatar:TLA and Legend of Korra) while I can't give you specific advice without knowing more about you, I can say that it's best to start with animating the simplest thing you can(maybe walking, sitting and standing, a smile, etc.), in the least stressful way, that also doesn't take up too much of your time. And ensure whatever tool you use doesn't try to confuse you with so many things and buttons on the UI. Simplicity of the tool is so important for a beginner in any skill.
Thank you. Gods, thank you. I've recently been quite interested in the game art field, but I don't know much beyond fundamental 2D. That's it. It seems like a real daunting field, but this does wonders breaking it down. It has great information, great sources, and it really shows that you know what you're talking about. There's so so much that goes into Game Art. It's like a huge mix of every other art form on top of the mountain that's game design. You somehow took all the jumbled anxious thoughts in my head and put it all in an organized script. I'm talking literally. It's awesome. You're a gift. This video is a godsend.Thank you.
Thank you for your hard work on this video. I have a follow-up question; where do aspiring - and active - animators go to get models and rigs to practice their craft? Do all animators build their own practice models, or is there a good resource for downloading common-cases? I'm aware that there are now asset stores on virtually every platform, I'm specifically curious as to what the state-of-the-practice is in industry itself. "Where do *you* go if you just want a humanoid model and rig to tinker around with?" might be a better question. For myself, my career has long since gone in another direction (computer science and engineering), but I spent many months in high school and early college tinkering with Maya and 3DMax teaching myself the ins and outs. One thing I always struggled with was finding good assets to practice other parts of the pipeline.
I think some programs do offer some rigs and video tutorails of how to use them if you look on their website. I know Toonboom does for example and they have a trial version too so you can try it out. Hope that helps a bit.
I don't know how you've done it, but this channel and this video especially has inspired me to get into animation and of course, game animation. It's always been a small dream of mine, but this has pushed it over the edge. Good job.
This advice was really interesting! I know I don't want to be a professional animator, but I've been trying to figure out how to do it as a hobby (mostly bc I LOVE historical clothes, and I wanna stylise and animate them in motion someday, like moving portraits), so it was helpful to know how people get their start.
Hey Dan, because of you I decided to get into 3D animation, and I just finished the AM workshop. I'm about to head into the animation basics classes and wanted to thank you for making this video and being such a positive force for the gaming industry. Watched all your dark souls play through and always loved the extra history stuff you worked on. I was wondering in terms of plagiarizing, do you need to make your own models/rigs for your reel, as I don't think I'll know how to model anything. Would you find free use rigs and then list the creator at the end of your reel? Thanks for the help!
I'm really glad my stuff has been helpful! As for using free rigs/models in your reel, that's totally ok! Tons of us do that. Maybe just make a footnote in the bottom corner of the video saying "Character rig courtesy of _____" or something.
Your clip is veray interesting. I thought, that rigging loves everyone to give the character to alive. I hope it will be in the future too, but 2020 I start to create a own game to learn all about it and its so interesting. I would like getting better and than, I will start in this buisness too :)
I always dreamed about creating my own game, i'm a LITTLE bit good at animating! but i'm dying to make a cool 3D animation, but first, i'll have to learn to be patient, calm, and still wait for a pc, and yeah.. someday. my dream game will come true.
"no-one becomes an amazing animator overnight."
me, after animating a single ball bounce: incorrect
lol
Cora Hire me Disney
its ok buddy ull get eventually
ok so you want this job? ok let's see your resume.
resume: i can make a ball bounce with squash and stretch
employer: ....
you're hired!
I read that in Dwight's voice, I guess it was intentional haha.
I'm so proud of Link for getting a successful job in the video game animation industry
Me too
Same!!
hyaaaaahhhhhhh hyyuppppp hyaagh
I was the 1K like 🌚
he went from hyaaaa to a hyanimator.
