This episode features Egyptian stop motion animator dina Amin, who reveals how quitting her job and deconstructing appliances led to a full time career in stop motion. You’ll also learn: *How to make it as a stop motion animator in Egypt *What you need to give up to truly follow something you love *What dina does to get new client work ~[Sponsored Message]~ This episode is sponsored by HUE Animation Studio, which is a stop-motion starter kit that introduces beginner animators, aged 7 - 13, to claymation, lip-synching, rotoscoping, cut-out animation and more! The kit contains: *The flexible and posable HUE HD camera with a built-in microphone… *Their easy-to-use animation software with onion skinning, time lapse, and chroma key tools… *The HUE Book of Animation containing step-by-step instructions to create 20 exciting stop-motion videos… *And digital resources such as free sound effects, storyboard templates, printable backgrounds and activity sheets. So, if you’d like to start creating stop motion videos, but don’t know how to start - HUE Animation Studio is perfect for you. Head over to www.huehd.com/ ~ Social Links: Check out dina’s SkillShare course: https://www.skillshare.com/classes/Stop-Motion-for-Beginners-Create-Expert-Animations-in-Dragonframe/1564937960?via=search-layout-grid Check out dina’s website: https://www.dinaaamin.com/ Check out dina’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/dinaaamin Follow dina on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dina.a.amin/

This episode features Shawn Krause, the Creative Director of Animation and Story at Spire Studios. Krause brings with him more than two decades of experience working as an animator and animation supervisor at Pixar, which he shares in this chat. You'll also learn: *Why Pixar hired him only one year into CalArts *The number one piece of advice Krause gives to animation newbies *What it was like working at Pixar before the Toy Story days

This episode features writer, director, and VFX/Animation Production Manager Wahid Ibn Reza. Originally from Bangladesh, Reza became an accomplished actor before deciding to give up everything to pursue a film career in Vancouver, Canada. In this chat, Reza shares the impact that decision had and the unheard-of risks he took that led to big career payoffs. Tune in to Ibele and Reza to hear: *How to become top-of-mind for new production roles *The must-needed skills to develop for a successful production management role *How to get into exclusive meetings with higher-ups Social Links *Watch Reza’s spot on Conan: https://vimeo.com/39140173 *Watch The Paranoid Cat: https://vimeo.com/188103427 *Watch the Surviving 71 Teaser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jx3-pRmMdo *Check out Wahid’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNUI-1QPKrb9J2hqcrsU4Sg *Watch the toothpaste commercial that made Wahid famous in Bangladesh: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDz5cl_Uopk *Find Wahid on Directors.ca: https://www.directors.ca/directors/wahid-ibn-reza

This episode features Co-founder and Director of Toronto-based Head Gear Animation. Since its inception in 1997, Head Gear has worked with world-class clients like Nestlé, Ikea, Kellogg's, and Sesame Workshop, and has garnered a long list of awards for their work in stop motion, 2D, live-action, and puppetry. In this chat, Angel shares how he quickly went from animator, to director, to starting his own studio, and all the ups and downs that has brought over the last two decades. You’ll also learn: *How to start your own professional studio on a dime *The secret sauce to staying in business (successfully) in the long term *The number one way to sell a new client on stop motion Social Links: *Visit Head Gear’s website: https://www.headgearanimation.com *Check out Head Gear on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/head_gear_animation/

Watch the teaser for Kara here: https://vimeo.com/563435693 This chat features Turkish/American/German stop motion film, commercial, and music video director, Sinem Sakaoglu. She shares what it was like moving from Turkey to the US and finally Germany in pursuit of a creatively fulfilling animation career. You’ll also learn: *The unique funding structure in Europe which allows directors to produce feature films *Sinem’s path from businesswoman to stop motion director *How to consistently land work when you’re competing with every other country in Europe for projects *Watch the teaser for Kara here: https://vimeo.com/563435693 *Check out Sinem’s website: https://www.sinemsaka.com/ *Follow Sinem on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sinem_sakaoglu/

