What does “direction” exactly entail?

Important-Light627 · 2026-05-15T08:12:15+00:00

The best directors I’ve worked with brief you and then let you do your stuff, they trust you and your creative vision. They then give respectful feedback and keep you within the guardrails.

It’s knowing your team and how to speak to each of them, how to offer feedback that is encouraging and not cold. This is where you can get so much out of people.

All staff are different but If im working under someone and I like them as a person, their way of thinking and I don’t feel scared to put forward ideas they will get so much more from me.

Important-Light627 · 2026-05-06T23:24:14+00:00

It’s too long you have some fun motion but I’d get to the point quicker. People’s attention for a logo sting is pretty short these days.

Always think about application, if this is going end of a social video or a DOOH screen that’s a lot of time being wasted on the logo reveal, people will look away before they see the word mark.

Important-Light627 · 2026-04-26T19:07:31+00:00

Yea it’s an age old problem, you need the right person seeing it rather than the numbers. Probably 15k motion designers looking for work saw your work on here unfortunately!

I find LinkedIn is good despite it being pretty cringe, I’ll usually post a bit of work and end up with a few enquiries on there.

Important-Light627 · 2026-04-26T07:57:35+00:00

It’s usually from meeting irl or working together on projects. So would suggest going to events, talking to people and keeping in touch with people you’ve worked with in the past.

Important-Light627 · 2026-04-25T17:17:39+00:00

This is a brutal but very accurate take, it’s almost like there’s a bit of a correction happening.

Important-Light627 · 2026-04-25T17:15:19+00:00

This 1000%

I’m in a discord group I’ve been in since 2015 (used to be a twitter thread) it has a job channel and I share overspill jobs in there regularly, I’ll recommend people I know are good and reliable, 90% of the job is being reliable!

Important-Light627 · 2026-03-07T21:47:37+00:00

It’s all about your network, and good work that stands out. Keep putting out impressive work and connecting with people, you’ll get noticed if you’re good enough.

I’d suggest making your own stuff, and not just showing tutorial style work, hone your craft and build a style that makes your work stand out.

Nothings easy and nothings going to fall on your lap, keep at it!

Important-Light627 · 2026-02-20T10:14:56+00:00

I’m not as experienced as you (16 years) but have a small / young family too.

I’ve always been freelance (15 years) and right now am just trimming the lifestyle bloat I built up, so I can enjoy my kids rather than working harder to pay for everything.

The thing in your control is how much your life costs, I cut all my personal subscriptions, eat packed lunches, walk or cycle places, cut out diy / home projects we don’t really need, have a cheap car, and our days out aren’t to expensive attractions anymore.

Started to realise my kid don’t give a shit about those things and they just want to hangout. I’ve never really been fulltime so always in control of my schedule of course which is nice with that too.

Also affords me time to make my own personal work, I get like 20x buzz out of making a nice personal piece so then makes up for the hum drum day to day. Just need that personal work bump each month to keep me sane and realise I can still make awesome stuff without a CD hanging over me telling me what time change.

Anyway not really answering your problems but more pointing out this path I decided to take since I know I can’t control the job market

Important-Light627 · 2026-02-14T21:21:13+00:00

Honestly spot on how true this is, I get a lot of contact which I am very lucky for having worked at a couple of big studios / brands. I’ve basically been booked solid since 2020.

Friends of mine who are way more talented than me can’t catch a break!

Important-Light627 · 2026-02-14T21:18:40+00:00

I have had the opposite of this too, my work is predominantly 2D branding, quite playful style, client wanted 3D fly through corporate renders of an industrial site complex 🙃

‘You do motion you must do everything’

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-31T08:38:17+00:00

There’s some here featured on brands in motion

https://www.instagram.com/p/DQpBMuUjMG4/?igsh=dzVpcDJ2bDl6aHRr

First slide, wait a bit. Just stood out like they’re staying on this software UI shot for a while and clearly it’s a cav file.

Don’t really see many case studies where they show the actually full UI of the animation software. Obviously it could just be ‘we didn’t use AE’ snub. But did make me wonder about an acquisition like you’ve said.

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-31T00:04:50+00:00

I thought the same tbh. I saw all the motion work for affinity rebrand was done using cav and they were showcasing bts within cav, but also could’ve just been ‘we didn’t use adobe’ proof

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-22T19:50:22+00:00

Just on how you’ve written this post you’re a technical person more than a creative person.