Honestly .... this is good advise regardless of the profession
I agree. The point on networking and learning from others is huge. I'm not great with animating my models, but I try to see what others do and improve on my skills a little at a time. Also as he mentioned focus on the basics whether it be art, animation or anything and one you have mastered those set the next goal for yourself. I already see progress after eight months of using Blender and Unity.
I was thinking exactly the same.
Doctor! His BP is crashing, and his respiration is skyrocketing!
Sure, sure. Lets check this book on how to animate him... REanimate him. Aaa? Nudge nudge.
@@rthj6446 "ADVICE" not Rules for a profession. follow what is relevant to you and your situation. That's why it's an advice not rules. don't know if your trying to be a devil's advocate or trolling, either way you are doing poorly.
panda coco 2 it was a joke on the statement that it worked for every profession. Calm down dude.
Why am I getting nervous about being rejected in a field of work I'm not even trying to get into
Is that a momodora profile pic?
I see, you're a fellow person of culture as well
☝This
Means you have little confidence in your ability. Seek help.
lol are you trying to say that the title of this video should be more like; how to put your best self forward and not get rejected
I KNOW right? I watched this video was like "oh no oh gosh that's so much work so much to learn I'm scared to even open an animation program there are so many talented folks out there who started when they were like three I'll never be good enough for this" constantly and then I remembered... I'm not trying to get a job in this field... I've never animated shit in my life... I'm just watching because I consider the field interesting...
I don't know what that says about me, but I feel like there's some form of anxiety problem that's gonna fuck me over at one point or another
I'm not, and will never be an animator, but this was still extremely interesting.
Same
Why not?
same
@@giorgiomorongas8292 what
@Tuscan417 Everything is possible
1:02 It's a small thing, but I love the way you've arranged the names to form a diagonal line in the negative space. Very nice.
i noticed that too and i subscribed immediately because of it.
graphic design is my passion
r r
a a
p p
h h
i i
c c
d d
e e
s s
i i
g g
n n
i i
s s
m m
y y
p p
a a
s s
s s
i i
o o
n n
oh my gosh, I saw that too. Glad Im not the only one who noticed
Can you guys explain to a complete idiot what makes them special?
@@corvus6178 Okay, do you see the space in between the names at 1:02? Look at the shape it makes. These names are perfectly organized to make a nice straight line from top left to bottom right using the blank space between the names.
It's really pretty, man.
This video really makes me want to get better at animation. Thanks man!
Holy crap I found brody!
BrodyAnimates Agreed
Same :'D
x2
Wait your here
Glad that you pushed staying connected. I’m not an animator (whole different career), but virtually every job I’ve ever had happened because someone I know said, “I know a guy that would be perfect for this”. Always treat team members, supervisors, and competitors politely. It pays dividends
Ooh love the choice of Zelda & Chill for the background music.
I thought I accidentally already had it on
Best game music imo.
Zelda music is just so good
Oooh! I was wondering why it sounded familiar...
Oh I needed this video soooo badly! Really teetering on the edge of burnout at the second, and had been feeling really drained all week. Self teaching is hard and damn its difficult to find motivation sometimes.
But this, this absolutely made my day! Thank you so much for making this!
And its nice to hear that multitasking is a desirable skill. I was kinda worrying that rigging and unity were distractions from what I should be focusing on (actually animating).
Again thank you so much!
I'm really glad to hear it's helpful!
I too want to be an animator Some day.but it 's hard to find motivation Sometime this really helped
i can understand your troubles and your suferings however if i could manage to at least do something that looks like a motorcicle in 3 months with no prior knowledge and just entering college im pretty sure you will be able to find someone who will be available to teach you.
My teacher said this "we are a corporation wich actually isnt all that secret because we will be always fond of learning something to someone and teaching something to someone" you can do it.
One hand on the Penis and the other on the Keyboard does not qualify for Multi-tasking. Unfortunately, I do it often and have not seen one red cent.
