6 TIPS for a successful JOB INTERVIEW in GAMEPLAY ANIMATION

so you've applied for a job and your application got the attention you deserved from a studio there's a huge change they're going to be calling you for an interview now with the times we're living in it is probably going to be online but still it's gonna be live and that doesn't leave much room for improvisation now as a lead animator myself i've been involved in the recruitment process for techland for a couple of years now and i just know what kind of mistakes candidates usually do and also know what usually makes the best impression on us recruiters interviewers so i thought today i would make a video just to help you hopefully get prepared build confidence and make the best impression in your next interview let's see how it [Music] goes guys before i even start if you're new to the channel welcome thank you for being here please consider subscribing if you're a returning customer it's good seeing you thank you for being here as well alright let's get started alright so tip number one you have to have a professional plan now what i mean by this is that you're gonna have to somehow show that you have thought about the job thought about what you want to work on what you want to focus on basically who you want to become professionally in the upcoming month or years now i know this might still sound a little bit abstract which is why i want to give extra context by sharing my own personal story now the very first job interview i've ever had in the gaming industry was for an internship in ubisoft paris back then i was fresh out of school i was young or at least younger than i am today but i was really determined and i knew what i wanted to do now during the interview i managed to explain why i chose animation in the first place what i liked working on when i was doing school project and since i had studied programming before that i also explained that my passion for creating stuff together with my technical background had helped me understand that i wanted to create systems prototypes and that i wanted to work with gameplay programmers and engineers to push boundaries now die time i didn't know i had scored big time at the interview this is something i heard years later with during a conversation with the lead who interviewed me back then who is actually right now the narrative animation director at techland and that specific conversation with him has helped me understand that even if you don't have experience or at least not a lot only the way you think can get you really really far and finally and this is something that i know now that i'm involved in recruitment processes is that your approach is going to help the leads immediately picture where you would fit best and the best way you could help the studio and trust me this is extremely important the second tip i wanted to share today is that you have to highlight your technical skills now you are a gameplay animator your technical skills are the most important element of your profile now this is something you're gonna hear me repeat pretty much in every single video that's what pushed me creating this channel and this whole thing in the first place now i know some studios are thinking still a bit different they would leave their gameplay animators basically animate and explore animations and then technical animators would take over i am personally convinced gameplay animators should handle the entire pipeline from a to z and even in some cases before a and after z now this is my own philosophy but i'm pretty convinced it's gonna become standard in the upcoming years anyways your technical proficiency is like your passport to the job even if you don't have a lot of experience yet if you have any technical skills you have to put them under the spotlight these skills can be for example your knowledge of game engines they can be famous like unreal or unity they can be also in-house engine you've been working on in studios that have their own technology it doesn't really matter the important part is that you understand the mechanics and the way everything works under the hood and trust me the knowledge you got if you are working before that in the studio that has its own technology your knowledge is much more transferable than you think the philosophy has a common skeleton across all game engines and bringing a whole new horizon to a new studio is always a plus because you bring fresh ideas you can show as well your implemented prototypes and systems i think it might be the most exciting thing for a gameplay lead because it immediately shows how you approach problems how you solve them and how you think now if you have experience of course these are going to be more advanced than form a junior now if you are a junior and your systems are just a simple i don't know strafing system in unreal or just you've imported animations and your character is getting controlled by these using a game controller it's already a lot trust me because it shows that you have tried that you know the basics and that you're interested and that's crucial you can show as well your animations implemented in the engine now when i watch the demo reels a lot of time i would see you know gameplay animations so fragments like a running loop or attacks heat reactions death they're looking really good because they get rendered in uh whichever software the guys are working on motion builder maya blender whatever um but many times i don't see them in the engine and well that's a shame because they're eventually built to land in a game engine and to a game and you can work on animations in maya or motionbuilder as long as you want if it is not working properly in engine if the filling is not correct in game it's not a good animation to me right so what interests me as a as a recruiter is to see that you've you are able to craft good animations but that you also think about the result in game which is eventually what's of any interest now if you're not yet familiar with game engines a good practice is also to show animations in your 3d software both from a framing you would have picked and from an in-game perspective and in-game framing right so let's just say you're showing some bloops a running loop for example as well as some combos just create a simple camera over the shoulder for example that would show your animations the way you think they should look when they land in the engine and in the game because it means once again that you have thought about the feeling of the animation that you have focused on the way you're gonna at the framing you're gonna be seeing your animations most of the time which is the framing that's gonna be in-game now i want to create a video dedicated on how to set up such a a simple scene in motionbuilder so stay tuned now the key here is that you should show the results in game or in the engine or even in your 3d software this is what gameplay animation is about and this is what is going to get you noticed and