Portfolio - www.bozzr.com

[bozza]

Hey guys/girls,

Just looking for any constructive advice on any ways to improve my site or the work it contains. My main focus is animation, ive been seeking a junior animator position for a few months now with no luck, but im still constantly trying to put more content up on the site/improve the stuff thats already on there, so any advice is appreciated.

Thanks.

:edit: Oh yeah, sorry if the site's a bit slow when you visit it, my host has been having a few problems lately.

[shadowholm]

Hey,

I would suggest putting all your animations into one video. Right now you have to click on each one seperatly and employers wont like that. Also I would get rid of the updates and links pages, as they're not really needed. The main page should be your animation video; it should have your contact info and make sure to make it clear that your goal is to be an animator on it.

just my advice =)

Jason

[Diegio]

Hello Bozza,

First thing, the About page doesn't show up correctly, Please try to fix the HTML.
Next thing, it will come in handy that you make a resume page.
Also I'm confused why you've got animations on your page, but not finished 3D Models.
I suggest you make some models for your portfolio and it will look a lot better then.
Maybe you should also texture your animations, that will give your portfolio a lot better impression.
Anyway, good luck mate!

Diëgo

[laughing_bun]

i don't really think there is all that much to critique, your portfolio is just in its infancy and you have to keep working and making more stuff. Everything on there is pretty basic. I would lose all the anime style drawings for sure. That stuff is just annoying.

[bozza]

Originally Posted by shadowholm

Hey,

I would suggest putting all your animations into one video. Right now you have to click on each one seperatly and employers wont like that. Also I would get rid of the updates and links pages, as they're not really needed. The main page should be your animation video; it should have your contact info and make sure to make it clear that your goal is to be an animator on it.

just my advice =)

Jason

Thanks for your thoughts, i was actually thinking of putting a proper portfolio video up the top with a compilation of all of the work, then still have the individual stuff below for them if they still wanted to look at specifics more.

I think i will get rid of that update page like you said though, and the link one was more for the benefit of the places that i feel have helped me rather than for potential employers, so i might still keep that one there as a thanks to those places.

Ill also try to emphasize that im seeking a animation job as well, thanks again.

Originally Posted by Diegio

Hello Bozza,

First thing, the About page doesn't show up correctly, Please try to fix the HTML.
Next thing, it will come in handy that you make a resume page.
Also I'm confused why you've got animations on your page, but not finished 3D Models.
I suggest you make some models for your portfolio and it will look a lot better then.
Maybe you should also texture your animations, that will give your portfolio a lot better impression.
Anyway, good luck mate!

Diëgo

What browser are you using? Ive been using firefox and it shows up ok, i just tried IE and it looks like the sliding bar isnt showing up so its cutting off the end, is that the problem on yours? Thanks for letting me know, ill have to look into it!

Ummm the reason for only animation is because im trying to get a animation job, not a 3d modeling job, and pretty much the same deal with the texturing, thats just a scalable animation rig im using to showcase my animation skills, its not a model ive made or anything.

Originally Posted by laughing_bun

i don't really think there is all that much to critique, your portfolio is just in its infancy and you have to keep working and making more stuff. Everything on there is pretty basic. I would lose all the anime style drawings for sure. That stuff is just annoying.

Yeah ive only been working on it for a few months really just getting the basic stuff polished first (walk cycles, box lift/climb, idles etc) before i try my hand at anything too fancy, but now that its all done and im fairly happy with it so ill work on some more impressive animations i think.

Thanks i guess for the advice on my anime stuff being annoying, lol, i think ill keep them in there, diversity can never be a bad thing when showing work and most people ive spoken to seem to like them.

[thanoz]

Remove the entire Artwork section NOW if you're actually serious about getting a job. I laughed so hard at the future cop thing I was almost in tears. The little color indicator and the 3 hours part - priceless. Seriously though, you're not trying to be an illustrator, it's not your bag (yet) don't feature it at all, stick to animations unless your drawings look better than Bobotheseal's, he actually has an excuse for featuring concepts AND 3d.

I don't think you need anything more than those blue guys honestly, they're fine mock-ups. Textures not needed either.

Ok as for the animations.

The box lift - VERY NICE
Soldier Idle - OK, needs to be faster paced, like a meth addict (think UT or Quake, not real-life)

Both walk cycles - The feet don't criss-cross down a line in the middle in your animations. It's very unnatural and technically it's called a "waddle" if your feet don't walk down a line, it's what ducks and super fat people do. I'm not an animator by profession but the animations I've done with walk cycles managed to put the feet down a near-line, it's not that hard and it makes a HUGE difference, you just need to be using a decent rig. Super-models will actually cross their feet past the line in the middle to get extra-hip action - think about that for a while. If yours don't even move towards the middle imagine how much LESS hip and body action you're getting.

