Hi Guys！First of all, really appreciate everyone who visits this blog. On March 20th, I was accepted by Sheridan College Animation program as an international student. This is my first time applying. I was very very fortunate to get 100%....on the portfolio evaluation section. I am humbled and super honoured for Sheridan’s recognition.
Even though I was very fortunate to get a full score, there are still many parts of my portfolio that I think need improvements and I will mention them as I go through each section as well.
Before I begin, I want to say start your portfolio early, so that you would have time to let your friends and teachers critique on your work and improve upon those advices.
The portfolio preparation process is very stressful, but should be super fun at the same time. You get to explore many different things and the finished pieces should represent your own voice. You will surprise yourself at the end after realizing how much you have improved.
Please only refer to my portfolio for educational purpose only. Hopefully this blog would help those who want to apply to the animation program. Best wishes to you guys.
SCORE SHEET
Part I: observational drawing
The first section of the portfolio is observational drawing. Under observational drawing, Sheridan is looking for life drawings and hand drawings.
Life Drawings:
For this year’s requirement, Sheridan is asking for four drawings of a human figure, clothed or nude and has to be drawn from life(SUPER IMPORTANT).
Material(s) that I used: Conte and Newsprint drawing pads.
2 short poses(1-3 minutes): quick gestural drawings
Some advices:
It is better to draw poses that good sense of movements and actions
Find the line of action and the overall shape and silhouette of the figure to quickly capture the poses
You don't have to capture every single details of the pose. Look for what is important. Simplicity is more.
You can even exaggerate the pose when you feel like the pose is a bit stiff.
Common mistakes: the way you draw short poses should be different from long poses. Try to loosen up when you draw short poses, they should be very free. Don’t focus too much on the correct anatomy and structure, but don’t lose it all either.
Comments on my own pieces:
Overall the two drawings has the correct proportion and I believe I captured the gesture well.
They have the sense of movement because I found the line of action in both poses.
Things I can improve upon:
The first piece's anatomy in the hip area is off.
The second piece is a bit off balanced due to the placement of the feet. It is very important to make sure the figure has the right balance.
2 long poses (5-20 minutes): prioritize form and structure
Some advices:
I suggest to study anatomy and have a good understanding of the basics of human body structure. You do not have to memorize every muscles and bones, but make sure you are comfortable with the correct human proportion and know the most recognizable bones and muscles. (e.g.: clavicle, deltoid, bicep femoris, pelvis, knee/elbow connection etc.)
Starting by lightly blocking in the basic shape and structure of the pose first, then adjust and add more details later on.
Landmarks(contour forms) are crucial, they can indicate your understanding of the anatomy and the structure of the human body. This also adds more life and information to the drawing.
Common mistakes: Long pose does not need to be very detailed. It is better to spend the extra time time to make sure it has the right form and structure. It is also crucial that you capture the pose well and DRAW THE HANDS AND THE FEET. Don't leave them out.
Comments on my own pieces:
Overall I think I have the correct understanding of the structure in both pieces and the poses still have the sense of movement.
Things I can improve upon:
The proportion in both pieces are off. Their lower body a bit too small compare to the rest of the figure.
I wish I can draw the hands and feet better in the second piece.
If you are unable to attend life drawing classes, go check out Croquis Cafe on Vimeo! The website called line of action is very helpful as well.
Hand Drawings:
For this year's requirement, Sheridan is asking for two freehand line drawings of a human hand. One anticipating the action to grasp a door handle. The other carries out the action.
Material(s) that I used: Col-Erase blue pencil
Some advices:
I suggest to study and understand the basic structure of human hands.
Make sure you have the right perspective and proportion.
Have more variety in the two poses.
It is the best to draw from life so that you can observe the form very clearly. You can take pictures too if you cannot hold the pose.
Comments on my own pieces:
Overall I think I have decent structure, form and perspective. I used light line marks to indicate the structure of the hand.
Things I can improve upon:
The fingers of the first piece is a bit short
I hope I could make the poses more interesting such as changing the angle, to show both palm and back side of the hands.
Part II: character design and animation
Character Rotation:
Design your own character and rotate the design in four different views.
Material(s) that I used: Col-Erase blue pencil and Iigt table(to double check the rotation is correct).
Some advices:
Started the design by asking yourself who the character is. Think about the character's personality, occupation, and background etc. This will help you create a character that is unique and alive.
Try various design before going to the final one, you can make a lot of small thumbnail sketches of characters in different shapes and forms.
Make sure the proportion of the character is balanced and believable.
Do your research before designing the character. It is crucial! The more research you do, the more alive your character would be. Try to look for real life references, and also some artists you like as inspirations.
When you are doing the rotation on separate pieces of paper, always flip between the pages to make sure the character is rotating correctly.
Comments on my piece:
Overall I think I have decent understanding of my character's structure. I believe he does looks like a pilot and shows personality through his posing.
Things I can improve upon:
I personally think the design is unique but weird. He is not very charming.
His hair is too flat and shows no structure.
The character does not have enough flow.
The 3/4 back view is weird. His standing pose has a tilt which gave me a super hard time rotating him. If you are not comfortable with character rotation, it is better to let the character stand straight.
