I wish all of you the best of luck! And for those who got their rejection letters, don’t worry. Whenever a door closes another one opens.
What if no door opens up? Maybe it’s time for a career change? Not to discourage others, but there are only so many jobs out there and so many people gunning for them. And with the way the industry has taken a turn for the worst with studios closing, you’ll be applying for the same jobs as those industry veterans who have lost their jobs due to studio shutdowns. RIP Image Movers Digital, Asylum, and CafeFX.
“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. The brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They are there to stop the other people!” - Randy Pausch
joro, I think your post just made me cry a little.
I didn’t say the the door doesn’t have to lead to animation. If you are have doubts, then you defintely should do a career change. Animation is one of those things you need to have your whole soul in to have happy and successful.
Don’t worry though! Animation isn’t shrinking in jobs, it’s a growing industry. Just because it’s competitive to get an internship and one of the biggest studios doesn’t mean you won’t get a job. There are animation jobs in animation movie studios, TV studios, video game productions, graphic design, advertising. The possibilities are endless.
So when I say another doors open, It can be many things, not just an internship. It could be more school, a different major, more specialzation in animation, a different studio, or anything else. Don’t let this kill your dream, there are many more doors.
Hi all, I just registered in order to post a response to joro.
I’m really upset by your negative comments. They’re really a downer, and make people feel bad. It’s good to be a realist, but shooting down people’s dreams isn’t the way to go. I’m sure you’re a great person, but please realize that it’s very hard to decode what someone means through text. Perhaps you don’t mean badly, but the way you word things is quite hurtful.
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EDIT: This wasn’t meant to be an attack on joro, and I hope it doesn’t come across that way! The application process is always nervewracking for me, so I’m probably oversensitive to any comments on how the process is going. D: The rest of my extremely long post is just about my experiences, which I was thinking of posting anyways. I just wanted to remind everyone that communicating online through text is really hard sometimes, since you lose subtle nuances and anything can be interpreted any which way.
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I was very fortunate to be a part of PUP last summer. I’m still not quite certain how I got in, lol, but a lot of it had to do with luck, and fortuitously having some pieces in my portfolio that were somewhat what they were looking for. I had no 3D experience, so I turned in a sort of mock reel/slideshow of my fine art, a lot of which was anatomy and technical drawings, which they liked. I was completely shocked and surprised that I got in, and so very blessed.
One thing about Pixar that is amazing is that everyone there is so positive, upbeat, and helpful. These are some of the best artists in the world, yet they are amazingly humble and kind. I feel like this is the type of people they’re looking to hire, and part of what they look for in the interview. They want people passionate about learning how Pixar tells stories, and welcoming them into this collaboration. Because movies are all about collaboration - you need everyone on the team for the product to turn out successful. It’s not about competition and knocking down everyone in your way to succeed (whatever you call “success,” be it working at Pixar or something else).
But being completely honest, it does take luck. I’m sure we all work extremely hard on our demo reels, and we all work hard to improve our skills. However, a lot of hiring comes down to luck (and this is true in any other job situation). First of all, there has to be an opening. And it’s true, the industry right now has few openings since the economy is still kind of sucky. You can be the greatest [story artist, character designer, modeler, lighter, etc.] in the world, but if there isn’t a job opening, you aren’t getting a job. This has been super frustrating, especially for recent grads and people in school now.
Also, not getting into Pixar is not the end of the world. If you’re truly passionate about 3D animation and films, then being able to do that as a job anywhere is pretty spanking awesome (to me, anyways). Being rejected does not mean you’re a terrible artist - it could mean you need to put more work in your reel, or your skills were not what they needed at the moment, or they simply didn’t have an opening. And it’s great you had the balls to apply anyways. Keep applying. They love seeing improvement year after year; it means you’re really dedicated, and you’re working on getting better! I’m always upset to hear when people don’t apply (to anything, in general) because they say they “won’t get in anyways.” Yes. If you never apply, you’ll never get in.
There are also a lot of paths to getting a job at Pixar. Some people are lucky and get an internship or resident position right after college, then stay on. For other people, it takes years of applying to get the job. As an example (if I remember correctly from an interview I saw), Aaron Hartline, an animator there, applied for 10 years until he got the job, and during this time he worked at Blue Sky and helped make awesome movies like Ice Age and Horton Hears a Who!
