Process of my work

My site map:My schematic:

Logo process:




My wire frame:



I use Dreamweaver to create my portfolio.

My resume:



Full color comp:

My work - GL2's adventures on Earth

This piece was created for 3d Modeling I class purposes. First I had to draw a cartoon character of my imagination. Then I had to scan the sketches and in photoshop I scaled the images. After that I imported the images into Maya and started from a cube to create my 3D cartoon character. I think that it is amazing the opportunity that a 3D program can give you to in a way "bring to life" a character that you just drew!

Categories

I was thinking of having a 3D and 2D section on my portfolio. Under 3D I could have sub categories such as 3D Modeling, 3D Animation. Under 2D I could have sub categories such as Photoshop or Graphic Design, Drawing and 2D Animation.

List of my work for portfolio

The work I would like to highlight in my portfolio is:

· Leo, The Lonely Lamp (3D Animation)
· The Airplane (3D Animation)
· The Chase (3D Animation - I haven't yet rendered it)
· The Lighthouse (3D Modeling)
· GL2's adventures on Earth (3D Modeling)
· Lamborghini (3D Modeling)
· Disco Robot (3D Animation). This one I'm not sure if I'm gonna use it for my portfolio because I didn't model the robot. It was given to me by the professor. All the rest were created by me, such as the environment (lights, disco floor,etc) and the whole animation. The reason I'm thinking of using it in my potfolio is because I put a lot of work on it, trying to make it move with the music AND because I don't have another animation like this one with audio.

Also, I'm thinking of using and some of the photoshop projects, and drawings that I have created. But I'm not sure if I'm gonna do it.

Color Schemes

The color schemes I chose were mostly inspired from my work. I use a lot of blue, green and red in my work. So, these are 3 different color schemes that I came up with playing with the Kuler.adobe.com.

1. This one was created by copy-pasting the HEX number from the website to Photoshop. I tryed to find different shades of the three main colors that I mentioned above:

2.


3. This one is actually the color scheme of one of my work (GL2's adventures on Earth / the image on the bottom left). I chose this one because I like a lot the shades of the colors.


I'm not really sure if I would like to keep the green as a main color in my portfolio. I believe it is a very nice color for my work but I think that it is not gonna look right in my portfolio.

Target Audience, My work & Formats

TARGET AUDIENCE:

Trying to find all about my target audience, I searched the sites of two different animation studios:

1. http://www.animink.com/main2.html
This studio gives 2D, 3D and web animation services. The staff consists of men and women of a young age. They all seem like a fun and well communicative group. They dress with comfortable clothes, like jeans and t-shirts and no suits. They look like they are very close with each other and they know and care about each other's lives. You can tell from the way the info about each person is written that they joke and laugh a lot. They even mention on their "about us" info that they have a cat in the studio. A pet always brings people together and brings the good that each person has inside him outside! It seems like a very nice environment to work in! Plus, what I really like about this company is that they hire people that don't even have a degree on the job they are doing. It is good because they are open to give opportunities to people, test them and if they are fast learners and good at the job that was given to them, then why not keep them.

2. http://www.laika.com/
This company consists of filmmakers, designers and animators. Their latest movie Coraline is now playing in theaters. The staff consists of all kind of people young, old, men, women. They all look very comfortable with each other, like the staff of the first studio I talked about. They all wear their regular clothes (comfortable clothes, no suits). Happy environment with lots of fun and a great work production. All the people look professionals in their work, but still they don't miss fun from their work. A good environment always helps people be more creative and increase the company's production.


MY WORK - AUDIENCE:
Most of their work is cartoonish, child-like and fantasy, like most of my work that I have done until now. Though, because all my work is a product of a class project I cannot really say that all these projects describe me and my work. I'm gonna need to show them that I can work within a group and keep up with everyone. In an interview they will need to see that I can communicate well with other people and that I am a fun person who does a great job!


FORMATS:

Personal Website:
Every digital artist should have a website to display his/her work. Today, I believe this is the most effective way to advertise.

DVD:
I believe this is the best format to have your porfolio because you can have it with you wherever you go and it contains more space for high quality videos.

CD:
CD is another format to have your portfolio. It is very easy to have it around but it contains less space than the DVD.

Email:
It is a nice and quick way to send your portfolio to your future clients and employers.

Laptop:
It is an alternate way to have with you your portfolio just in case you run out of DVDs or CDs.