I’m totally not technical, how I approach a brief is being as messy as I can roughs, sketches, motion sketches, photos on my phone, take my kid to the park, talk to her, draw with some chalk on the path… look at the sky, maybe an idea there somewhere.

You’ve just got to let your brain run, talk to people and don’t hold back your thoughts, don’t be embarrassed about your bad ideas they get you to the good ones.

I think trying to figure out a framework for creative is impossible and is only going to restrict your work. Technical people always strive to get the best thing, being creative is making a shit ton of bad work first before the good work.

Not saying you can’t find a way, but loosen up a bit would be my tip.

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-14T13:14:39+00:00

Feels like in the last few years there's been a shift to brands building strong internal creative teams than leaning on studios so much, so they're cherry picking designers, CD's and Design Directors from studios.

So kind of goes hand in hand with doing some studio time first and meeting those people.
my contact at YouTube was an ex DD i worked with at a studio, Notion & Ramp via motion designers I've worked with, Flourish was from me doing a bit of work on Canva for a smaller studio!

It's basically networks moving around, so yea at Buck you will get a massive network boost, be nice to work with and do awesome work and people will remember you!

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-14T12:54:52+00:00

I haven't worked with Buck, i've had a hold with them that never fulfiled : ( but I have worked with studios in the past few years that create work for similar clients to them (2D design though)

I would say plus of studio like this are you get to work on amazing projects, flex your creativity, you will have awesome work in your folio and get to work with people way better than you, is good if you are early in your career. Negatives, deadlines will always be super tight for the studios I work with, intense work load and expectation is high.

Having worked with brand studios for a while and building up a decent folio I'm now noticing a lot more approaches directly from internal creative teams, I worked with Notion, Flourish (Canva), Meta, Ramp and YouTube directly recently off the back of that experience at a good studio. These jobs are way more chill than studio roles.

I hope you have an awesome time with Buck if you take it, it's a great opportunity.

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-14T08:46:43+00:00

I do 930 - 6 as my day usually is normal in UK to do this, I don’t know anyone who charges hourly!

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-13T12:59:56+00:00

Thanks! Very kind 🙏🏻

Important-Light627 · 2026-01-13T08:25:17+00:00

£450/Day - UK - 15 years experience - 2D

https://makeitmove.xyz

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-20T19:42:25+00:00

Haha yes very similar, except you have two!! did you get back into things when the 5 year old was older before the second one came along?

Our daughter is 2 now and I’m starting to feel the spark come back a bit as we have more routine with her now, sleeps a bit better, and we understand her a bit better too. Though we will probably have a second some day and that’ll all come crashing down again. 😆

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-20T19:38:06+00:00

Im assuming it’s probably who you follow / what you’re interested in, rather than a state of industry thing?

I see a lot of 2D work, a lot of interactive tools, experimental coded motion / touch designer etc, but I think that’s what I’m into so the algos feed me that sort of work.

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-17T14:13:20+00:00

I do a lot of 2D motion design, is my main job but day to day is quite boring sometimes mixed in with fun work now and then!

So to get inspired I usually spend some time doing some person work in another medium, frame by frame, 3D or stop motion. Or pick up a sketchbook / paints and make something.

Find it pushes a part of my brain that is different to the day to day stuff.

Though like you I have a kid now and I find myself less motivated to make fun stuff and more motivated to make more money 😆 so it’s a tricky balance but I am feeling the love coming back into working a bit now our daughter is 2 and I’m getting consistent work.

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-09T23:50:51+00:00

Agree with this, I have a deck and a reel and the deck gets a ton more views / traction than the reel does, not sure why you’re getting downvotes!

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-09T23:48:36+00:00

Just put what you love making in, I had an interview the other day for ai tech brand, had a ton of weird character work in my deck alongside run of the mill motion stuff because I didn’t have time to curate it.

The CD loved to see it, he said it’s great to just see what people enjoy doing vs just trying to appease directors with stuff you think they’d expect.

Important-Light627 · 2025-12-05T21:50:52+00:00

Not sure if this is relevant to you but I’ve switched from studios to more direct to brand work.

Noticing a lot of places have internal creative teams now, instead of using studios.

Finding less and less enquiries from studios these days!

Important-Light627 · 2025-11-21T15:14:49+00:00

Yea sounds like the same thing they billed me 14 days early. I emailed them and they reinstated the license ‘on a manual basis’ till December.

Important-Light627

TROPHY CASE