# Track Resources — 3D Animation --- ## What the job actually asks for Junior animator postings converge on a short list: **body mechanics that read**, **acting that has a thought behind it**, and **the ability to work inside someone else's rig, pipeline, and style**. Increasingly they also ask for real-time engine familiarity — animation authored or retargeted in Unreal, and an understanding of how animation gets into a game rather than just how it gets rendered. **Baseline software:** Maya (industry standard), Blender (increasingly accepted), Unreal Engine, and a compositing or editing tool for reel assembly. **Skills that differentiate a junior:** - Motion capture cleanup and retargeting — most studio animation work involves this, and few graduates can do it - Unreal Control Rig and Sequencer — authoring animation in-engine - Animation layers, offset, and non-destructive workflows - Creature and quadruped locomotion — a smaller pool of competent people - Facial performance and lip sync - Understanding of state machines, blend spaces, and animation budgets for games - Basic Python for scene management and pipeline tasks --- ## Portfolio standard **Reel: 60–120 seconds, best shot first.** No exceptions on the ordering — recruiters watch hundreds and the decision happens in the first ten seconds. **Include** - A body mechanics shot that demonstrates weight, balance, and physics - An acting shot with a clear thought process and a change in the character's state - Something demonstrating range — creature, quadruped, or stylized work - Playblasts are acceptable and often preferred over over-rendered shots - Clear labeling of which rig you used and what was provided versus what you animated **Exclude** - Walk cycles (unless the cycle itself is exceptional) - Anything unfinished - Long establishing shots with no character work - The full short film — cut to the 8 seconds that show your animation **Also useful:** a breakdown showing your blocking pass alongside the final, and reference footage next to the shot. It demonstrates process, which is what a supervisor is actually evaluating. --- ## Free and low-cost rigs | Rig | Notes | |:--|:--| | **Agora Studio rigs** (agora.community) | Excellent, free, widely used and recognized by recruiters | | **Truong CG Artist rigs** | Free and paid; strong deformation | | **Malcolm / AnimSchool** | Free version available; a portfolio standard for years | | **Mery** (meryproject.com) | Free, high quality, film-standard face rig | | **Ultimate Rig / Bloop Animation** | Beginner-friendly options | | **Unreal MetaHuman** | Free, real-time facial and body, valuable for engine-facing reels | | **Blender: Rain, Snow, Vincent** (Blender Studio) | Free, well-built, CC-licensed | Use recognized rigs deliberately — a recruiter who knows the Agora rig can immediately isolate your animation from the rigging quality. --- ## Reference libraries - **Endless Reference** (endlessreference.com) — 360° human motion reference, free - **Sapienza / Animation Reference libraries** — motion capture and video reference - **Mixamo** (mixamo.com) — free mocap and auto-rigging; useful as a starting point, not as a portfolio piece - **The Animation Archive / Animation Resources** — historical drawn reference - **Line of Action** (line-of-action.com) — gesture and figure practice - **YouTube slow-motion channels** — animal locomotion, parkour, sports; build your own library **Film your own reference.** It is free, it is specific to your shot, and every professional animator does it. --- ## Learning resources **Books that still matter** - Richard Williams, *The Animator's Survival Kit* — the standard mechanical reference - Thomas & Johnston, *The Illusion of Life* — principles and history - Ed Hooks, *Acting for Animators* — the best single book on the acting half - Eric Goldberg, *Character Animation Crash Course!* **Online instruction** - **AnimSchool, iAnimate, Animation Mentor** — the professional online schools; expensive, but their free lecture material and blogs are substantial - **Spline Doctors, Animator Island, The Animator's Journey** — free written and podcast material - **Epic Developer Community** (dev.epicgames.com/community) — free Unreal animation learning paths, including Control Rig and Sequencer - **Maya Learning Channel** (Autodesk, YouTube) — free official instruction - **Blender Studio** (studio.blender.org) — production files and training from actual Blender open movies - **Rusty Animator, Sir Wade Neistadt, Alex Grigg** — free YouTube instruction of professional quality **Motion capture and retargeting** - Unreal's **IK Retargeter** documentation and Epic Developer Community learning paths - **Rokoko** free tier and educational material - Maya **HumanIK** documentation - Blender **Auto-Rig Pro** / **Rokoko plugin** for retargeting --- ## Project ideas that map to hiring **Project 1 — Deconstruction** Recreate faithfully, or in your own style. See the Project 1 page for this track's curated source list: Reconstruct a 5–10 second shot from an animated feature, game cinematic, or series. Match the timing, poses, and camera. Present it side by side with the original. **Project 2 — Technique Tutorial** Candidate techniques to encounter in Project 1 and then teach. Pick one you genuinely did not have going in: Motion capture cleanup and retargeting into Unreal · Control Rig authoring · quadruped locomotion · facial performance with a MetaHuman · a Python tool that automates a step of your workflow. **Project 3 — Original Work** Built to fill the gap you named in your Week 3 portfolio review, or to demonstrate a requirement from a real posting your portfolio does not yet show: One acting shot, or one body mechanics sequence, built at the standard of the studios on your target list — same style, same fidelity, same length as their published animation tests. --- ## Communities - **Animator Guild**, **11 Second Club** (11secondclub.com — monthly competition with professional critique) - **Animation Mentor / AnimSchool alumni Discords** (many are open) - **r/animation**, **r/Maya**, **r/blender** - **SIGGRAPH** student chapters and volunteer program - **Women in Animation**, **Rise Up Animation**, **The Animation Guild (TAG)** — resources, mentorship, and industry data The **11 Second Club** monthly competition is the single best free critique loop available to an animator. Enter it. --- ## Where jobs get posted Studio career pages directly · ArtStation Jobs · Work With Indies · RemoteGameJobs · Hitmarker · LinkedIn · Animation Guild (TAG) job board · Amiqus and Skillsearch (recruiters) · Handshake · Collin College career services