I got my bachelors degree in game art and 3D Animation and am now going for my master's degree in the near future. I want to become a game animator and this video is absolutely perfect. Thanks for all your hard work.
awesome. good luck!
I am a highschooler and looking into the same career! How was the school?
It's been 3 years now. How you going?
I would like to know if you achieved your goal ? tell me if you can
I don't even want to become an animator but for some reason I find this stuff really cool
I will however be recommending this video to friends of mine who do want to become animators
Same!
The thought process and workflow is amazing and something most don't really think about when watching animations/animated films. Really cool to learn from.
I did as well. I hope my friend likes it.
only problems i hear is being underpaid for the amount of work for game animator compared to feature film animator
@@Vivi_Strike yep that's true. You put alot more effort on game animation. And get paid less
13:20 "go out there and make some friends"
Great i can hear my future crumbling.
But really a helpful advise
heh, that's way less usefull than it was just a month ago
While I don't necessarily plan on going into the game industry specifically, I want to do Television and Film, this was still filled with invaluable information.
In that case I highly recommend you to learn about cameras, lenses, lighting and rendering including things like tonemappig and PBR workflow :^)
Those things are like the respective additional skills for Film and TV compared to scripting/ coding & learning how to implement your animation in a game engine for the Game industry.
Same
I’m pretty young, 14, and I’ve always found this job so interesting and I think I’ve finally decided I want to pursue game design and animation. I don’t have much experience except for a bit of drawing, and my lap top sucks but I’ve seen so many people start in their 20’s from no where and become game devs for massive games. This video was really inspirational and it helped me know more about a profession I might want to pursue.
Hope you're doing well on your journey! Animation is a beautiful and fulfilling art form, and you're going to meet a lot of amazing people in this field
Many people have said this before, but this is an amazing video. As a sophomore in high school, and an aspiring animator (I'm taking the animation pathway at my school), this video is exactly what I needed. I had no idea about the Animation Survival Guide, and many of the other books you mentioned, and I'm going to buy them as soon as I can. Thank you so much for the wonderful tips and insight.
If only there was a video like this for game PROGRAMMERS. I've always wanted to be one, but it's hard to know where to start! Great video!
You search up: "how to code in" + insert language + "."
for about 6 months I had to make npc characters in lowpoly (modeling, texturing handpaint style, rigging, and 4-7 animations each). I cant tell you how much I have learned in that time. and how much I improved the quality of my work and speed of doing all of it. I ended up making a character per day with 7 simple animations.
This went beyond being advice for the animation industry and to become great advice for ANY creative industry. I will never be an artist or animator, for I am aesthetically challenged, but I will be revisiting this countless times in the future.
People look at their right hand like it is mans basic tool when the left is staring at you begging to be used.
Hi I graduated with a bachelors of science in 3D animation. I HIGHLY suggest using the animators survival kit as your bible and Animation Mentor as your practice. I did not graduate from animation mentor, but after three years of education, Animation mentor is more than Worth it. Most animators have the best turn around time between education to getting a job. It will save you thousands of dollars. I literally haven't taken any classes.... I just know this being in the industry. its worth it!
I don't personally want to be a professional animator, but I do want to learn more about animation, maybe even to the point of being able to express myself as a game designer through animation. There are many times I've thought to myself, "This idea just doesn't want to be put into words, if I could just mock up a quick 3d model or simple animation, it'd be so much easier to convey."
I'm not there yet, but videos like this definitely help me along the way.
You can start with boxes and such in 3d programs ! When it came to scenes and creating a quick scenario as a 3D anim, we were taught to use simple boxes we'd color to recognize the characters, etc. Simple keyframing, work on camera angles, and voilà ! It gets you to polish the layout before going straight into anim and it takes no time. Besides, it gives you a good visual despite its simplicity.
You can do pen and pieces of paper. Visual aids can be anything really.
The first two step sounded like a Dark Souls run.