The run cycle - the guy is not getting enough air and his back is bent over in an odd way. There's not enough bounce to the steps or enough impact to the torso - it appears to be a senior citizen-style trot of some sort, it doesn't look athletic enough to be used on a conventional action character in a game (maybe a super weak goon-bad-guy). When a person runs or walks, they FALL forward then catch themselves with the forward foot, you aren't capturing that yet. (that falling forward/catching is why my upstairs neighbors make a thud-thud-thud as they walk around rather than being silent robots or cats).

[laughing_bun]

most art schools flat out reject students who submit anime style drawings... Its not your style and has no basis in actual drawing ability its just emulating basic cartoon shapes. Schools hate it, employers hate it, I hate it. I think everyone, except people who draw similar anime figures hate it. But if you want to keep it in there for diversities sake thats your decision. I think drawings have a place in your portfolio, you just need ones that showcase a grasp of form, dimension, color, concept. Not that you picked up a how-to-draw anime book at the 99 cent store.

[bozza]

Originally Posted by thanoz

Remove the entire Artwork section NOW if you're actually serious about getting a job. I laughed so hard at the future cop thing I was almost in tears. The little color indicator and the 3 hours part - priceless. Seriously though, you're not trying to be an illustrator, it's not your bag (yet) don't feature it at all, stick to animations unless your drawings look better than Bobotheseal's, he actually has an excuse for featuring concepts AND 3d.

I don't think you need anything more than those blue guys honestly, they're fine mock-ups. Textures not needed either.

Ok as for the animations.

The box lift - VERY NICE
Soldier Idle - OK, needs to be faster paced, like a meth addict (think UT or Quake, not real-life)

Both walk cycles - The feet don't criss-cross down a line in the middle in your animations. It's very unnatural and technically it's called a "waddle" if your feet don't walk down a line, it's what ducks and super fat people do. I'm not an animator by profession but the animations I've done with walk cycles managed to put the feet down a near-line, it's not that hard and it makes a HUGE difference, you just need to be using a decent rig. Super-models will actually cross their feet past the line in the middle to get extra-hip action - think about that for a while. If yours don't even move towards the middle imagine how much LESS hip and body action you're getting.

The run cycle - the guy is not getting enough air and his back is bent over in an odd way. There's not enough bounce to the steps or enough impact to the torso - it appears to be a senior citizen-style trot of some sort, it doesn't look athletic enough to be used on a conventional action character in a game (maybe a super weak goon-bad-guy). When a person runs or walks, they FALL forward then catch themselves with the forward foot, you aren't capturing that yet. (that falling forward/catching is why my upstairs neighbors make a thud-thud-thud as they walk around rather than being silent robots or cats).

Your first comments were pretty unnecessary i thought cheers for the rest of your thoughts though.

Originally Posted by laughing_bun

most art schools flat out reject students who submit anime style drawings... Its not your style and has no basis in actual drawing ability its just emulating basic cartoon shapes. Schools hate it, employers hate it, I hate it. I think everyone, except people who draw similar anime figures hate it. But if you want to keep it in there for diversities sake thats your decision. I think drawings have a place in your portfolio, you just need ones that showcase a grasp of form, dimension, color, concept. Not that you picked up a how-to-draw anime book at the 99 cent store.

Thanks for explaining it more.

Keep the comments coming, i understand you're all trying to give your opinion on what you think would be best, but try and offer some useful and respectful advice.....

[thanoz]

I said all that because I don't want someone doing that stuff behind your back. I don't want to hurt your feelings at all, but I think you've got some talent and aptitude as an animator, and I'd be pissed off if you got really good and someone turned you down for a job because of some non-animation stuff that changed their view of your taste in art. I also want to make it clear that you're gonna need thick skin to both enter this industry, as well as to stay in it.

The internet (believe it or not) is a lot nicer and more forgiving to artists of all levels, rarely saying out loud what most people might be thinking. There are going to be times in the future where the heads of your company, you, and your co-workers are all going to be playing the game you worked on (checking a level over for a milestone) and someone important is going to insult the audio, the enviro art, the character art, and even your animations, and they will not sugar coat it. There's a good chance that they'll be using 4 letter words to describe the problems of EVERYONE'S work - often unfairly referring to unfinished or even place-holder assets! And you'll be there, chuckling about it nodding "yeah yeah, I'll go fix it" whether it's your fault, the game engine's fault, someone else's fault, or just a difference of opinion.

Just giving you a heads up. Keep your best foot forward at all times, throw out anything that ranks 2nd place in your portfolios, don't expect greatness without a LOT of trial and error, and avoid people that never tell you to improve. I think I threw out everything in my entire portfolio and started over fresh 4 times so far...maybe 5? Lotta my crap (it was crap) got cut and I ain't ever showing it again except for a good laugh. I hope you make it, keep up the good work with the animations.

[latinmessiah]

I love how well integrated Quicktime is on your website. Easy to play, nice interface, and loads quickly. Your animations are rock solid and your drawings are not too shabby. Overall, great portfolio!