Sophie Henney

I’m very happy being based in London and I think that staying here will provide me with the most job prospects as an entry level artist. However, I really enjoy the excitement of moving to new places and would be very open to relocating both within the UK and overseas. I will be moving away from London after graduation to have some time at home and spend a few months travelling, and I think that this will be a really good opportunity to consider my options and look into what the industry is like in different places. I would really love to move to another European city like Amsterdam or Berlin, and am also particularly interested in looking into what the industry has to offer in Scandinavia and Canada. I would consider going to America for a short time especially if I was able to work for one of the big animation studios, however I don’t see myself there for the long term. A good way to narrow down on my options might be to find specific studios and keep an eye on their career pages or send speculative applications. It feels slightly overwhelming to weigh up all of these options and look for jobs all over the world, but I think it’s good to have an open mind and look to move overseas while I can. Although I don’t have a clear path ahead of me I think I have made some good starting points and am well equipped to find my way into the industry, wherever that may be.

I find it difficult to keep on top of my website and social media when I am studying, however now that we are approaching graduation I have started to revisit my online pages. I always update my website over the breaks so currently my work up until Christmas is on there. I spent a lot of time on the design and navigation of my site last summer but it is something that I always struggle to be happy with and constantly want to change.

I want my website to be simple and clear, but I also want it to show some of my character, which is why I chose this design. Looking at it again after another semester at CSM, I feel like it’s time for another complete change, as my landing page doesn’t really reflect what I do anymore. I have done a really wide range of projects so its difficult to make everything look coherent on one page, but I notice that the way I display my work here would make if difficult for somebody to understand my style at first glance. I’m really reluctant to remove my 3D projects from university from my site because I worked so hard on them and they are strong pieces, however they are not at all relevant to what I want to do now. I might find a new layout that doesn’t remove them from the site completely but doesn’t have them on my main page.

As I update my site I really want to tailor it towards puppet and stop motion animation, and in general give it a much more professional look. The portfolio I made for my final project has given me a lot of content to sell myself as a mixed-media animator as well as a model maker and post-production artist. I think the best way for me to sell myself would be to have my landing page go straight to my showreel once I cut it together, that way the viewer would immediately see my strongest work and know exactly what it is that I do. I think it would also be interesting to include some behind the scenes pictures and footage from each film, it’s something I really love to see when I’m looking at other peoples websites.

I have been looking at the websites of successful stop motion artists who would be a relevant reference for my own site. I found it interesting that a lot of the animators I was looking at don’t actually have a webpage but instead use Instagram or Vimeo/YouTube as their portfolio pages. It might be more useful for me to update my social medias so that they are more on-brand as it’s a really good way of getting engagement and putting your work out there.

During production of A Sound Mind, I really enjoyed getting behind the scenes content and posting it to my Instagram stories. I found that I got a lot of engagement from them and people loved to see my process and outcomes. I find that I use stories a lot more than posts but I know that it is important to have my feed up to date so if people go onto my profile they can see my work right away. I definitely have a lot of content that I can post, and now that I am finishing up production I want to focus on sharing my animations and BTS content on my feed.

I also want to start utilising my LinkedIn page a bit more, it is a social media that I find very intimidating but many of our guest lecturers have highlighted how much of an asset it is to job hunters and recruiters alike.

As a huge fan of Caroline Leaf I couldn’t believe we had the chance to speak with her about her films and experiences. Fresh from wrapping my own paint on glass animation, I was really interested to know about Caroline’s techniques and her time spent at the NFB, where many amazing animations have been made. Although I was keen to get her advice I quickly realised how incomparable my current situation is to hers when she was animating, as sophisticated computers and specialist softwares like Dragonframe didn’t exist in her time. I find her work even more impressive now that I consider that she wasn’t able to see or edit her work as she was shooting. I wondered how much she planned out before she painted, as I often don’t have whole sequences mapped out beforehand. It seemed as though she worked mostly straight ahead but always knew where she was going as she approached specific movements or transitions. I have definitely fallen into the habit of relying on editing to improve my animation, and I would be interested to see what happens if I limited myself to total straight-ahead animation. It was also useful to see how she uses the medium and lightpad to create tones and play with lighting, I noticed that she would often change the colour of her characters, inverting the light depending on the situation they were in, which is something I would be hesitant to do. She advised to focus on the movement of what you want the eye to follow – a useful bit of advice for somebody like myself who often gets stuck on small details. I also didn’t know she had done so much animation using scratchings on film, I would really like to try this technique myself one day.

