hang in there
As I'm in the last quarter of my senior year, I've been going through all the stages of "senioritis." I'm excited to get out and enter the real world. I'm also terrified to get out and enter the real world. I'm eager to get my first internship/job as an animator. I'm eager to try new things and grow my skills. I think I'm also especially excited to be starting Animation Mentor in June.
While there's a lot to look forward to, some days it's been hard. It's scary when you don't have a job lined up. And of course, I understand that not everyone does, and in fact a lot of people don't. I understand that it's normal and fine to be unemployed for some time after graduation. But it doesn't make everything less daunting. Especially because... (eek!) student loans...
Despite my struggle earlier on when I was trying to figure out exactly what I wanted; going from storyboarding to 2D animation to motion graphics back to character animation and then 3D animation; I have no regrets in all the decisions I've made to bring me to where I am now. And I know that I'm on the right path and I am very happy with my decision to learn with AM this summer, but still the little itch of reality when it comes to loans and unemployment creeps in. It shakes confidence and makes you doubt yourself. You start to worry. Animation has the steepest learning curve and sometimes it just all feels so unreachable. But you have to remember it takes patience and you have to remind yourself that even if you're living in your parents' house and working a part-time job just to get by, that it's not forever as long as you keep working towards the dream. You just have to be patient and trust that it's fine to be in this not-so-ideal position because it's just a step you have to take to get to where you really want to be.
And this is what I need to remind myself every day. Just hang in there. And. Be. Patient.
I looked to some articles and they really helped to comfort me during this time of uncertainty.
Rusty Animator's seemingly cynical article is actually very motivating while giving you the hard slap of reality. It's given me something to focus on and keep in mind as I try to figure out what I need to work on to get to the level I want to be at.
This article from Tiny Buddha, though obviously not specified to animators applies to anyone in this situation of feeling anxious for the future. It also serves as a reminder that people with "normal" non-artistic jobs have the same struggles too.
And this one is actually a video about becoming a game animator. Although I don't want to specifically do game animation at this time, it covers everything else related to the animation industry and just reinforces the areas of focus that need to be grasped and worked on in order to be a great animator.
So as I've said so many times in this post (and this is really more of a reminder to myself):
BE. PATIENT.