trust me you don't meet such animators every day now tip number three have your y speech ready now when i interview candidates i usually start with a quick introduction of of me of my background and in big lines what i do in the studio and then after that i usually ask the same question why are we having this conversation today now what i have in mind when asking this question is actually two different elements the first one and that only applies to people who are technically switching jobs is why are you looking for a new job and the second element is why us meaning why this studio now if you're switching jobs your interviewer is definitely gonna ask why and this is why you should be prepared to answer because to him to them it's really interesting as it starts giving some details about who you are now if you specifically pick that studio you should tell why so it can be you know the type of games they're doing a specific project the popularity of the studio so the renown it could be the size so you were working in a smaller or a bigger studio and your need for a change it can be that you've heard about the atmosphere of many different reasons but just have a list ready in your mind i should definitely avoid reasons has i've heard you guys were paying well this is the only studio around uh it's not far from home or i got turned down everywhere else these reasons are not reasons they're not gonna make the studio feel respected and they're definitely not gonna show that you were a serious candidate for a job or at all now if the interview is happening through and thanks to a recruiting agency uh the studio is gonna be aware but even in that case meaning that you have not necessarily picked this studio specifically do your homework go online on their web page find some elements that you like and do your best matching them with your own skills now in both cases draw a logical link between your skills your professional plan and the studio focus on the job description and spot key elements some of these must become part of your vocabulary for the interview and then finally if you're switching jobs be prepared to explain why focus on what you were possibly missing in their studio you're living that the new studio could provide things like career development the technology they're using in the studio the skills so these of the team the company structure the work organization or work culture or the type of games tip number four and this one is mostly for students if you don't have a lot of experience yet show that you experiment by this i mean that your demo reel should include as many animation categories as possible so include things like locomotion loops are an absolute must because they're the essence of gameplay animation you can show some action so combat heat reactions jumping climbing dying whatever if you're interested you can also show some quadrupeds animations if you're working on other creatures or i don't know birds dogs horses it's a good practice to show them you can show as well interaction between two or more characters as they are really organic and then that they require more work and then they also show that you thought about you know the interaction and the reaction the physical reaction between characters you can show as well interaction between one character in the uh environment for the same reasons as previously and then finally you can include animations with props so with weapons or some objects to carry grab throw whatever tip number five ask questions now at the end of interviews there's usually a moment where the interviewer is going to ask you if you have any questions it is best for you to be prepared to have some in your mind because personally when i have a candidate that says no i think we've covered everything and i know deep down that some stuff haven't been covered well let's just say that's a shame it's also a good moment for you to show that you're interested and that you have thought about all this so obviously you can ask all the questions that come to your mind during the interview but to give you some examples questions can be about the the studio they can be about the the projects they can be about the team you'll be potentially working in this one is really uh interesting because it shows that you're interested in the people you can ask about the work life balance in the studio about the work atmosphere if the studio has some habits you can as well ask about the your interviewer position in the company my personal favorite best for the end ask the interviewer what keeps them in the studio for sure you'll make a good impression and you'll see them for once struggle during your interview which is a good moment for you [Music] tip number six and last one for today prepare a solid demo reel now it might sound really obvious but i need to cover that anyway now your demo reel is usually gonna be the first element a studio will see about you before even knowing your name your face or your resume and this is also going to act as the first filter that will or will not lead to the interview process or interview next steps so don't hesitate to adapt it to a specific studio or even a specific position by adding or removing animations or to insist on some elements that are key to a specific position or studio only include material you're really happy with remove every animation that is just not great carefully pick the first and the last animation this one is a really important point usually you're gonna have a title with your name and then you're gonna start with one animation you have to hit hard with this one as this is the first impression you're gonna make if you're managed to grab your viewers attention it's like 80 percent of the job is already done and then the last animation is the one that's going to leave a footprint in your viewer's mind and then after that you have your end screen usually with your name right so they will associate your name with two goods animations at the start and at the end that's really important and then finally you should alternate the pacing the rhythm of your animations to keep your viewers attention throughout the entire demo if you're looking for some inspiration i have included a link to one of my posts in my blog where i have made a selection of some of the best and most inspiring game animation reels i have found out there so have a look and let me know what you think alright guys that's all i had for today if you're preparing for a job interview break a leg but be yourself and show your skills everything's gonna be fine thank you for watching have fun stay safe and see you soon [Music] oh by the way don't ever wear a tie at a gameplay animation job interview bye

Channel: Matt Courtois

Views: 394

Keywords: jobinterview, job, interview, tips, gameanimation, gameplayanimation, mattcourtois, job interview tips, interview questions, job interview

Id: mrpKdUSYD38

Length: 17min 35sec (1055 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 23 2020