The thing that resonated with me most from Caroline’s talk was her reasoning behind choosing to do sand animation as her first animated film. She said that she didn’t feel she could draw well, and felt too much pressure when using a pen or pencil because of the many standards that are set. She used sand because there couldn’t be an expectation from it, she could create whatever she wanted without pressure of being “good” at it. This made so much sense to me and made me realise that this is exactly how I feel, and although I like the idea of drawing I rarely do it because I find it extremely intimidating. I think that I subconsciously leaned into stop motion animation because every creation is completely unique and there is a much broader spectrum of what “good” can be. This is definitely also why I lean towards painting and model making more than drawing when I’m coming up with concepts and characters. I always thought it was something I needed to work on, that as an artist I should be able to draw well, but hearing this from Caroline helped me to understand that I don’t have to work in mediums I don’t like, and that I can “take advantage of my shortcomings” in her own words.

I was surprised to hear about Caroline’s experience of working alone in the studio for so long. She spoke about how the long hours in dark rooms made her feel as though she was missing out on life, and I could feel that it still affects her years after. This wasn’t something I had ever given much thought to but I’m sure I would feel the same way if I spent most of my time isolated from others. I have spent many hours in a dark room over the past couple of years but I have always had people around and it’s always been a temporary arrangement for a specific project, I’m not sure I would like to do it every day. This semester I found that having a part time job forced me to be in a social environment each week which really helped me take a step back and feel refreshed. I think I should consider this when I’m looking for work in the industry as I enjoy working with others and being part of a team.

This q&a session was exciting and inspirational, the films we watched and the things that were spoken about made me feel really reflective about my own practice and curious to do more experimental films. I hope that Caroline feels all of her hours in the studio paid off with the legacy she has left in animation.

Thank you Caroline!

Recently I have been finding that Instagram is a really good way of connecting with people in the industry and seeing where other artists have found work. It’s really useful when big companies tag smaller studios and artists in their posts so I can find artists who have a similar skillset to me and follow their work and projects. This is how I came to be so interested in Mackinnon and Saunders, a puppet making company specialising in the construction of characters for TV, film and advertising. I found that a lot of the animator or model makers I was following had been involved with projects from this studio and it made me curious to find out more. 

I had heard of Mackinnon and Saunders before since they are based in Altrincham – I was quite surprised to find out that there was such a well-known puppet studio relatively close to my home town in North Wales. Once I knew their name, I kept seeing them on social media especially with their recent work on Pinnochio. I made an effort to follow lots of the puppet makers and see what kind of jobs people do there, and have since kept myself up to date with what the studio is doing. I have been thinking about this studio a lot as I consider my career options post-graduation, and although I’m not sure how I would feel about being based in Altrincham, I would be close to home and it’s definitely worth a shot. 

From looking at their website, I can see that Mackinnon and Saunders don’t advertise their jobs because of the volume of speculative applications they receive. They don’t hire runners or interns but are interested in hiring teams of people who are skilled in sculpting, mould making and general model making. I think that I would really enjoy working in any of these areas, and I feel I have some good pieces in my portfolio that demonstrate these skills. Their website suggests to include in applications images of your best work, listing the materials and methods you have used. They ask to see one link to a professional presentation of showreels or online portfolios. I haven’t had a chance to put a reel together yet but I have some good content to work with having done 4 animations with well made puppets. I didn’t realise that this studio also does full productions so they also have an animation department, however they are not currently taking on trainee or junior animators. It seems as though this studio are looking for people who have very refined skills, rather than generalists or beginners, so I might need to gain some more experience before being considered. However, I will be sure to keep my eye out for junior roles and keep sending speculative applications in case a chance comes up. 

Our 2 day workshop with Jim Parkyn was an extremely useful opportunity to gain his professional insight into both model making and working at Aardman, one of my favourite studios. I had never been taught model making on a professional level and feel that I gained a lot from learning Jim’s methods and hearing about his career. I’d really like to follow in his footsteps and find a pathway in model making and puppet production, so I think that applying his methods to my own work would put me in a good position when it comes to applying for relevant roles, especially at Aardman. It’s also good to have met somebody who has been in the industry for a long time and might be able to offer further career advice. I can’t currently find any vacancies at Aardman but I will definitely apply if a relevant opportunity comes up, as I love the kind of work they do and can see myself enjoying a relocation to Bristol. If I do find a position to apply for at Aardman it might be worth reaching out to Jim for advice since he is now familiar with my project. I do hope I have the chance to meet him again and thank him for the amazing help he gave to me and my colleagues.

