Episode 4 - Demo Reels with Guillermo Careaga
IN EPISODE 4, WE INTERVIEW DREAMWORKS LEAD ANIMATOR GUILLERMO CAREAGA ABOUT HIS TOP 10 TIPS FOR ANIMATION DEMO REELS. WE COVER A WIDE RANGE OF QUESTIONS PERTAINING TO DEMO REELS INCLUDING: DOES IT MATTER WHAT RIG I USE IN MY ANIMATIONS? HOW SHOULD I ORDER MY DEMO REEL? SHOULD I LIGHT AND TEXTURE MY ANIMATION REEL? AMONG OTHERS.
meet the guest: guillermo careaga
Guillermo Careaga is a feature film animator from Paraguay who has worked at DreamWorks animation for the last 13 years. In addition to being a lead animator, he is also a key member of the DreamWorks demo reel review team. Guillermo’s film credits include, Trolls World Tour, How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, The Boss Baby, Home, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, Megamind, Kung Fu Panda, and Shrek the Third. Ben, Garrett, and Guillermo are all former cube mates. Outside of work, Guillermo is the founder of Paraguay Animation (http://paraguayanimation.com), a non-profit organization which seeks to promote and introduce the animation industry to Paraguay.
guillermo’s work
what is a demo reel?
“I would say a demo reel is a compilation of your work, showing your very best work with the hopes of getting a job at the studio that you want. So this is not just any compilation, but it is a tailored compilation suited for the studio that you are aiming for hopefully. It is basically the resume in visual form of your animation skills that you want to present to the studio that you are applying for.” - Guillermo
A demo reel can be anywhere between 30 seconds to 3 minutes long, depending on your level of experience. It generally consists of a title card which includes your name, phone number, email address, that appears at the beginning and end of the reel, with your work sandwiched between. We recommend that you watch the example demo reels below to best understand what a demo reel is!
EXAMPLE DEMO REELs
Note: Sometimes animators remove contact information once they have accepted a position!
GUILLERMO’S TOP 10 DEMO REEL TIPS
1) quality over quantity. always.
It is more important to have quality work on your reel than to have a long reel. It is very acceptable for students and industry newcomers to have demo reels which are 30-60 seconds long. The only recommendation we have about shot order is to put your best shot first. Other than that, remove any work that you are not proud of, and try to keep the overall quality of work on your reel consistent.
2) favor great acting ideas over polish.
“We have seen reels where the animation wasn’t fully realized but we have seen very unique, very just original ideas being thrown in there. Whether in the acting, or just in the way that the shot is being handled, and that is very memorable. And we know that this person can probably with training and with the right sort of mentorship--anyone can polish a shot, like eventually... You can learn that, it’s a very technical thing that can be acquired. But the idea part, I think is huge. So I would definitely encourage people to think of ways to plus their shot from an idea stand point.” - Guillermo
3) Make it easy to access your animation.
Make it as easy as possible for recruiters and reel reviewers to access your work. Demo reel links should lead directly to the demo reel, and if your demo reel is password-protected, make sure that the password is easy to remember and enter. Try to avoid sending a recruiter to a website page where they will have to click around or scroll to find your work.
4) Make it easy to watch your animation.
Make sure your demo reel has a decent resolution and will be visible in all viewing situations (projector, phone, computer, etc.) It is possible that during a demo reel review, your reel could be projected in a room with the lights on. If you have work that is rendered very dark, you may want to favor adjusting the exposure or substituting the animation playblast instead of the final render to ensure your animation is visible.
5) Tailor your reel to the place you are applying for.
Consider the studio’s upcoming projects when putting your demo reel together. If the studio will soon be doing a musical, comedy, fantasy, or action film, consider favoring the content of your reel to show that you are strong in those areas.
6) Tell a story with your reel.
The best reels make an effort to pace their shots in such a way that the editing feels natural, and the emotions of the shots included have an arc of their own.
7) Consider the Wow factor.
Make sure your demo reel has something unique and memorable about it. Watch a ton of demo reels to look for patterns or cliches and try to avoid them!
8) Professionalism and good attitude are as important as the reel.
If your demo reel scores you an interview (congrats!) make sure to be adequately prepared and engaged if you make it to the interview stage. Interviews are weighed very heavily along with the reel when studios consider candidates for hire.
9) Don’t get discouraged.
If you are not selected or you don’t hear back from a studio don’t get discouraged. There could be many reasons outside of your control that effected the decision (ie. so-and-so just came out of retirement, project got postponed, etc.) or you may just need more practice. Be gracious and professional after a rejection so you can maintain a good relationship with the studio. Make sure to apply any feedback the studio may have given you, and try, try again!
10) Send your reel for feedback.
If possible, send your demo reel to someone who works at the studio you are applying to. They will have a good idea of what the studio is looking for at that time, and or if the studio gravitates to a certain shot order. This is all in the interest of addressing tip number 5: tailor your reel to the place you are applying for.
TIP JAR TIP OF THE MONTH:
When all body parts start and stop moving at the same time in an animation, it is a pretty clear sign that the animator is more amateur. Try to offset body parts in your animation so that something is always leading and other parts are following. For example, one pattern you might often see is eyes moving first, followed by head, chest, and hips. Give special attention to not only offsetting whole body parts, but also individual rotation and translation channels within those body parts as well. When you get the notes, “Make it more organic,” “It’s feeling a bit robotic or mechanical” this idea is likely what those notes are referring to.
EPISODE CALL OUT: BEN’S ANGRY REEL
See Ben’s angry shot around 00:21 :)
guillermo’s favorite drink: garrett’s mai tai
“Garrett knew that I liked fruity drinks and he delivered.” - Guillermo
1 cup white rum (coconut rum works best)
½ cup Meyer’s Jamaican Rum
⅓ cup Orange Curacao
⅓ cup Orgeat Syrup
¼ cup fresh lime juice
Orange/Pinapple juice to taste
Mix all of this up in a blender with a lot of ice! Blend away. Pour in a glass, and top the drink with a LITTLE bit of grenadine if you want to be super fancy! Makes 1 blender.
