This module will take place over the entire year and will be driven by your independent study with strategic guidance, feedback and support sessions scheduled to help structure your individual progress toward an optimal professional profile and portfolio.

You will be encouraged to iterate your work regularly and in response to a variety of inputs such as feedback of peer and staff, professional guidance and advise, industry knowledge, and social media engagement.

This module is an opportunity to showcase your best work and present yourself as an industry ready creative.

You will be required to make a real employment application – e.g., work experience, a placement, a junior role in a small, medium, or large studio, volunteer work, a teaching position, work for a charity, festival support roles, etc. You be required to provide a suitable proof of application, or receipt to pass this component (which is ‘0 %’ and not graded)

As part of your negotiated profile and portfolio goals you may wish to undertake and evidence other creative and professional development such as; life drawing practice, participation in societies and clubs, skills certifications, software knowledge certifications and awards, short courses, micro-credentials, group work and collaborative projects, etc.

You will likely focus attention on profile development opportunities online such as website development, social media engagement and other networking activities, but the scope and content of evidence should be highly personalised – being well-informed, and career orientated.

Part of your work for this module can be focused on your graduation show and related marketing and awareness building activities associated with your completion of the course and transition to graduate work.

NOTE: This is the 40-credit version of this module: Students can opt to take this module, or the combination the 20-credit version + co-requisite module ‘Future Selves’ (20 Credits)

Professional Profile Development (LO 1, 3)
Through a programme of scheduled meetings and progress review scenarios, students will present work-in-progress for feedback and review – demonstrating an ongoing, iterative approach to the development of their professional profile.

Portfolio and/or showreel (LO 1, 2)
Students will curate a refined and purposeful professional portfolio and/or showreel designed to secure employment opportunities.

Employment, or Opportunity application (LO 2)
As part of the authentic assessment approach and in direct preparation for the jobs market, students will be required to prove an application has been made for an industry role, or related employment of further skills development opportunity.

The module will be launched with structured guidance covering the following:
- Showreel best practice
- Portfolio best practice
- Professional Profile norms, platforms, and best-practice
- Networking guidance and best-practice

This module is independently driven with students undertaking the necessary processes and curation work to build an effective professional profile and portfolio and/or showreel.

Strategic opportunities for profile and portfolio/showreel review will be organised to support students in an iterative process using peer and academic feedback.

Students will be encouraged to seek outside input and guidance from within their growing professional network.

1. ON COMPLETION OF THIS MODULE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO PRESENT INDUSTRY READY ANIMATION ASSETS AS PART OF AN AGILE AND EVOLVING CREATIVE PROFILE FIT FOR EMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS, FURTHER STUDY, AND SELF-PROMOTION WITHIN A GROWING PROFESSIONAL NETWORK.

2. ON COMPLETION OF THIS MODULE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ITERATIVELY DEVELOP HIGH-QUALITY ANIMATION ASSETS FOR CURATION WITHIN AN INDUSTRY FACING PORTFOLIO AND/OR SHOWREEL, AND USE THESE TO APPLY FOR A PROFESSIONAL ANIMATION ROLE, EXPERIENCE, FURTHER STUDY, OR RELEVANT OPPORTUNITIES.

3. ON COMPLETION OF THIS MODULE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SEEK OUT AND ENGAGE WITH FEEDBACK FROM A RANGE OF APPROPRIATE SOURCES TO CONTINUALLY OPTIMISE YOUR PROFESSIONAL PROFILE AND PORTFOLIO AND/OR SHOWREEL IN READINESS FOR ENTRY TO GRADUATE-LEVEL EMPLOYMENT, FURTHER STUDY AT LEVEL 7, OR EQUIVALENT.

Software Learning:
https://learn.toonboom.com/
https://unity.com/features/2danimation
https://www.clipstudio.net/en/functions/animation/
https://www.blender.org/support/tutorials/
https://www.dragonframe.com/tutorials/

Links:
www.vimeo.com
www.skwigly.co.uk
www.awn.com
www.creativebloq.com

Books:
Bacher, H (2012) ‘Dream Worlds: Production Design for Animation’, CRC Press
Collington, M (2016) ‘Animation in Context’, Fairchild Books
Dowlatabadi, Z & Winder, C (2019) ‘Producing Animation 3e’, CRC Press
Furniss, M. (2020) Animation: the global history. Thames and Hudson Ltd.
Milic, L & McConville, Y (2006) ‘The Animation Producer's Handbook’, Open University Press
Pilling, J (2001) ‘Animation: 2D & Beyond’, Diane Publishing Company
Rall, H (2017) ‘Animation from Concepts and Production’, CRC Press
Smith, V. and Hamlyn, N. (2018) Experimental and Expanded Animation New Perspectives and Practices. Springer International Publishing.
Venter, H. and Ogterop, W. (2022) Unreal engine 5 character creation, animation and cinematics : create custom 3D assets and bring them to life with Unreal Engine 5 using Nanite, Lumen, and Blender. Packt Publishing LTD.

Animation Studios Facilities
Industry Standard software and equipment tools.
Animation pathway specific apparatus and equipment.
Media Centre bookable resources.
Library and digital learning resources
Study support resources
VLE’s

Get ready for launch into industry by building a knock-out professional animation profile and portfolio showreel to dazzle potential employers and attract new members to your growing creative network.