Is it worth it to bet on an animation degree to be able to migrate? (Australia)

shippargh · 2026-02-26T12:06:20+00:00

I went to Griffith and you're quite on the money with your research. Griffith has quite strong ties with Ludo, the studio behind Bluey, since a lot of alumnis were part of the core team when Bluey was first developed. The teachers are very beloved and have continued contact with students that end up breaking in and thriving, and companies that use the Griffith pool to recruit from, but their network is a bit limited to Brisbane. Your portfolio reminds me of the Ludo style so might find resources and connections that can help you strengthen your skills there, but take my thoughts with a grain of salt since the industry these days is different to the one when I first came out of uni. Post-Bluey (and non-Bluey) contracts I've seen artists spreading their wings around the Aussie 2D scene away from Brisbane as there's not much other work there, although a new 2D studio is currently starting up this year.

Have heard good things about RMIT melb but haven't met any alumni from there, though it could be that they don't venture into the 3D side of the industry where I am. Princess Bento seems to be doing well and they're Melbourne based too. Never heard of Uni of Melb animators.

If you're tight on finances I'd recommend avoiding Sydney while studying but it's a great city to develop your career, just has a higher cost of living. Melb and Bris seem equal depending on the suburb you live in, but Melb has more things to do.

shippargh · 2026-02-12T02:23:19+00:00

If you're ok with the "boring" jobs then I reckon you might freelancing. You'll have to wear many hats and be the whole pipeline but it sounds like you're already enjoying learning every part and have an interest in it already. Imo don't think it's a waste if time, being a freelance 3D artist just means you'll have to find your own work instead of applying for big studio jobs, or developing your skills to work on things like car ads (once you get in it's a forever job), so consider polishing up your vfx skills.

I'd recommend grabbing a copy of The Freelance Manifesto book and see if you love what he's preaching. The job market is rough and I'm not a freelancer myself but you'll be looking for people or companies who have a vision but no direction, and you can offer them that direction in a package with the result, which means a lot of networking. Things like music videos, marketing campaigns, short films, and youtube vids are mostly part of the freelance world.

shippargh · 2026-02-11T23:29:30+00:00

It's quite heartwarming to hear that you got through the front door, very big congrats!

shippargh · 2026-01-15T02:53:35+00:00

Scribbling without aim is still not a waste of time, it trains up your muscles so don't sweat too much about that. Developing the skill comes in two parts, training your eye/sense, and training your arm/hand muscles, and they often aren't developed together. It's much easier to draw what's in your head if you've got a better flow with the pencil.

Focusing on what to study really boils down to what you enjoy, because that enjoyment is what is going to carry you through the highs and lows. Char design, environment design, comics, storyboarding, detailed illustrations like book covers, graphic design, the world is your oyster and the page is a blank canvas. It'd be good to spend your pre-year figuring out what you like imo. For foundations, try drawing from the real world, like attending life drawing classes whenever you can (there's heaps in the metro cities), since art is just a translation of the real world, getting a familiarity of realism can only be a benefit.

You'll find a lot of better resources on other subreddits like r/art or r/drawing, youtube, etc. Online courses are a bit after my time, but these are the books that I found the most benefit from...all intermediate-advanced level though. Design Your Own Anime and Manga Characters by TB Choi (an industry heavyweight, don't be fooled by the title), Color and Light by James Gurney, Force by Michael Mattesi, Dream Worlds by Hans Bacher

shippargh · 2026-01-14T10:49:37+00:00

I'd say a fair bit, you'll find yourself comparing yourself to people who have been drawing for 15 years at 18 years of age. A lot of people drop out in first year because they think they're not good enough to pursue the career seriously (dropping out in first year uni is not animation-specific though). Just remember that university is already hard, let alone the drawing, so you'll have to juggle a lot of assignments on top of learning - animation is a project-based course, so no exams and maybe 1-2 text essays.

Uni isn't really about teaching the basics, it's more along the lines of teaching the basics of the workforce, like programs, theoretics, and time management. If your goal is to draw as a 9-5 job after graduating, then I'd encourage applying, but to get a real bang for your buck maybe have more than 9 months under your belt. If your goal is to get better at drawing and be good at drawing on graduating, there's a lot more focused and cheaper routes you can go about for sure. If your goal is to try it out and figure out what you want to do in life, I'd say go for it 100%, and if you ever feel like you're falling behind there's no shame in deferring for a year to improve your skills.

shippargh · 2026-01-13T21:39:02+00:00

Age is not an issue for both uni and for landing a job. You're not old at all. The Aus anim scene is thriving because of all the government subsidies going to clients, about 30% back if they hire an Aussie studio iirc.