As a timeline, last year I got an e-mail for an interview March 29, had my interview April 2, and found out I got in April 19. I think it’s actually highly varied, because some people said they found out they got an interview in April, and some people went through a couple interviews way early in the year because there were recruiters at their university. That’s what my experience was. Either way, the waiting is always the worst for me.
To end, good luck to everyone! Keep working hard. We’re all very passionate about animation. We all want badly to have a career in this. (I’m assuming.) So let’s be glad there are brick walls to keep people who don’t want this as badly, who won’t work as hard as us, to get a job at Pixar or another studio. I look forward to the day when I watch a movie (any movie!) and see y’all’s names in the credits!
(P.S. I’m super sorry for this long block of text. I tend to ramble.)
Apologies if I did make people feel bad. But yes, a lot of it has to do with luck. If you let my little rant stop you from still trying, then maybe you don’t want it badly enough as Randy Pausch said. Though not all animators end up in the visual effects and animation industry, there are other animation jobs out there. Just to make people feel happy again, here’s something a friend of mine at Pixar told me just a few nights ago.
“Just keep doing the best you can with your passions or dreams and continue to grow. This is something that takes time. Patience is a virtue. In the meantime, network and connect with people that do what you want to do, seek inspiration, see how you’re doing (a self evaluation, being self aware), discover where you need to go to get there, and find ways to do it.” - Pixar buddy who will not be named
Then again, just to be a little realistic about things. Here’s something my friend who’s been there since The Incredibles told me.
“i don’t mean to sound jaded… but at the end of the day, it’s a job : it doesn’t define your entire life. actually, one piece of advice if you make it to an interview - sounding like a “fanboy” is very good way to fail an interview. if you want to show your appreciation for the quality of the work of your employer, impress them by how much in-depth knowledge you have of the actual work but quoting lines from Yoda for instance during an interview at Lucas is probably going to get you nowhere fast…” - Another Pixar buddy who will not be named
Again, apologies for possibly making others feel bad! I think my view of things might be a bit more pessimistic than optimistic. 
fettucine, thank you. Not to be overdramatic or anything, but that was just a really eloquent and thoughtful post. I especially like the part where you say that not getting into Pixar is not the end of the world… Last year when I didn’t get in, I was fortunate enough to land a job at a small local company that has treated me amazingly well and given me some opportunities I wouldn’t have gotten if I’d just given up after not getting into PUP. Pixar is the Harvard of this industry…but I feel fortunate every day that I found a field I love to work in, and I just plan to keep working toward my goals. 
I think it’s just hard to want something so badly and passionately. I’m sure there are many more people waiting to find out who check this forum but don’t post on it, as I did last year.
This is exactly what I mean. If you want to go into animation just to work at a certain place, you’re wasting your time. Animation is a craft, and you want to enjoy it no matter where you are! It’s understandable if you perfer one place to another though, just enjoy animating!
fettucine: Thank you for your post! It’s nice to hear from someone who’s been in this process and been there. I hope you continue to post!
joro126: No harm done, just keep in mind how you word things. I was making a postitive and supportive comment, and didn’t appriciate being shot down like that! But I understand how in text thinsg come off the wrong way. Pixar Planet is one big strong community, and we’re here to support one another. Just keep that in mind!
In response to the posts above, I think I’ll voice the fears that pretty much every college student must have: being overeducated, and underpaid… or even worse, unemployed.
It is such a terrifying thought to think that for the last 13 years all I’ve wanted to do is animate, animate, animate, and that’s what has encouraged me to get good grades and keeping pushing the envelope all through high school and university. Coming up on my senior year of university, it is EXTREMELY frightening to suddenly come down off that cloud of blind optimism, and realize… there IS no guarantee.
Although no one has directly said it, everyone here is I’m sure afraid that they’ll never get to fulfill their dreams at Pixar, or any other animation studio; I know it keeps me awake at night. I’ll preface by saying that I have the upmost respect for every professor and teacher that has ever been good enough to tutor and train me; but I just do not feel I am cut out to teach…
I hear friends and family try to coax me by saying; well, you can always get a teaching job. And don’t get me wrong, if it comes to that, I am not going to be picky. However, I am really scared (as I’m sure a lot of you are) to become that person who grows up, never achieving their dream; having to change it due to unforseen events, or just to work to keep food on the table.