Step 1: Choose your build
Step 2: Get gud
18:25 ish
One of my most memorable moments in persona 5 is joker landing after breaking through a window
Specifically his raised hand level to the ground after his graceful roll, as if he was always in control despite being caught.
This might've, probably has, been done before, but i got such a good impression of who joker was from that little roll
4:57 is mortmort. He does some awesome pixel art and has a full playlist on his youtube channel that i would highly recommend! He has even begun doing 3d animation on his twitch account! Its a small nice community he has so if you are looking to just start pixel art as a small hobby- he is your guy!
I am 15 and I want any job in the game industry and while I don’t even know how to draw I will try to pursue animation as a career
This video is great to motivate me
Some but I'll still try my best I hope you do to :)
Gameover HD76 thanks
I am currently 15 how did things go
March 23rd 2019, the day I stopped considering becoming an animator and decided to become one
Thanks to this video!
progress update?
Yeah man, give us a progress update
@@polarsyrup @player1 It took a while, but I'm currently In animation school!
This is absolutely amazing. I am not an animator, but I am an amateur calligrapher and designer. I love seeing and learning about other art forms because it helps inform my own art. If you just look at the tips you give without the context of animation, they still are so valuable to be a better artist or just being better in whatever area you choose. I love all your videos Dan and Carrie is an amazing editor! You both are inspirations and I am so happy I hit that sub button when you created these channels.
While I don’t intend on becoming an animator myself, it is endlessly fascinating to learn about it. I read Animator’s Survival Kit some time ago after you mentioned it, and it was a massive paradigm shift. Seeing movement the way animators do - woah. Some quality ostranenie there.
Still in Step Two... Will take me years but I'm going all for it
I'm a programmer by trade, and I eventually am looking to make video games (currently on that step 2 in my field). However, I, personally, have always been really interested in animation for the same reason that I was first interested in programming, and I love your content, ever since that first episode of Extra Credits. Thank you for making this video for us. It's a really well made video, and it holds a lot of good advice for people that aren't even going into the field of animation.
I'm so glad I found this video. I recently decided to dive fully into 3d animation with a focus on characters (both GAMEPLAY and cinematics). This was incredibly motivating for me.
Been wanting to be an animator since I was 13, I'm about to transfer into an animation college, Its scary seeing how good people are, but this video is so inspiring and amazing I really look forward to the future and all the things I'm going to learn and people I'll meet. Thank you for making this video, Im going to be coming back to rewatch this one quite often
man animating is painful
Worth it 😎
Really why?? What's the hard part you faced
I don't know why but seeing those names arranged in order from longest to shortest and back again is very pleasing to my eyes.
Adding to the “no top” part: it also means there are undiscovered heights that are possible but nobody’s been there yet. There are no rules, it’s art, whatever you are able to invent is legit. Most of us have probably went into a creative position for that reason probably, once upon a time. Just because we realized that most roads have already been walked by the masters before doesn’t mean the masters reached everything there was to reach.
This is great stuff! Thank you for this! I would add one note: When looking at animation schools online and the graduates from those schools, consider most of them probably had some industry experience before going to that school. For instance, I was in the first AnimSquad class and I was the only person out of 10 that didn't have any industry work under my belt. It happened quite often at Animation Mentor as well with the "really good" animators having prior experience and just honed their craft even more. The main takeaway is that your learning never ends at school!
This might be the best game development related video on youtube
im studying this in my career and i cant say how much of this is true because im doing every single thing he says srsly im crying from how acurrate and friendly he says it because you will always find someone who will trash your work only for the pleasure of seeing you sufer but my god it feels so fking good to actually finish something and say im happy with what i did i did my best and the work i puted on it is reflected on how it looks
thnx man i really really enjoyed the video and will try my best hope one day my work gets showcased here
Wow thank you so much for this video! I am studying animation but something we honestly don't really learn is how to build your portfolio etc. This was extremely helpful! I'll definitely share this with my friends at school
good luck!