Short Animation:
This year we are required to animate a juice pack, the design is already given. I believe it is so much easier compare to previous years when the applicants are required to animate their own characters in the character design section. The simple design of the juice pack makes the acting part of the animation super super important.
Material that I used: Col-Erase blue pencil, light table and printer paper.
Some advices:
Study the basic principles of animation. (There are ton of videos on youtube, such as the 12 principles of animation)
Make sure the drawings stay on model. Always check the model sheet and flip in between pages. You can use digital tools, use the thing that you feel the most comfortable with!
Start animating by identifying the key frames(key poses when performing the action) and do the in betweens after. This will help you to create a smooth animation and you can try out many different ideas by just drawing the key poses first.
It is crucial that the animation is readable. Try ask your family, friends or teachers if they can understand the action.
Comments on my piece:
Overall I think the animation is quite solid and expresses the action well. I show my understanding of squash and stretch, follow through and timing.
Things I can improve upon:
I think the perspective of the background in relation to the juice box is a bit off.
I wish I could draw it more on model. I made him chubbier haha.
Part III: Storyboarding
We are required to create a four panel storyboard, based on the topic “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover”. The main character design is given.
Material(s) that I used: Pencil
Some advices:
The most important thing for storyboard is communication. Animation is about storytelling! The audience should know what happened in the story even without the words. This is done through the good use of expressions, poses, camera angles and composition.
Make sure the character stays on model best you can.
Thumbnailing various versions of the storyboard before creating the final piece. Figure out the best way to communicate the story. Don't afraid to ask people if they understand the story and why they don't understand.
I personally think it is helpful to do a thorough research on the character given if it is an animal. This includes its habitat, diet and its predators. This will make your story and character more believable.
Comments on my piece:
Overall I think I express the story quite clearly and I tried my best to make sure the possum is on model haha.
The background is consistent and there's variation in camera angles.
The possum shows varied and believable expressions and poses. I referenced some of the animal expression sheets.
Things that I can improve upon:
I feel like the background is quite busy in the first panel which makes the reader more difficult to identify the character.
The placement of the owl on the log is not consistent from panel 2 to panel 3.
Part IV: Layout
This year we are required to create two perspective line drawings that show our understanding of linear perspective and aerial perspective. At least one character is required in each piece.
Material(s) used: Col-erase blue pencil, giant ruler
Linear perspective: Interior layout
Aerial perspective: Exterior layout
Some advices:
Although Sheridan didn't specify this, I personally think for linear perspective, it's better to create a two point perspective layout.
Have a thorough research of the place you have in mind before drawing. It will make your layout more believable and interesting.
Leave some open spaces in the layout to allow the character move around and interact with. Don't pack the space with stuff. My teacher won't stop yelling at me about how much stuff I put in the layout lol so I had to eliminate a lot of things. Less is more!
Separate your layout into foreground, mid ground and background. This creates depth and shows your understanding of space and perspective.
Comments on my piece:
Overall I think I have good understanding of two point perspective and aerial perspective. I am quite satisfied with the design of the environments and the characters.
The characters stand out in both layouts and have space to move around.
There is a story happening in both pieces.
Things that I can improve upon:
In the first piece, some of the objects are too big or small in relation to the perspective.
The right side of the second piece is too busy and has too much information. This will confuse the audience.
Part V Personal Artwork!
It's my favourite part of the portfolio because it is our time to showcase who we are!! And I think this section would make you stand out among thousands of applicants. I included mostly character work because I LOVE character design, but I think it's better if there's more variations in your personal works. It is ok to include realism work but, remember you are applying to an animation program so they would love to see more animation related work!
Personal work #1: Digital painting-Virtual Reality
I showed this piece to many of my teachers and friends, and they all showed a lot of interests and think I should include this in my portfolio. The piece is unique and shows a story behind it.
Personal piece #2: Digital painting-Character line up
I'm really interested in character design so I did a circus character line up to push myself in exploring different shapes and appealing designs! I used Cirque du Soleil as reference and I had so much fun creating them. I believe this piece also showcased my digital painting techniques.
Personal piece #3: Oil painting-Pumpkins and the little girl
I am quite attached to this piece because it is my first time using oil paint to illustrate an animation scene. It turned out a lot better than I thought, thanks to my oil painting teacher's advices! I wasn't sure if I should include this piece in my portfolio because the composition is horrible, but I believe it showed that I am able to use oil paint.
Personal piece #4- Sketchbooook!
I think I am the most proud of my sketchbook in the entire portfolio because it really expressed who I am and what I love. It also showed my exploration with various traditional art mediums. I would say 20 is the good amount of sketchbook pages you can include in the portfolio and choose your best works! I wish I included more observational sketches from life.
Personal piece #5- Short animation
I created this short film as my final media art assignment for school. It is a really short story that explores the theme of friendship. I actually used only procreate to create the entire animation because I was short on time. I was not sure if I should include this in my portfolio because it's super rough and has a ton of mistakes, but it expresses a good message and shows my interest in storytelling.
THANK YOU
Thank you everyone who made this far of the page. I hope these will help you a little bit in your portfolio making process. Best wishes to all of you!
Comments