Cartoon Saloon, Ireland.
I came across Cartoon Saloon’s work during my second year of my bachelor’s degree (at the time when Song of the Sea was first released) and was fascinated by the way they are constantly pushing the boundaries of 2D animation. I remained a big fan over the years and this became the studio I would eventually want to end up working for.
I understand it will be difficult to get a junior position there, but I have been keeping an eye on their social media and I see they have a new film in production, and they are slowly starting to recruit for different positions. The one I’ll be on the lookout for are animators and Ink and paint artists. I have applied for the latter in the past and was offered a test, so I think that is a position more likely to be offered to juniors as well.
All their jobs are based on site in Kilkenny, and they ask artists to relocate there, which is something that I would welcome for this studio. Also, they generally welcome applicants from EU countries, which definitely helps when it comes to setting up a residency in another country.
I interviewed an clean up artist who had worked for Cartoon Saloon during unit 2 and they said that sometimes it’s about being in the right place at the right time, and that gave me the confidence to at least try and apply in the future.
Studio Zmei, Bulgaria.
Studio Zmei is a fairly new small studio in Bulgaria which has recently assisted the production of Genndy Tartakovsky’s “Unicorn: Warriors Ethernal “ along with Studio La Cachette. In spring 2022 I took a colour test for them and was told I passed it. Due to a delay in receiving the clean up shots, the work ended up starting the week I was due to start this course, and when I tried to ask how flexible they would be with working hours, I was told they expected full time availability, so I had to decline.
This wouldn’t necessary be my first choice when looking for a job, mainly due to the low rate offered a few years back. Nevertheless, the studio was very welcome of international candidates working remotely, which I think is always a plus. If I was to take a non-related part time job in the meantime and came across an advert from them, I would definitely consider the opportunity to build up some experience.
I would prefer my first experience to be in a studio where I could go in and learn from the people around me as well, but I know this is not the time to be picky, and I’m now much more open to consider freelance work coming in from independent creators and productions.
I have noticed an increase in animation production funded through more accessible platforms like Kickstarter which have later become quite popular. In the past I applied for one of these, Lackadaisy, as a clean up artist. At the time I didn’t have a lot of experience with the software I was required to use so I didn’t get the role. Once again though, I would still consider this a good opportunity for the future as I would have been allowed to work remotely and using platforms like Discord to access production information and upload my work.
This kind of production somehow felt more accessible to me, particularly at a time when the only animation network I had was online. The director of the project was an artist I had been followed for years and collaborated with in a fan project, so the prospect of applying for a job felt less stressful.
These productions also tend to be someone’s passion project brought forward to an animation lover audience which is investing more and more into independent animation, particularly in the US where big production houses dominate the mainstream market. Artists are also more open to recruit people without any previous experience as long as they have a good and relevant portfolio.