The greatest and the most comprehensive video about animations, I have ever watched in my life. Thanks for putting all these together:)
2:30
”STEP TWO
Become good at it.”
I'm dying of laughter right now and if only it was as simple as that
Well you only have to be consistent at doing the same thing over and over day after day sitting in the same spot and trying to improve yourself.
Thats how you become good.
If you think you will be able to make a bmw after like 2 day well you are going to quit really soon.
it's not much more complicated. Unless you're missing limbs or something anyone can learn just about anything as long as they keep at it. So stop laughing and start practicing?
That first tip: What kind of animator do you want to be? I never asked that before. But as i kept watching this video it became more and more apparent that as much as i want to get into animation i never once asked that of myself. This is definitely gonna be a saved video for me. Im gonna keep referencing this video for a long time.
Thank you so much for this really insightful video!
While I'm just a hobbyist animator who never intends to apply for a job in animation, I really enjoyed watching this video and learning quite a few things.
Heck, your tips at the end are, for a big part, true for any job, even.
I'm actually working on a pixel art game on my own, and am currently working on character animation for that game. I'll try to make the general animation info you provided in this video to good use! Thank you again for this great video!
I don't enjoy drawing, but I do enjoy listening to people talking about it being amazed time and time again at how much effort it takes.
This video just give me the motivation I needed these days. After weeks being in bed crying for not having a goal in my life, this remind me what I want to do and what I love. Thank u so much. I'll work to get better and achieve my goals.
The effort you put into production of your videos is something else Dan and much appreciated. As someone who is learning 3D animation and rigging late in my uni course, a lot of information presented here was very helpful and made me look at the craft in an even greater light than I already do. Having struggled with being able to motivate myself to get better in other areas of art and building connections with others, the latter part of this video in addition to hearing that even the greats are constantly learning was more reassuring than you know.
All of this as well as many other elements of your video admittedly struck an emotional chord with me, partly aided by the lo-fi renditions of various game themes. In short, thank you for the pool of knowledge you've put into your video and for being such an inspiration overall.
When i click the video i was expecting gonna hear "This video is sponsored by SkillShare"
Aside from all the amazing information in this video, the editing is just. amazing. The part where all the other contributors were named, and how the names all aligned so perfectly, while also keeping it interesting by doing "unveiling" them out of order? That's the good stuff.
Where are my fellow bouncy ball animators at? We climbing this mountain till we die!!
I'm mainly a game designer but I've always liked concept art and animation as well and this video, even thought I already knew most of those points, is quite inspiring for me to invest a bit more in those fields.
A varied skill set is imho a good thing when you're prototyping games all by yourself and when you're searching for that first job, plus it compensates not having been to a famed school by showing you're always learning and can help on many fronts in a small studio.
Last but not least, you're doing a better job when you know what and how the rest of the team does :)
WOAH COOL COINCIDENCE
(I just got the animators survival kit like literally an hour and a bit ago)
great book... probably the most common thing among any animator.
Another coincidence- the moment I read this comment the book appeared on the screen
It's called Cookie
not a coincidence
hardly a coincidence that people interested in animation will buy basically its BIBLE, AND watch videos about how to animate (probably all of the referencing the book) occasionaly those moments will follow in fairly quick succession.
I’m in my senior year of animation and game design, I want to be a game 3D animator and right now I’m working hard to make that dream real. I’m in a internship with a production company and I just got an interview for my first contract gig. And I’m still wanting to get better.
That's pretty cool, Simon Unger is one of my teachers at VFS. I never thought I'd see him mentioned in one of your vids.
Simon is a lovely human. :)
I went to VFS too :D Which program did you go to ? I did 2D animation class CA99
@@thinthleHow was VFS? I’m thinking of going there but I’m not too sure because of the expenses.
