This week, I have dedicated my time towards starting and hopefully finishing my CV and cover letter. I would also begin my portfolio/showreel this week but I feel that this would probably be too much to do in one week, and I worry it might halt the quality of either outcome. Ultimately, I began this week by creating a logo for my brand. I wanted it to be something relevant to myself, my style and my career and decided to create a mascot-type logo of a snail on top of a pencil. As I plan to apply to studios such as Paper Owl Films and JAM Media, I felt that making it cute and simple would imply that I am capable of this type of style. Moreover, I have included the process of this logo down below, along with a Mood board that I used at the time.
Colour sampling #1
colour sampling #2
colour sampling #3
Design Tweaks, Overlay experimentations and removing line art
Final design choice and text location
My thoughts…
As shown above, I have made a lot of changes to this logo design. Initially, I thought it would be cute to have grass and leaves around the snail, however, this was too distracting and the composition itself would have ended up being unbalanced and awkward, to say the least. To combat this, I know I had to change it to something more versatile. That’s when I came up with the idea of the design including the pencil. As I want to put it across that I love drawing and art as a whole is very important to me, this made sense to incorporate this into my logo. In conclusion, I’m really satisfied with this outcome and it fits very well with my target goals and aspirations. If I could redo this process, however, I would definitely go back and do more experiments with the design itself, as this isn’t implied at all. For this design specifically, I became attached to it very early on and this isn’t a great habit as experimentation and trying out different ideas is always vital. Not only did I get attached, but I also didn’t have a lot of time on my hands, so this certainly didn’t help whatsoever. In future, I will strive to do at least 20 concepts before I can choose the final design.
CV Progress
Below are some images showing the progress I have made so far with my CV. As you can see, I was quite indecisive on what type of colour scheme I wanted to go with. Originally, I really liked the blue, more cool-toned vibe, but felt this looked vastly odd with my logo. I then tried more warm hues with some pinks and although this matches the theme really well, the colours almost seemed too much? I ultimately played around with this a bit more until I got a colour scheme I was happy with and this can be seen below.
Constructing colour scheme, possible headings/area of text
Adding text and shifting the position of the logo
Font change, adding a heading and sub-headings for context
Colour experimenting, reconstructing headings
Adding fill behind headings, using overlays to add texture to CV design
Further Tweaking
Final Design
In conclusion, I really like the outcome of my CV so far as it definitely reflects my passions, interests and target career. I had the last minute idea of adding cute, subtle stars into my design and I certainly think this adds to the appearance of the design, making it more enticing and easier to follow. Until I get feedback on my CV, this is probably going to be the final version I submit. Despite everything, I do feel that if I had more time, I could’ve put more thought into the text position of my logo, even though I like the hand-written aesthetic it has. It would ensure that I have had the opportunity to experiment and see what works best. Ultimately, I feel that I am quite satisfied with this outcome, and now that I have finished my CV I can now work on my Cover letter and portfolio- which I will begin working on very shortly.
Simple cover letter rundown
In order to get started on my showreel, I decided to do one last task- my cover letter. Using the advice that was given by one of our tutors in today’s class, I have kept in mind what I should add. I began using rough notes in an attempt to figure out what I would write and where I’d place the text. Preparing this was crucial as it would give me a much easier time writing out the important parts of the document. Not just that, but it would prevent me from forgetting these key facts.
Starting paragraph
– Delighted by this opportunity, inspired by studios work for years
– Will be worth your time
– Talented, passionate, determined
Mid Paragraph
– Always advancing with my artwork, constantly trying to improve
– Numerous projects- bioluminescent, hubris
– Animation degree in progress
End paragraph
– Track record of impressive grades, would be an exceptional asset to the team
– “I am very grateful to have this opportunity to speak with you”
– Looking forward to hearing back
And then ending with a “Sincerely yours” or something thereof
Cover letter inspirations
Below are some cover letter examples that I found on Google. I used these to help me come up with the format that I ultimately went for with my own, and it really saved me a bunch of time. Some of the examples I used weren’t exactly relevant in terms of job aspects, however, I felt that they presented very well and formally enough for what I was going for.
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3
To summarise the week…
This week has certainly been quite a productive one, which I am quite satisfied with. I have been able to finish up both my CV start on the preparation of my Cover letter, as well as do some research into relevant topics. All in all, this has motivated me further to keep up this pace and deliver work efficiently at high quality. Next week, I aim to start a huge chunk of my showreel so that I will have my work ready on time.