Industry Question / Getting A Studio Job From Out of State.

[evolross]

This is a question for people working in the industry, specifically in LA doing visual effects work.

I've been doing visual effects work on independent films in Ohio for about two years and I'm about two weeks from having my reel completed with all the work I've been doing (I definitely plan to peer review it on the forum before releasing it).

I'm serious about finally getting a job in the industry. Hopefully in a smaller studio, possibly one of the few that use Lightwave. My question is this, is it worthwhile to send my reel and information from Ohio and try to acquire a job while still living in Ohio? Or to be taken seriously should I relocate to the LA area and then start my search? I'm definitely open to working in other cities as well, but I'm curious if companies bother with people out of state, especially if they need someone quickly?

[adamredwoods]

My question is this, is it worthwhile to send my reel and information from Ohio and try to acquire a job while still living in Ohio? Or to be taken seriously should I relocate to the LA area and then start my search? I'm definitely open to working in other cities as well, but I'm curious if companies bother with people out of state, especially if they need someone quickly?

Best way to get into the field is to start by contracting, which means you'll need to be in LA. Full-time jobs are rare in film industry. Even at ILM.

You can be considered from Ohio. I considered out of staters when I was a producer, but only if you are moving regardless. Most studios will not pay for relocation.

Don't limit to Lightwave, also learn Maya and a compositing software to stay competitive. It'll offer more work.

[AdamAvenali]

i went the other way haha i moved to ohio for my job. i recommend checking out LA first to see if it's for you. it is definitely a different lifestyle from what i experienced.

[evolross]

I know other software packages too. I'm fairly decent with Max, Maya, Blender and also very adept at After Effects, Synth Eyes, and have dabbled with Nuke as well. I just think it'd be nice to get into a Lightwave studio.

And yeah, I'm open to contracting or a job. I'm just wondering if it's a reality to try to get "something" all the way from Ohio. I guess in a perfect world, I'm trying to have a paying gig going into the move. Which probably isn't realistic.

Also, I've been to LA several times for work (before moving over to VFX work) and to visit friends.

I guess I'm thinking it'd be a good idea to go ahead and move regardless.

[Stooch]

for what its worth, i got hired out of CT to work in LA. You will be expected to move and probably wont get compensated for it.

If you are good enough you may be able to swing off site work. but generally they prefer to see you in person first.

[AdamAvenali]

I know other software packages too. I'm fairly decent with Max, Maya, Blender and also very adept at After Effects, Synth Eyes, and have dabbled with Nuke as well. I just think it'd be nice to get into a Lightwave studio.

And yeah, I'm open to contracting or a job. I'm just wondering if it's a reality to try to get "something" all the way from Ohio. I guess in a perfect world, I'm trying to have a paying gig going into the move. Which probably isn't realistic.

Also, I've been to LA several times for work (before moving over to VFX work) and to visit friends.

I guess I'm thinking it'd be a good idea to go ahead and move regardless.

well it is good you have friends there and have experienced it. once i found out i would probably have to have a roomate to swing rent in the area i wanted to live, it kind of turned me off. i have had enough roomates and i was ready to live alone. its one of those "its a nice place to visit, but i couldnt live there" kinda things. but enough with my rants haha

i had quite a few friends that i graduated from college with that went straight to LA. some found jobs immediately and some took 3-6 months to get something.

whatever you decide to do, keep us updated and good luck :thumbsup:

[evolross]

i went the other way haha i moved to ohio for my job.
I see you're in Columbus. Do you work professionally in 3D up there?

I'm in Dayton and have been freelancing for about two years. There's just not enough work. At least high-end 3D work. There's all the web development and signage graphic design you could ask for, but no one wants high-end 3D in this market. I've worked on two independent features, a few commercials, and some stuff for the web, but there's not enough.

All the big 3D work I did, I did through agencies in Cincinnati and Columbus except for the film work which I got through contacts. But the indie film stuff just doesn't come along at a fast enough pace.