@@kim-pw9ob Good overall although like every part of the entertainment industry it can be a very heavy workload. Many people burn out because it promotes overworking and not everyone can keep up. As for price besides tuition prices It depends how much you have to pay for living there (for me it was abroad so including travel and food quite a lot) take into account if you can get any scholarships or not.
Also it's been 5 years so prices have likely gone up even further. If you have any specific questions VFS staff is usually glad to answer (take in mind the timezone difference for calling though.)
Overall I would say I really liked the comradery of working towards goals together with my classmates but if you're looking to specifically/immediately get a job out of it. It's very much not guaranteed. The networking doesn't give you a acces to work visa if you're planning to stay. Chances are you still have to do a 4 years study afterward. And idk how old you are but with resources online you might come just as far for way cheaper.
But if studying by yourself is difficult you can maybe find an animation course mentor/join an animation resources discords. Also schools in Europe might be cheaper then Canada and America but can also be way harder to get into/portfolio accepted if we're talking like Gobelins.
A lot of things to take into account, like what languages you know or plan to learn as well. If you have more questions feel free to DM me on insta (same name but + an s so thinthles)
The arrangement of the names of everybody who's helped is very aesthetically pleasing.
Huh, technical animator sounds cool, didn't know that was a thing, but makes sense.
Great video, a lot of this really applies to any (or most) fields of work :)
Can't wait to be done with my general programming degree so I can start learning to animate. The teaching is so poorly handled and the subjects at hand are so outside my area of interest, I need to branch out. Add to the fact that we have to come with our own laptops because the uni's PCs are worse than potato GlaDOS in Portal 2, and I seriously regret enrolling. Thank God for that one internship I did last summer that showed my I actually enjoy game programming, otherwise I would've dropped out entirely.
Sorry for my rambling, I needed to get this off my chest.
Why wait?
@@spliter88Because I still need to finish university, and I have 4 pretty demanding courses plus my degree to worry about. If I started learning animation, not only would I burn up, I also wouldn't learn it well and most likely screw up the rest of my courses in the process.
I cried and got chills from watching this video. Thank you so much!
I'm currently studying to become a game designer and came across your channel, so now I'm really passionate about game animation as well. This just makes me wanna learn more and more.
I'm an animator who's had no issues getting a job in TV so far but have had issues breaking into feature or games. I hope this helps
“Your reel is only as good as your best shot.”
That applies to anything in the creative vein- carpentry, lighting design, photography, animation, anything like that.
Heck, I’m not even an animator, but I am in a creative field, and all this seems like good advice to me.
This is some solid advise and I hope those who really want to get into animation listen closely!
also thanks for the Cameo (:
I'm not any sort of visual artists but I follow channels like this, Scribble Kibble, and Dan Root because I find animation to be immensely important. It's both what can be improved the most in games currently and a vital aspect to their very existence. Everybody should understand animation at some level rather than just assuming it's a logical process.
I've seen a few of these videos here and now that I'm coming into the industry I need to know this stuff more than ever. This is a very helpful video and so are a lot of NFP's other videos. These are really great. Thanks a bunch.
Becoming an animator was my childhood dream, I've moved on for many reasons, but I still love watching great animation and playing great games every day.
Incredible video. I want to be a game director, but all the knowledge I can learn about all fields is so great to know. This is a great video for anybody int he gaming industry, in my opinion.
I'm studying animation and this got me all pumped up and excited. Great advice and motivating. Thanks!!
Great video. I'm doing a small solo project with 2d animations, and keeping the scope down (Thanks Extra Credits!). I'm more into programming/narrative, and this video had a lot of useful resources. Time to buy a book or two. Thanks!
When I finished the first part of the video about becoming a game animator I thought: "Eh, this is cool but it's not for me, I'll go watch something else". But guess what, I stayed thorugh the end. The explanation really clear and well done, the pace just the right point, and the images that go with what you're saying make a good match. It's one of the best presentations in format video I've ever seen. Really great advisory video there.
