Skillset

Hello!

Well below I have compiled my skill set analysis and gathered the roles which I am hoping to go into after I have completed my 3rd year ( next year). This is stages 1-2 of the whole analysis, which will help me put together my learning plan. :)

SWOT Analysis

I have compiled lists of different factors that will influence my success and growth within my creative discipline. These include the skills I already posses, ones I may need to acquire or develop, things that may hinder my progression and opportunities within my practice. By reflecting on these I hope to map out what I need to focus on within my practice to help strengthen both my personal and professional development. I will use this to form the basis for creating my personalised learning plan, which will help me highlight the areas that I need to develop for my chosen career path. To fully explore all possibilities I will also be exploring branches of my chosen area that I may be well suited to, due to the skills I already have, some of which I may not have considered.  I believe this will enable me to get the most out of this self-reflection task, and I will have a more focused direction for my work.

Strengths

·      Organised             

·      Story development

·      Ideas generation

·      Illustrative drawing

·      Character design

·      Enthusiastic

·      Software skills – Photoshop & Illustrator predominantly

·      Very good communication skills

·      Good presentational skills – Oral & work based

·      Attention to detail

·      Leadership skills

·      Team work

·      Industry awareness- up to date with developments in the practice as well as exhibitions/external lectures & workshops that are beneficial to my learning.

Weaknesses

·      Digital skills need improving – especially uses of Cinema 4D

·      More knowledge on layout software such as InDesign

·      Time usage – can spend too much on pre-production phase, I sometimes leave too little time for actual production. This may be because I want to specialise in the pre-production areas within the industry.

·      No exposure for my work

·      No work experience of the industry as yet.

Opportunities

·      I have purchased InDesign and will be doing online tutorials to get better understanding of it.

·      I could use Cinema 4D more within my studies, but first I need to decide if 3D work is needed for my chosen career path.

·      National and international festivals – Both entering and attending is very beneficial to my creative growth.

·      Live Briefs – both independently researched and as part of the course gives some understanding of what working for a client is like, along with how the guidelines can influence the work produced.

·      Local, national and international competitions – there are so many, that could provide such important exposure and networking possibilities.

·      Internship/ work opportunities – using organisations such as Northern TV and Film can give access and information on both national and international roles.

·      College work experience – I will use the placement team at the college to broaden the possibility of getting more experience.

·      Student funding possibilities

·      Specialisation in children’s animation & Illustration is a huge market currently.

Threats

·      Highly competitive industry

·      NO EXPOSURE = NO WORK

·      Lack of layout software could put me at a disadvantage, especially for illustrative or storyboard roles.

·      Extensive software knowledge is very sought after in many areas within the industry. The ability to be versatile is hindered by my lack of some software packages.

·      Very focused on children’s work – I need to be more aware and versatile for other areas not just the one, especially when starting out.

Stage 2

Roles that I have went onto research using the skillset website, and that i will be using when creating my portfolio and CV include:

Runner

Storyboard Artist / Assistant

Clean Up artist

Background Designer

Character Designer

Storyboard Supervisor

Layout Artist

Layout Supervisor

Production Assistant

Director

Art Director

Producer

Illustrator

Visual Development Artist

There are lots of choices out there, and I will now be focusing on the skills needed for these roles and see what I need to work on further to get there :)