So that's really why I want to move and I finally think my work is up to par too (my new reel should be ready in about two weeks). I want to keep learning too. I've been a small-town Ohioan my whole life too so I'm ready for a change and I happen to like LA.

[AdamAvenali]

I see you're in Columbus. Do you work professionally in 3D up there?

I'm in Dayton and have been freelancing for about two years. There's just not enough work. At least high-end 3D work. There's all the web development and signage graphic design you could ask for, but no one wants high-end 3D in this market. I've worked on two independent features, a few commercials, and some stuff for the web, but there's not enough.

All the big 3D work I did, I did through agencies in Cincinnati and Columbus except for the film work which I got through contacts. But the indie film stuff just doesn't come along at a fast enough pace.

So that's really why I want to move and I finally think my work is up to par too (my new reel should be ready in about two weeks). I want to keep learning too. I've been a small-town Ohioan my whole life too so I'm ready for a change and I happen to like LA.

i am doing 3d here in columbus. i am doing arch-viz for 2reveal. we use maya so i had to learn that for the job. moving to columbus was like moving to LA for me haha i am originally from in the sticks of PA from a town with a population of about 150 so columbus feels huge to me. i mean OSU alone is 100 times bigger than my hometown haha

[Mr Rid]

This is a question for people working in the industry, specifically in LA doing visual effects work.

I've been doing visual effects work on independent films in Ohio for about two years and I'm about two weeks from having my reel completed with all the work I've been doing (I definitely plan to peer review it on the forum before releasing it).

I'm serious about finally getting a job in the industry. Hopefully in a smaller studio, possibly one of the few that use Lightwave. My question is this, is it worthwhile to send my reel and information from Ohio and try to acquire a job while still living in Ohio? Or to be taken seriously should I relocate to the LA area and then start my search? I'm definitely open to working in other cities as well, but I'm curious if companies bother with people out of state, especially if they need someone quickly?

My advise is that no one should move to an expensive place to live like LA unless they were invited- as in, you have a job lined up, especially in this economy. Being in Ohio isnt any particular problem if a house is desperate for talent, but they will of course expect you to move right away.

More importantly, my next advice is to know something other than LW, especially if you want to work in VFX. There have been ZERO LW job posts in months in the LA area while there are dozens of Maya jobs every month. But it helps to know a compositing tool, or ReaFLow or Python or anything to increase opportunites. The industry has turned so much toward proprietary scripting and code. LW obviously does not allow for that and is rarely used for any substantial VFX work. At Pixel Magic, we just used LW for a few key FX and brief creature shots in a big studio film but I dont even know of any other house using LW for such things.

[AdamAvenali]

My advise is that no one should move to an expensive place to live like LA unless they were invited- as in, you have a job lined up, especially in this economy. Being in Ohio isnt any particular problem if a house is desperate for talent, but they will of course expect you to move right away.

agreed. i had a friend who was contacted by a game studio in LA on a friday and they wanted him there on monday haha must have been a tight deadline.

[Mr Rid]

My start in VFX was preceded by 6 months of being jobless, spending a lot of time fine tuning a demo reel. I sent out 52 copies and watched the rejection notices come in. But it only takes one 'yes.' I flew from Dallas to LA for an interview. It was a good fit, so a week later I loaded up the truck and headed for Bev-er-ly like Jed Clampett. Spent the last of my savings on the move but started work right away. One thing led to the next.

[evolross]

My start in VFX was preceded by 6 months of being jobless, spending a lot of time fine tuning a demo reel...
Hmm... that sounds familiar. Thanks for chiming in, I was actually hoping you would catch this thread because I've talked to you before. And what you said makes a lot of sense. You kind of summarized the predicament. Move first without a job and risk losing savings by living in an expensive area with no job or don't move and risk job opportunities because you're not taken seriously.