I'm still torn between being a level designer, coder, or animator. Right now I'm doing all three in my own project.
That's the spirit!
Excellent video! I only wish this was available back when I was looking for guidance on how to become a 3D character animator for video games.
this is just what i needed haha im about o go into school for 3d modeling and animation so this will help me set appropriate personal goals while in school i think
Im a student of CGI/Animation in Argentina and i gotta say, this is really useful and inspiring. The way you put out the TIPS/Info is very good. Im lucky to have watched this on my last year of studying because im trying to prepare a demo reel right now. Thanks a lot!
Omg, great timing!! I'm just about sending off my demo out! Thanks for the awesome tips Dan! I'll give it one last pass with these in mind :D
The way you lined up the names of the people who helped you in the beginning is so satisfying I instantly subscribed.
Zelda & Chill...
I see your a man of culture aswell
I want to be a game designer for Nintendo,so this could help me do that.
I actually never wanted to be an animator and I will never be an animator but this video is very interesting! It helps a lot for people who want to be animatimors. (I actually clicked because I thought it was a Zelda Video)
Edit: And those Zelda songs in the background are just too good.😍❤
This is really comprehensive and has a ton of useful knowledge. Its also a reality check regarding how much work I have ahead of me. Thanks for taking the time to help out the community with this video.
While I'm pleased as punch to see Bournemouth Uni was on the list of good animation Unis, I feel obligated to say its awesome course has been disbanded (due to funding). Falmouth Uni is a GREAT up and coming one though! With a focus on games.
Thanks for the video. Really motivating. Had to take a year or two out for family reasons and really hitting hard with the applications.
I wanted to thank you for making this. For a long time, I've just been getting better at drawing, thinking that would be a very important dealbreaker. I'd been learning about animation for a while, but had never attempted it until about this time 2018. Thanl you for helping me realize further aspects of the industry, and what's really inportant to becoming a good animator.
It sucks how much of this boils down to “have money already” but I guess that’s just the way it is, eh?
Peeps gotta eat my man
I just started leaning 3D animation on free software called Blender, & I find you can go very far with just that & youtube videos, the Blender community is amazing.
All you need is a basic gaming PC & you can install a number of free software/dirt cheap software.
@@shada0 I literally make 3D animations in blender with a $300 laptop. You don't need a gaming pc
This will REALLY help you if you're a game developer (not just animation)
I don't care to become an animator. I often watch random stuff. These tips are good for anybody.
I'm glad I found this channel. I'm currently in school for 3D animation but I have done more modeling, UVing, texturing, and lighting then actually animation. 3 months exactly and I've been in school for 1yr 3 months, I have 6 months to go. I feel stuck and considered modeling or compositing, but I see now that if I want to animate I need to learn it myself and not rely only on my school to teach me. Thanks for the info!
Im having my admission test for 3d animation at Montréal tomorrow :)
So much great advise! Thanks ~Learn the craft - create your own - make friends and learn from the people in the Industry - never pleasurize and accept creative criticism so you are awesome to work with!
I love animating in 3D but 2D animation is still quite a bit elusive to me.
Then definitely do get Animator's Survival Kit. It will explain nearly EVERYTHING there is to know about 2D animation
I'm not even an artist, and this video almost moved me to tears. One of the best to date Dan. Cheers!
Thanks for putting me on a drawing mood ^v^
Funny how I am currently working as an animator professionally but I'm still watching this because I'm a bit bored and reaching another art block, knowing that most people want to have what I want really makes me motivated in trying harder. People caring about this things kept me going and I love how some of my animations inspires other to try it aswell.
Anyways for those who are getting started, my advice is to record and post your animations, regardless if you are not happy with it getting criticisms will teach you, getting praise will motivate you and chances are there might be a developer who is looking for an animator and happens to think you got what it takes!
