Any advice on getting hired for the first time as a vfx artist?

General Discussion
#1

I bought gabriel aguiar’s vfx course 3 months ago. In the first 2 months I sort of did it, but recently I’ve been dedicating a lot of time to learning vfx. I find it pretty enjoyable. I want this to turn into a career and would like some advice. I heard companies can just reach out to you on artstation if they like your work enough. What are some other websites I can look for a vfx job on? How long did it take for you to get your first job as a vfx artist? What are some core things to know well before getting hired? I use unity btw. Also have an associate’s degree in game design. I don’t know how much of a difference that makes though.

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#2

Lots of questions, but will try to answer as much as possible xd

I heard companies can just reach out to you on artstation if they like your work enough.

  • It’s mostly the case for mid/seniors etc. At that point you get lots of offers on linkedin or email. For junior it’s much rarer to happen unfortunately, but it’s still important to market yourself properly :smiley:
    Having: artstation, twitter, linkedin and posting your effects there (best if they are not just straight up from tutorials/courses as it’s easily visible. Try making your own as those really show your skills) and slowly build up some community around you. It will take a long time, but it’s definitely worth it! Some offers might appear from it (but I wouldn’t expect unless you build a decent reach)

What are some other websites I can look for a vfx job on?

  • Haha that’s a tricky one XD So from my experience, lots of companies abandoned posting VFX offers as in many cases it doesn’t really give results to them (unlike other positions) and it costs companies money. Still worth checking stuff like workwithindies etc. but it’s rare to find offers there.
    Though tons of companies look for vfx artists and best way is to check company sites and look at careers/jobs. I like to use: https://www.gamedevmap.com or just browsing games on steam and checking out the developers of games I like and going to their website and then applying.

How long did it take for you to get your first job as a vfx artist?

  • I’m not a good example, as I got a job as a vfx artist before even I knew about vfx art xd but overall it depends. Can be 3 months, can be 2 years, can be anything in between. Depends on plenty of factors:
  1. Skills (How well you understand vfx and pipeline)
  2. Portfolio (How well you present your skills and knowledge)
  3. Experience (including gamejams etc.)
  4. Soft skills (especially during interview, just showing you are a nice person to be around and that you will be good to work with)
  5. Networking (much easier to get job from recommendation, so worth talking on forums like this, asking questions and helping out others!)
  6. LUCK (one of the most important factors, recruitment is quite random most of the time. Sometimes you won’t get a job even if you are the best candidate, sometimes you applied at the wrong time etc. You have no influence over this factor and it changes a lot)

There are more, but those are main ones.

What are some core things to know well before getting hired?

  • Reading those articles might come in handy: Blog (on the Start Here part you can just go one by one)

Degree doesn’t really help much unfortunately. Worth mentioning, but definitely put experiences, skills, projects much higher on your CV than education.

I hope it’s helpful! Good luck on the job search :smiley:

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