I do know some other tools, as I mentioned above. I don't necessarily have to work in VFX, but a Lightwave generalist or just a generalist position within a smaller studio would be preferred. I know a handful of studios that still use Lightwave based on what I've read and people I've talked to here and elsewhere.

How is Pixel Magic doing as far as needing talent?

You mentioned sending out 52 copies of your reel. In today's industry, is it sufficient to just send a link to an online reel via email? That was what I was planning on doing.

[Andyjaggy]

Have you considered other option besides feature film work? There are many many types of work that involve 3D besides working on movies.............. just a thought.

[evolross]

Have you considered other option besides feature film work? There are many many types of work that involve 3D besides working on movies.............. just a thought.
Absolutely. I'm totally open to television, commercials, music videos, even web (as long as it's content and not web development). I'm even open to motion graphics design as I am going to have some of that on my reel as well.

I'm basically a 2D/3D generalist that uses Lightwave. I specialize in VFX (Lightwave, Blender, Synth Eyes, some Maya, some Max), compositing (After Effects and Nuke), and motion design (After Effects). I know it's an odd bunch but I like to think of myself as a generalist. This is why I want to work in a smaller studio.

I'm actually more interested in getting my hands on any kind of national level work or just larger projects in general. As opposed to the kinds of stuff you get in Dayton, Ohio. It's lots of industrial visualization of machine parts and stuff like that. Although I have done some work for a couple of films and a few national commercials (for GE Money and Similac) (all of which will be on the reel) there's just not enough going on here. And I'm a fan of the west coast and LA in particular. It's something I've been wanting to do and planning for a couple of years. So it'll be a big deal for me once I get this real out the door. Only a few more days now.

[Mr Rid]

Hmm... that sounds familiar. Thanks for chiming in, I was actually hoping you would catch this thread because I've talked to you before. And what you said makes a lot of sense. You kind of summarized the predicament. Move first without a job and risk losing savings by living in an expensive area with no job or don't move and risk job opportunities because you're not taken seriously.

I do know some other tools, as I mentioned above. I don't necessarily have to work in VFX, but a Lightwave generalist or just a generalist position within a smaller studio would be preferred. I know a handful of studios that still use Lightwave based on what I've read and people I've talked to here and elsewhere.

How is Pixel Magic doing as far as needing talent?

You mentioned sending out 52 copies of your reel. In today's industry, is it sufficient to just send a link to an online reel via email? That was what I was planning on doing.

Each recruiter will inform of their requirements- if an online demo is enough or if they require a hard copy. You should be prepared to have both available. I dont know why some places still want a hard copy, as long as your online demo is good quality and not an enormous file size.

The best compression scheme I've found is an H264 QT at about 60 Q (I export from QTpro), for the smallest file with almost unnoticeable artifacting. A 720x480, mono (dont bother with stereo- most people use annoying music that we just turn off anyway) 3 to 4 minute QT should be under 60mb. Keep in mind that a QT made on a PC will appear a little darker on a Mac. QTs also allow for easy scrubbing frame by frame unlike other media formats.

I will take a look at your demo, but Pixel Magic does not hire new people too often. It naturally depends on the amount of work at a given time. But it is difficult to find LW artists with advanced, photoreal production experience and we tend to pull from a group of reliable artists we are familiar with. But like I mentioned, you will find way more VFX opportunities in Maya.

[evolross]

Thanks for the advice. A first cut of my reel will be available by the end of next week.

You mention allowing your reel to be 3 to 4 minutes. I'm actually aiming for about 2 to 2.5 minutes. I like the shorter and sweeter approach, but that is requiring me to cut things a lot faster, especially when there's a certain set of shots I know I want on the reel. So it plays fast, but I figure someone can scrub through the Quicktime if they need to see something again. And yes, I'm going with Quicktime simply because it can be scrubbed easily.

[evolross]

Here's the draft cut of my reel that I promised: http://newtek.com/forums/showthread.php?t=99051.