I wanna start, but i have no skills in animation or how to create anything for that matter. I don't know where to start. I'm already on a course (Not in uni) on something completely different, but animation has always sparked my interests. I don't know what i should do because I want to do this, nut a part of me wants to do something else, but i don't know what.
I know this is late, but as someone who just started 2D animation with stick figures as a hobby(big fan of Avatar:TLA and Legend of Korra) while I can't give you specific advice without knowing more about you, I can say that it's best to start with animating the simplest thing you can(maybe walking, sitting and standing, a smile, etc.), in the least stressful way, that also doesn't take up too much of your time. And ensure whatever tool you use doesn't try to confuse you with so many things and buttons on the UI. Simplicity of the tool is so important for a beginner in any skill.
Thank you.
Gods, thank you. I've recently been quite interested in the game art field, but I don't know much beyond fundamental 2D. That's it.
It seems like a real daunting field, but this does wonders breaking it down. It has great information, great sources, and it really shows that you know what you're talking about.
There's so so much that goes into Game Art. It's like a huge mix of every other art form on top of the mountain that's game design. You somehow took all the jumbled anxious thoughts in my head and put it all in an organized script. I'm talking literally. It's awesome.
You're a gift. This video is a godsend.Thank you.
Thank you for your hard work on this video. I have a follow-up question; where do aspiring - and active - animators go to get models and rigs to practice their craft? Do all animators build their own practice models, or is there a good resource for downloading common-cases? I'm aware that there are now asset stores on virtually every platform, I'm specifically curious as to what the state-of-the-practice is in industry itself. "Where do *you* go if you just want a humanoid model and rig to tinker around with?" might be a better question.
For myself, my career has long since gone in another direction (computer science and engineering), but I spent many months in high school and early college tinkering with Maya and 3DMax teaching myself the ins and outs. One thing I always struggled with was finding good assets to practice other parts of the pipeline.
I think some programs do offer some rigs and video tutorails of how to use them if you look on their website. I know Toonboom does for example and they have a trial version too so you can try it out. Hope that helps a bit.
I don't know how you've done it, but this channel and this video especially has inspired me to get into animation and of course, game animation. It's always been a small dream of mine, but this has pushed it over the edge. Good job.
Good luck!
"Step two: git gud."
@@arthurkingofthebritons9636 or Hollow Knight, or...
well pretty much any video game
You're content is absolutely incredible, my guy. Gets me inspired to learn about animation
The lack of riggers is too true. I think every AAA studio has an almost permanent position open for riggers.
This advice was really interesting! I know I don't want to be a professional animator, but I've been trying to figure out how to do it as a hobby (mostly bc I LOVE historical clothes, and I wanna stylise and animate them in motion someday, like moving portraits), so it was helpful to know how people get their start.
Hey Dan, because of you I decided to get into 3D animation, and I just finished the AM workshop. I'm about to head into the animation basics classes and wanted to thank you for making this video and being such a positive force for the gaming industry. Watched all your dark souls play through and always loved the extra history stuff you worked on. I was wondering in terms of plagiarizing, do you need to make your own models/rigs for your reel, as I don't think I'll know how to model anything. Would you find free use rigs and then list the creator at the end of your reel? Thanks for the help!
I'm really glad my stuff has been helpful! As for using free rigs/models in your reel, that's totally ok! Tons of us do that. Maybe just make a footnote in the bottom corner of the video saying "Character rig courtesy of _____" or something.
Watching a UA-cam tutorial on how to get a career job. This is life in 2019.
Your clip is veray interesting. I thought, that rigging loves everyone to give the character to alive. I hope it will be in the future too, but 2020 I start to create a own game to learn all about it and its so interesting. I would like getting better and than, I will start in this buisness too :)
I always dreamed about creating my own game, i'm a LITTLE bit good at animating! but i'm dying to make a cool 3D animation, but first, i'll have to learn to be patient, calm, and still wait for a pc, and yeah.. someday. my dream game will come true.
I'm here for your bubble. Only best ideas should apply.