Although I’m not confident that my work is strong enough to be selected for festivals, a lot of work went into them and I think it’s worth a shot to submit them to some festivals if not just to get familiar with the process of it. I uploaded both Flounder and Thy Will Be Done onto Film Freeway and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to find festivals and submit my work to them in one click, it was much less intimidating than I thought! Now that I know it won’t take up too much time I really want to find more festivals to submit to, especially ones that might be more tailored towards my style. I have only applied to free festivals so far and would have to feel very confident to pay for a submission but I will definitely keep looking and sending my films away. I am keen to get more of my work screened after attending LIAF and being part of a festival would give me some exposure and open some doors to networking and new opportunities. If none of my films are selected I hope I can find some time to attend the festivals anyway to see new animations and meet other creative people.

I attended the screening for LIAF’s ‘Into the Dark’ competition programme – this was a great opportunity not only to see my own work on a big screen but also to watch a lineup of films based on themes I tend to lean towards in my work. I was able to watch some amazing films made by independent filmmakers and listened to a couple of the directors speak before the screening. The films were varied in content, length and crew, with some being made by just a handful of people and others with an extensive list of credits. It made me realise that animation is a very collaborative process and there are a lot of people with different skills who can be brought into a production to make a film better and reduce work load for the director. I noticed that some directors had worked with post-production studios, and a lot of the films were funded by the BFI. I had a look into this and found that the BFI offers a number of funding options form development to completion, and they also have a network which supports new filmmakers looking to start their career. This would be a great source for me to look into if I decide to become an animation director.

During the second part Unit 2 I had a close focus on paint-on-glass animation, both using the technique for my project and analysing the film I had been using as my main reference. This guided me towards a variety of films that have been made in the medium and provided me with an insight as to where their artists are working. I have found that paint-on-glass animation is seen as an experimental animation technique, alongside other material techniques such as clay and sand. These methods are rarely employed in animation studios (likely due to their lengthy process and solitary nature) and are more often used by independent filmmakers. During this project, there are 3 artists whose work and careers I find most relevant to my research. 

Carine Khalife

A multidisciplinary artist with a specialism in traditional art forms such as painting and charcoal drawing, Carine Khalife has created amazing work using the technique of oil-on-glass. She began her career as a graphic designer and art director for and marketing agency Paris, but for most of her career she has worked as a freelancer. Working with companies such as Framestore, TKNL (virtual experience makers) and cadabra, her work consists of self-directed projects including music videos, immersive experiences, films and documentaries. She is mostly based in Montreal have previously studied in both England and the USA (LinkedIn, 2022). 

Em Cooper

Em Cooper is an Emmy nominated British director and animator specialising in combining oil-painted animation with live-action film. Her critically acclaimed method of filmmaking is highly distinctive and has seen huge success in both independent and commercial animation. Her work includes a music video for The Beatles, TV commercials for Stella Artois, Berghaus and Andrex, film and documentary sequences, installations and short films. She works as a freelance animation director, commercially represented by UK agency Jelly London (Cooper, 2022). 

Caroline Leaf

Caroline Leaf is a Canadian-American filmmaker, animator, director, tutor and artist. She has produced numerous short animated films and her work has been recognised worldwide. Her films employ a variety of experimental techniques, such as beach sand manipulated on a lightbox, watercolor and gouache fingerpainting on glass, and images made by scratching in the soft emulsion of exposed color 35mm and 70mm film stock. Caroline is best known as one of the pioneering filmmakers at the National Film Board of Canada. She worked at the NFB from 1972 to 1991, creating many independent films during her time there. She has also made a small number of commercial animations, working with Montreal-based studio Pascal Blais Productions and Acme Filmworks in Los Angeles (Leaf, 2022). 

From following these artists and their work, I have understood that although the medium of painting on glass is not a common animation technique, it definitely has a place in the industry and can be highly recognised when used effectively. The artists I have researched have each made a career for themselves through freelancing as animation directors, working with a variety of clients in various countries. One aspect of this that I was not very aware of is the option of finding agency representation like Em Cooper. Agencies such as Jelly Cat create networks of talented artists and put them onto relevant projects for clients and brands, providing the artist with great opportunities whilst fulfilling the needs of the project. This seems like it would be a great option for an independent artist and is definitely something I would like to look into as I build my identity as an animator. 

References

About (2022) Em Cooper.  Available at: https://www.emcooper.com/about/ (Accessed: November 27, 2022). 

Carine Khalife – Directrice artistique – films camera oscura | linkedin (2022). Available at: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/carine-khalife (Accessed: November 27, 2022). 

Leaf, C. (2022) Work biography, Caroline Leaf. Available at: http://www.carolineleaf.com/work_bio.php (Accessed: November 27, 2022).