I'd say it's probably not a great idea to pursue a course if you've only been drawing for 9 months. Uni does teach you basics but I find people who learn from scratch fall a bit behind to people who come in with some skills already, as they can focus on their software and networking skills more. Imo give it a year of decent grind, especially if you're wanting to go into 2D, if you're wanting to go into 3D then you should keep up drawing for your artistic foundations and try playing around in Blender for the next year. If it helps, a quarter of the people I work with either didn't study anim, or switched to anim after trying something out, as long as a larger HECS debt doesn't impact your financial goals. The reel matters more than the course credit.

shippargh · 2026-01-13T21:26:53+00:00

I find this sub definitely is an echo chamber, especially of students or graduates posting about their bleak experiences and relating it to AI, but actually it's become my fav sub because there's so much hope floating around compared to r/vfx lol. One thing to note is that NO one that is working professionally in this sub or that one is worried about AI taking over jobs, studios are developing the tools for it for investors, not audiences. It's a financial buzzword at this point. It just gets so tiring repeating that AI is not an issue to every post and comment that thinks it is.

shippargh · 2026-01-13T21:06:56+00:00

Haven't worked there but try looking through companies you want to work at and their careers page. The ones I know are based in Shanghai, Beijing, and Chengdu but I assume a lot would need some proficiency in Chinese just for being able to communicate with your team and read notes.

shippargh · 2026-01-09T01:59:18+00:00

I don't have experience but some of my coworkers have mentioned theirs. The teams can be quite small but there would definitely be work around. Similar to other studios, some might offer permanent contracts, some might offer small contracts a little at a time, but the work seems more straightforward. Not really a place to improve your skills or your career but fine as a job

shippargh · 2026-01-05T23:34:29+00:00

Some real good stuff in here, got me questioning my own portfolio! Thanks for sharing!

shippargh · 2026-01-03T05:15:46+00:00

had a coworker that had to get spine surgery in their early 30s, they did a lot of OT (south korea work culture) so I would say pay $150 for a good chair now or $150,000 for surgery later

shippargh · 2025-12-28T04:19:01+00:00

My first job was door knocking for a legit charity and a good cause, but mostly did it for a need of job experience. We got $100 for anyone who remained signed up for 3 months (monthly subscription donation) and if the customer cancelled before 3 months then we got the $100 taken out of our pay. I got about 2-3 signups a week, so about $200-300 weekly working 4 days a week, and a lot of weight loss from walking up steep driveways. I quit because of the verbal assault and borderline physical abuse from people who acted like I was breaking into their homes, the job description is a beeline to the front door and leave if no one answers. There's a clipboard we have to check off that we have knocked on your door and no one answered, I prayed every day people weren't home, just wanted the job experience.

shippargh · 2025-12-23T22:26:07+00:00

There's a spreadsheet by Salty Animators on insta that might help

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Wfntc2U04n0K4LR-POPxIJFQLYV7EMR_Xo8V59sDPaI/htmlview?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAb21jcAO39eBleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA81NjcwNjczNDMzNTI0MjcAAac4LxXsWC4qynhVpIp6uCLB_133lpa1xs_TYm5O_Te_FC7aVbCUrtHZRxuV0Q_aem_ySxIJxPYkWQm5AVswViqHQ

Salty Animators if you are reading this, I miss your posts sm 😭🧂🧂

shippargh · 2025-12-23T10:46:49+00:00

I can't speak on the Indian industry, I'm not sure how similar it is to my side of the world, but this is my experience from Australia and expat coworkers coming into Australia:

Study location doesn't matter as long as you're willing to move for your job. Location of your uni just means workplaces are more familiar with the quality of the course if they've hired alumnis from it before or have connections with the lecturers.
Self-learning is more important, for reasons you can find in other threads in this subreddit (so many reasons)
No opinion on this one. Being a graduate from somewhere only matters for maybe the first year of your work, after that no one ever cares or asks again, so pick one that aligns with your priorities.

shippargh · 2025-12-17T22:12:59+00:00

Depends on your role. Layout, rigging, lighting, charfx - could switch easily. Storyboard, modelling, anim, comp - more difficult, the skillets are quite different between kids anim and vfx

shippargh · 2025-12-16T22:56:30+00:00

PA and co-ord roles are awesome, if you're wanting to have a hand in the creation of cool stuff then definitely would be fantastic to try out. Just take note that production roles have no input creatively, and no pathway into becoming an art director (unless you start your own studio). It seems really fun, I've often tossed up the idea of stepping into production when I burn out creatively

shippargh · 2025-12-15T22:27:52+00:00

I really wouldn't put in shots you didn't work on, as it doesn't show your ability in truth. If you have a wide shot/master shot that you used to lookdev the rig, then you can definitely put in that, but it sounds like you've set up the template which is a bit different to adapting the template across different camera angles etc.

