Don't Be Mean Mr Carradean is complete - time for reflection

Now that I have finally finished my film Don't Be Mean Mr Carradean after months of hard work, I feel really excited (as well as a little nervous) to hand my film in tomorrow. So to finish off, here's my self-reflection for this project:

I really enjoyed making my grad film Don’t Be Mean Mr Carradean. I liked having the freedom to do a film on whatever topic I wanted, in whatever method I wanted. It gave me a chance to learn how to use TV Paint, which I actually think is a really good program.  I feel proud of myself for having taught myself, through trying and persevering, how to use this new program. 

Coming up with the idea was quite difficult, and I spent my whole summer thinking, “what am I supposed to make my film about?” But when I got my inspiration, it was really easy to come up with a storyline. Because I wrote the story while I was really angry, it made my storyline better as there was an emotional drive behind it.

The design process was quite easy for me because I pretty much saw how I wanted my film to look while I was writing it. However, if I’d had more time to work on my film, I would have liked to add more detail into my backgrounds and add a shading and watercolour painting effect to my characters. Although I do like the texture I made for my film.

The most difficult part of making my film was figuring out how to stage the scene where Jimmy is helping his friends to escape the net. I found my tutorials with Zuri Ainz really helpful for this as she gave me some great advice. It also helped to hear a different person’s opinion on my film; plus she really liked it which gave me a needed confidence boost.

While making my film, I learned that my time management skills are good and my speed of working improved. This lead me to be able to complete my film before the day of the hand in. I have also found that this project has made me feel more confident in myself, as well as my skills as an animator. Don’t Be Mean Mr Carradean has consistently gotten good reactions from my classmates and tutors.

Overall, I am really proud of my film and I think it has turned out really well; and this has given me new confidence and a stronger drive to go out and start a career in animation. This, combined with the professional portfolio project has made me feel far more prepared to find a job in the animation industry than I did at the beginning of my third year.  I also feel more inclined to carry on making my own short animations, especially if I can’t find a job straight away, and I still plan on improving my show reel.