It is frightening just entertaining the thought that you’ll be that sad 50-yr old in your art college class that never got to go where he wanted to in life, and is still in college, just waiting for his calling. I don’t have any advice, just rambling, but after reading fettucine and joro’s responses to each other, I though I’d just point something out, that is probably obvious, but nevertheless has been avoided being said thus far.
These internships… opportunities… have years of dreams and commitment riding on them, so when you get a rejection letter, the sad feeling you get, I realised, is the 13-yr old you going :C nyawwwww… I guess the best attitude to take, is what everyone else has been saying over and over- commitment, dedication, and never-giving-upness.
Be like a freaking phoenix, and be amazing.
Do you guys have a linkedin account? It’s a good way to make connections and keep track of them.
I can relate to that feeling. I felt the same way when I was looking for internships back in December - the feeling that you’ve worked so hard and you still haven’t gotten where you want to go. It was horribly discouraging because I pushed myself really hard since high school, to the detriment of my health, and it makes you wonder what you did it all for.
I assume we’re all gunning so hard for our dreams because we believe it’ll make us happy, or fulfilled or better in some way. Goals are great, they add direction to our lives, but try not to let your feelings of self-worth or happiness be contingent on achieving them. As fettucine mentioned, there are so many factors that go into determining whether anyone gets into the internship; factors that are out of your control 99% of the time. Don’t let your happiness be dependent on things that are mostly out of your control.
Whether you get into Pixar or no, you are still the same person and you are still an amazing artist (I assume you’re an artist?). The only difference getting in makes is that what you get to experience in the months of June-August will be different. If you don’t get in, you can still choose to do something that you will find equally enjoyable.
Gahh I hope I’m making some sort of sense, I know it’s a lot easier said than done. In addition to all the really great positive comments everyone is leaving, I just wanted to add a different but also positive point of view. I think this video explains what I’m trying to say a lot better:
ted.com/talks/srikumar_rao_p … iness.html
I’m really liking this heart to heart conversation. It’s really motivating. I have a friend from school who got a job at Dreamworks last year. He and I have been keeping in touch his advice to me was FOLLOW UP when you can and show them how much your interested I can ask him to share with me some other advice. I also have another friend who got hired at Dreamworks a couple weeks ago but he doesn’t start till the summer. I’ll talk to him and see what advice he can give me and ill be sure to share. I still havent heard back from Pixar so I still have hope!
@ joro I have a linked in profile if you want to connect if you search Bryanna London I should come up as the student from Savannah College of Art and Design. Just send me a message. Everyone else is welcome to add me too!
I’ll add you! Look for an Anthony from the Penn State Network!
Very good advice about following up. I tell my friends that, but keep forgetting to do that myself. Well…time to take my own advice and follow up…
Do you feel like those of us who haven’t received an interview or rejection letter should follow up or do you think it wouldn’t get us anywhere? I feel like they would just say something like “we can’t give individual feedback due to the volume of applicants”
[i]Edit:
From Pixars website:
You will receive an email acknowledging the successful receipt of your application. We will then contact you if there is an interest in speaking with you further. No phone calls, please!
[/i]
You sorta need an email address of someone you’ve been in contact with throughout the process. If the rejections are just mass emails, then you really can’t ask for feedback. Plus, they wont remember your particular reel and I don’t think they’ll be taking notes for each reel. They most likely just throw the rejects in a bin to be thrown away and hang onto the ones they will consider. The ones they consider will most likely be able to get feedback since they will receive a personal email from a recruiter to set up an interview. Through the recruiter, you can get some feedback about what your interviewers have said about you.
Getting feedback from the recruiter is just from personal experience. I don’t know whether they take notes on reels during their initial process for reviewing applications. They may or may not?
Basically what joro said. In this particular case you can’t really follow up because they send everything out in mass emails unless you are getting an interview. So if you know someone who works there you can see if they might know whats going on. But for most other cases you can follow up and absolutely should.
@picklypixar I absolutely love scad. The professors have so much to share and teach us. The students are all really helpful and friendly towards everyone. It’s just been a wonderful experience the past 2 years! I’m actually studying at the new Hong Kong campus with some friends this quarter. Normally I’m in Savannah tho!
That’s what I was guessing. I’m pretty much assuming my name is on a list of “email these people rejection letters” and it’s just a matter of time. I’d like to be optimistic but it’s almost at week 4.
Has anyone heard back from the post production internship that was due March 11th? Rejection or otherwise? I’m just interested as to whether I should still expect to hear something.