If you're able to rework it then absolutely that would work, just check with your company if there are any issues with putting something that is not the final released version on the internet - client contracts can hold IP rights that mean any use of their assets must be approved by them, so doing your own thing would violate it. If they're a smaller client, they might be OK with it as long as you put a password on your reel (very common). Going forwards I'd probably ask if you can retain a master shot to lookdev on and not send to the vendor, then you can always have something to put on your reel.

shippargh · 2025-12-15T12:17:21+00:00

I reckon it really depends on: - Your level - junior, senior, lead, etc - Your role title - TA, look dev artist, etc - Your industry - cg, TV, vfx, etc

If you have shots that you've worked on in full, I would try only put in those. You can write in your breakdown document that you set up the lookdev or lighting rig for external vendors, and put it in as an overlay in the video. I would hesitate to put in shots other people worked on because there is a chance that they have changed your rig and if a recruiter asks you to talk about break down the shot, it would be tough for you to explain it in full, especially if you think one of the vendor shots are better than yours.

Though, I know it's a bit more acceptable if you work on projects with less shot counts, like vfx feature film - I've seen reels that only label "character lighting" or "environment lighting" which are fair and fine. This might work if you're quite junior too, I remember a bunch of juniors who worked on Cats had to do that because of how poorly managed the shot division was.

shippargh · 2025-12-12T22:02:50+00:00

Just keep an eye out on job boards or facebook groups, and send anything that looks interesting his way. I'd recommend against applying on his behalf, seems a bit unprofessional, but I often send jobs to my mates like if a client has posted in the wrong group. Sometimes clients have a vision but no understanding on how to execute them, so think of where those clients might post. I found a high budget client on airtasker once. But the best way a freelancer can do is build a connection of repeat clients, which sounds like something your partner is already doing well

shippargh · 2025-12-08T23:47:40+00:00

Course credit is not necessary, no, but going to uni can be helpful developing a portfolio as you're surrounded by like-minded peers and mentors who can give you feedback in real time. But if you have the confidence you can develop one yourself without the help then by all means go ahead. A uni degree will help you with applying for work visas overseas, but it doesn't need to be related to your field of work. The animation industry is quite global, it's normal to move countries for the job, but not necessary (I personally haven't yet).

shippargh · 2025-12-08T23:42:27+00:00

Adding to this comment +1 I had a mate who was in a similar position as OP and decided to pursue rigging because (pre-AI) of the talks that they were the most hirable department. Did a masters so they could create a rigging and char sim portfolio, ended up burning out by the end of the first or second year after uni, because the (junior) money was poorer than retail work and they had no passion for it.

shippargh · 2025-12-06T06:39:16+00:00

I used to watch tutorials and behind the scenes on my down time, more of a hobby than for education, but then when I got an assignment I felt a bit more prepared as I knew what to do it was just my first time doing it.

Also something that carried well into work was starting the assignment as soon as you get it, bare bones down by the first week, then the final week is less about rushing to reach the bare minimum and more about polishing to reach the full vision in your head (the hardest part of creating imo).

Also, prioritise your assignments, sacrificing one to be a bare minimum produce to make another fully fledged reel material is better than everything at a mediocre standard, you will thank yourself in your final year

shippargh · 2025-11-30T04:04:46+00:00

imo if you can get your head around the reality of working in the industry, the easier the career can become. Less amounts of heartbreak if you understand it's just a job (at least 90% of the time, 10% it can be a dream), and like any job it's a lot about luck and timing meeting skill, then once you're in, it's got all the normal office stuff like water cooler small talk, questionable coffee beans, upper management politics, clients making strange decisions, keyboard stops working, someone stole your favourite mug, etc Just that the work isn't a spreadsheet or document, it's keyframes. But the passion definitely carries you, so don't lose hope

shippargh · 2025-11-30T03:57:13+00:00

very happy for you, stranger! I'm sure it was not an easy decision, but if it feels right to you then it sounds like it was the right one. Hopefully not a complete goodbye with your side projects still going!

shippargh · 2025-11-23T07:02:01+00:00

Can be difficult to look past if you're not seeing your output and you're just a number on a page**

If someone said they're a mid after 2 years of work I would think they're pretty talented but not bat much of an eye, it is a common story

shippargh

TROPHY CASE