Portfolio Review with Steve Swanborough at The Neighbourhood.

At 10am this morning, I headed to the Northern Quarter to go and meet a successful friend of mine who now works at The Neighbourhood. Steve Swanborough graduated from Stockport College two years ago now, and has managed to work his way to being a junior designer/animator for the creative studio. He was a very busy bee, so I really appreciated the time he spent looking through my work.

He said that by looking at my portfolio, he could clearly see that I had selected the pieces of work that best suited me and showed what I want/would like to do. The main worry I had with my portfolio was the amount of work that is in it. It has slowly become smaller because I have taken everything out that I thought wasn't up to standard, or didn't really reflect what I would like to do. Luckily, one of the things that Steve said about my portfolio, was that he could tell I hadn't just added 'page fillers' which is something he sees a lot of graduates do.

He also told me to take advantage of the fact we finish earlier than most other Universities, and think of it as a head start. Network before the show starts and put yourself out there before the rest of the graduate competition gets a chance! It was refreshing to hear from someone that they believe that you know what you are doing. Steve told me that it was good to know that I didn't just expect to have a job once I have a degree, and that I am fully aware I will have to work hard to get any attention from employers. He felt confident that I knew what to do after I have graduated.

Because Steve is an animator, he was looking for images in my portfolio that he thought he would be able to bring to life. He said that the small handmade 3D objects I made, such as the cardboard birds and hammers look really good to animators. So when I show my portfolio to anyone else, it may be a good idea to think about how some things could be animated and mention it to whoever I am showing it to.

And the main advice given to me from Steve, was to find work experience and look for internships, because that is the best way to get your foot in to the industry!