For this assignment, we would be developing our own individual branding and professional identities for our future careers, which includes not just items such as our CV and Showreel, but a full physical display for our Major Project that is fittingly designed to match the style and tone of the project.

Fundraising Events

Before we could do that, however, we needed to secure funds to help in bringing the End of Year Showcase to fruition. To do this, we would plan two different fundraising events that would ideally draw in interested parties through use of our artistic skillsets.

The first event was an animation themed Pub Quiz which eventually took place at the Ulster University Student Bar on 17th April 2024. I volunteered to help in presenting the questions to the crowd, which culminated in reading out at least 3 full rounds while engaging the audience with quips and witty banter. I also contributed some money to the raffle that we were hosting alongside the Pub Quiz.

This event, along with the independent Craft Fair, were huge successes, and helped us to raise almost £1000 to spend on printing costs and other factors for the End of Year Showcase.

Poster Development

I had initially sketched out three different poster concepts to compare and contrast, seeing which approach appealed to me the most. And while I still liked the first two designs, I ultimately settled on the third one, which was inspired by a poster made for the animated music video “Starlight Brigade”.

This poster appealed to me because of the compact and dense nature of how information was composed and presented, giving a grand scale and adventurous air to the Short Film. It also conveyed the general plot of the Short Film, featuring PH03BU5’s ship ready to crash-land onto Earth with N0X watching on from the shadows.

I wanted the composition and posing of the characters to intrigue any passersby, making them wonder about the story of my Short Film and how all the visual elements connected. I made sure to position every element in such a way to help draw a viewer’s eye through the whole piece with both rounded shapes and pointed angles.

Portfolio & Showreel

For my portfolio, I planned to update my ArtStation account with my current work and highlight the best of the best with different albums.

https://www.artstation.com/pastelsketches64

Through my own personal attempts at networking and applying for online fan projects, I had drafted up a more current showreel that reuses the base template I created back in 2022. My active participation in online communities with projects such as fanzines and animation collaborations has allowed me to develop a showreel which features just as much personal work as I have University work.

CV & Business Cards

When working on my CV, I simply reused the old template I had created back in 2022 and recoloured it to better fit the theming of my Short Film, including a starry background and bright blue outlines evocative of floating hi-tech screens.

I went through the same process with my cover letter from 2022, adjusting it to be on-brand. I wanted to include my cover letter, particularly for the industry show on the 6th, as to give a deeper perspective on my strengths and skillsets from an outside source.

For my business cards, I decided to completely revamp them from the old design I created back in 2022 and design something that more closely fit with the theming of my Short Film. I ultimately settled on the second design, but did use the third design as inspiration for the revamp of my CV.

 

The idea to do coloured linear against a white backdrop was inspired by the album artwork for the Neon Genesis Evangelion Rebuild movies, and was used to help my business cards stand out against the dark fabric that I was planning to use for my final physical display. The shading that I overlayed onto the character art was done to help the characters stand out more against the white background, and was inspired by concept art created by Rebecca Sugar for their animated TV show “Steven Universe”.

Art Book

Here is the digital PDF for my art book, which includes QR codes to timelapses of the artwork and animations:

beyond-art-book-pdf

Display Design

This was the initial plan I had designed for my physical display:

The main elements I had planned out for my display included a dark navy table cloth that would have a slew of constellations decorating it. Much in the same way the poster has a border of constellations, this emphasis is meant to represent how seemingly distant bodies can be brought together from the right perspective. I used a star map I was able to find online as the basis for drawing the constellations onto my dark fabric.

There would also be different items that related to either the characters or the world they inhabited. This would be further emphasised by the photos hanging from the monitors, which would show Aoife and PH03BU5 exploring different locations together, and would be connected by string to give a visual resemblance to the constellations.

Alongside all of this, there would be bright blue accents to unify all of the disparate objects, such as attaching greek style laurels to the corners of the monitors in reference to the mythology used for the robot characters’ names, and geometric blue borders around objects on the table with which anyone is allowed to touch or pick up.

And here is the current final look of my physical display:

All current placeholders will be updated by the time of the End of Year Showcase.

Promotion Strategies

I have been using social media to present my artwork for many years, particularly during my placement year, where I took on the Enterprise Placement Year to advertise my own independent art & animation commissions online. This includes sites such as Twitter, TikTok, Instagram and Tumblr.

I have also used different hashtags and events to promote myself and my Short Film, particularly within independent artist and animator spaces, with the intent of continuing to do so in the future to gain further visibility.

Through my years of posting online, I have gained many opportunities to take part in different collaborative efforts, such as fanzines and independent animation projects. These have granted me invaluable experience for my future employment, wherein I have been able to develop collaborative skillsets to fit each setting.

I currently am using the website Linktree to promote all of my platforms online, including my freelance commission services that are provided through the independent website VGen, which is a newer platform that aims to provide a one-stop-shop for many skilled creatives to sell their works through verifiable and safe means for customers.

I have personally been using this service since April 2023 as a way to centralise my art and animation commission work, and I believe it to be an ambitious and valuable project that is uniquely filling a niche in the online market, and which will ideally aid many creatives who wish to freelance online.

My Linktree features my email address and LinkedIn account alongside all of my social media. I have even included links to all of the public projects I have worked on and am currently working on, such as ‘Symphony: The Animated Series’, where I have been working for over 3 years as a Storyboard Artist and Colourist.

https://linktr.ee/pastel64

Reflection

Overall, I am quite satisfied with how everything turned out. As for my future endeavours beyond university, I hope to catch the eyes of some industry guests during the End of Year Showcase and possibly receive a job opportunity from this, but if that isn’t the case, then I will be planning to apply for jobs online. I will particularly be looking into any 2D jobs I can find in the local area of Northern Ireland, such as concept art, design, illustration and animation.

I do recognise that my brand of 2D hand-drawn animation is not currently in high demand in the industry at large, and so with that in mind, I have the current long term goal of creating a physical art setup that can allow me to use PC applications while utilising my iPad skillset with a screen tablet. I will also be on the lookout for industry talks and seminars which focus specifically on applications which feature 2D rigging animation capabilities to better meet the demands of the local industry.

I still have a lot to learn, but I am more than willing to step up and continue developing my skills for the chance to be able to creatively contribute to the medium that I enjoy and appreciate so much! I’m ever grateful to my time in the Animation course, as I have came a long way from the nervous 18 year old who didn’t even know where to start when it came to accessing the industry and putting myself out there with confidence and pride in my skills.