This episode features stop motion animator Max Winston (of I Live in the Woods fame) who shares his journey into running his own independent stop motion studio, RatBat studios. He also shares: *How he landed clients like Cartoon Network *Three tricks that have improved his animation performance *What it took to emotionally leave his steady job and go independent ~[Sponsored Message]~ This episode is sponsored by HUE Animation Studio, which is a stop-motion starter kit that introduces beginner animators, aged 7 - 13, to claymation, lip-synching, rotoscoping, cut-out animation and more! The kit contains: *The flexible and posable HUE HD camera with a built-in microphone… *Their easy-to-use animation software with onion skinning, time lapse, and chroma key tools… *The HUE Book of Animation containing step-by-step instructions to create 20 exciting stop-motion videos… *And digital resources such as free sound effects, storyboard templates, printable backgrounds and activity sheets. So, if you’d like to start creating stop motion videos, but don’t know how to start - HUE Animation Studio is perfect for you. Head over to www.huehd.com/ ~ Follow Max on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madmaxwinston/ Check out Max’s website: https://www.ratbatstudios.com/about-us

This chat features Mikey Heller, Head Writer for Cartoon Network’s We Bare Bears and the spin-off series, We Baby Bears. In this chat he shares how publishing webcomics landed him his first writing role, and a behind-the-scenes look into the writing room at Cartoon Network. You’ll also learn: *How to make your writing stand out *What to do to bump your application to the top of a writing position *Three ways animators and writers can better work together ~[Sponsored Message]~ This episode is sponsored by HUE Animation Studio, which is a stop-motion starter kit that introduces beginner animators, aged 7 - 13, to claymation, lip-synching, rotoscoping, cut-out animation and more! The kit contains: *The flexible and posable HUE HD camera with a built-in microphone… *Their easy-to-use animation software with onion skinning, time lapse, and chroma key tools… *The HUE Book of Animation containing step-by-step instructions to create 20 exciting stop-motion videos… *And digital resources such as free sound effects, storyboard templates, printable backgrounds and activity sheets. So, if you’d like to start creating stop motion videos, but don’t know how to start - HUE Animation Studio is perfect for you. Head over to www.huehd.com/ ~ *Follow Mikey’s webcomic on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yoyorobot/ *Check out Mikey’s website: https://mikeyheller.bigcartel.com/ *Tweet at Mikey on Twitter: https://twitter.com/yoyorobot

This episode features Musa Brooker, a Stop Motion Animator turned Creative Director. In this chat Musa shares his journey from animator to lead, supervisor, director, and his most recent role as Creative Director for Six Point Harness, the Academy Award Winning studio that produced Hair Love. You’ll also learn: *How to make the jump from animator to director in your career *What studios look for when hiring a Creative Director *The types of skills you can develop that will help you advance in your animation career Social links: Follow Brooker on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moosaybrooker/ Check out Brooker’s Website: Platypuspictureworks.com Catch up with Six Point Harness’ latest work: https://www.sixpointharness.com/

This episode features Co-Founder and CEO of SyncSketch, Bernhard Haux. Bernhard is also a multi-talented animator who has worked with several big-name companies such as Pixar, Oculus, and Facebook. In this chat, Bernhard shares how and why he created SyncSketch and where the platform is heading. You’ll also learn: *How Bernhard ended up working at Pixar (for 8 years) *The biggest hurdle in animation that SyncSketch solves *How Bernhard created SyncSketch from scratch Check out SyncSketch: https://syncsketch.com/

This chat features Ottawa Animator Joel MacKenzie who shares his philosophy on how to manifest your dream animation career. Joel’s career has spanned writing, directing, pitching, and character design for clients like Cartoon Network, Sesame Workshop, HBO, and the CBC, as well as creating his own pilots, Spaceman and Robotron, The Myth of Robo Wonderkid, and Tuff Pom. You’ll also learn: *What to do if you’re working at a job that you like, but it’s not exactly what you want? *What it’s like to go through development for a pitch *How to make a career out of being your own artist Check out Joel on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joeltron2000/ Visit Joel’s website: https://joel-mackenzie.com/