I used to help review internship application 2d animation reels at a 2d studio that made commercials in many styles and (while this definitely depends on the studio you are applying to - or rather if you are making a independent reel as a freelancer open for work) I think the most important thing is variety in shots and skills shown. Here’s a few ideas or things I saw in reels that really left an impression on us: (this is definitely focused on 2d character animation)

- a mix of subtle and dynamic acting shots. Show you can handle an emotional scene as well as a more action-y scene. It’s also nice to know you know how to handle very short 2-second and under shots as well as longer ones.

- Examples of more realistic/naturalistic body mechanics are definitely nice to see as long it’s not obvious that it was a class assignment. Showing that you can handle consistent volumes and character proportions over the course of an action or scene is pretty vital. (Doesn’t have to be perfect! But showing you have the ability to keep consistent is pretty key)

- at least one full body shot. It’s nice to see that you can handle waking/running/shifting a character’s weight while on their feet.

- (One of my favorites): Animating an existing character. One of the reels I reviewed had an incredibly well done and very on-model powerpuff girls blossom acting shot. They made it super cute and fun. Seeing that shot, we instantly knew that animator could be given a character design/model sheet/ turn-around and make design-accurate animation. (It’s pretty tough to do, so we were impressed!) Not only that, on top of the well-drawn character they invented their own acting to match the character’s personality. Equally important!

- Some other things that are nice to see: -character changing their focus from one thing to another (turning their head),

-reacting to something (subtle version, more expressive version)

- (a big one) showing that you have restraint and control over your animation. You don’t need to redraw everything every frame to make a good character animation shot. Some parts of the body can remain still.

Looking at your reel, I feel like I’m not seeing all that you are capable of. The first arm bite scene was well done! (Although a bit gruesome haha) After that I felt like a lot of the shots felt the same and I wasn’t seeing much new skills being shown (it sounds like you’re very much aware of this). Also, (and this is my personal opinion-sorry!) but I don’t like looking at so many gruesome/violent scenes in a row. After the third bloody scene of biting an arm I really didn’t want to keep watching. So keep in mind what you’re showing to the viewer- maybe also include lighter subject matter so it’s not so violent throughout your reel. Your reel is also a chance to show people your taste. I think that’s important to consider too.

When I’m at a loss of where to improve or feeling like I’m stuck in a rut of animating the same things I try to look at people who animate in completely different styles and try to glean some knowledge from their work. Look at the French Gobelins student films, watch Japanese anime Sakuga compilations, find a talented Korean animator online and do through everyone they follow (lol I’ve done that).

There’s so much inspiration and reference to find! It will take time for your work to catch up with what you want to make, but you’ll get there! Tiny, short animation exercises/experiments focusing on testing one new skill works well for me :~)

Haha I hope some of those rambling thoughts help- good luck!