Unifying element & Documentation

UNIFYING ELEMENT:
Most of my work are 3D Animations and 3D Models. The concepts of my work are more science fiction, fantasy and child-like! Almost all of my models are round and smooth, that means there are no hard edges (no corners). The colors I use a lot are blue and green.

DOCUMENTATION:
I am a 3D Artist(Animator), so almost all of my work will be displayed on the screen. I would like to have images of my 3D models that will give the opportunity to my audience to zoom in and see more details of them. I would also like to have videos of my 3D models that the camera will go around them and zoom in to show more details of my work . Furthermore, I would like to have videos of the construction process of my 3D models.

Self-assessment list

1. Educational experience in my profession:

· Associate degree ( to be obtained)

2. Educational experience in a related or supporting profession:

· Bachelor's degree in Computer science
· Painting, Drawing or other fundamentals
· Video and Animation
· Programming
· 3D Modeling or Rendering
· Graphic Design

3. Work experience within a related or supporting profession:

· Programming

4. I have software training in:

· Photoshop and related imaging software
· 2D Illustration program
· Flash or other interaction/ animation program
· Web design software
· 3D or Animation programs
· Video software

5. Exclusive of school, I have been working in my chosen profession for:

· <>Rate your skills (not your raw talent) in your primary area:

· Better than average

7. Why am I making a digital portfolio?

· Required for school
· Need the experience
· Unemployed, looking for a job
· Professional project record

8. If your portfolio needs are job-related, check the statements that apply to you:

· I'll take any job I can get in my profession

10. How do you like to work?

· Doesn't matter

11. What's your preferred working environment?

· I can work anywhere

12. Select the statement that fits you best:

· I won't accept some types of clients or client work.

13. Check the words that best describe the work you've done.

· Personal
· Funny
· Challenging
· Organized
· Emotional
· Detailed
· Thoughtful

5 Portfolios

http://www.aphidesigngraphics.com/
http://guerrilladigital.cc/portfolio.php
http://jamieeaston.com/home.htm
http://jaysportfolio.com/
http://www.gungnirstudios.com/

Skills for Digital Portfolio

I can create 3d models and animate with Maya. I can use some HTML or Flash. I can take digital photos and I can draw. I can create graphics and manipulate photos using Adobe Photoshop (it will help me with the layout, buttons, etc). I can edit video with Adobe After Effects.

Investigate

Looking through people's work in my industry, I found that some of them use Flash(like: http://jaysportfolio.com/), others HTML (like: http://www.cameronmiyasaki.com/ ) and some use both (like: http://guerrilladigital.cc/portfolio.php)! Most of them have a link to their blog where you can see more clearly what kind of person they are. Many have their work linked to the website where it is displayed. Others have their personal website. Very few had related links. Almost all had a link that you can download their resume. I like when they make their portfolio in a size that I can see it all in my screen and don't have to scroll down (like: http://seangresens.com/index1.html). It gets too confusing when you have to scroll down while there is motion on the page!

Trends I've noticed:
1. Use of black and grey
2. Use of Flash/motion(the most impressive portfolios use Flash)
3. Music (you can chose to turn the music on and off)
4. Blogs (they include a link to their blog in their portfolios)
5. Resume (they let you download their resume)

Fonts

These are the fonts I chose from the fonts that my computer had:

I believe I can find better ones in the Internet.

I tried with this font to create my logo. Here are some examples:Here is another example of my logo with another font:I will certainly come up with a better logo. I have something in mind:
I was thinking of creating my initials in 3D and around them to have wireframe cubes or spheres.
Or maybe I'll find a better font and create my logo with it.
It is very difficult and time consuming to try to come up with a logo!

Best & need to be fixed work

Leo, The Lonely Lamp. from Georgia Lalla on Vimeo.

Best: I believe this is my best work in my field (3D Animation). I have only 3 animations done this far (now I'm working on another one), so I don't have that many choices! I have to say that this animation is brighter than it appears on Vimeo! On vimeo you barely can see it...the quality is not that great! Anyway, I chose this one because I think I made the movement of the character smoother than in the other animations and I like it a lot because it says a little story.


The Airplane from Georgia Lalla on Vimeo.

Needs to be fixed: I like this animation a lot, but there are many things I would like to fix before I use it in my portfolio. It is my first animation and I put so much work modeling the airplane that I know it has so many potentials to become a great animation. Because of class project's restraints, such as 30 secs long, don't worry about the environment, etc, I didn't make it the animation I wanted it to be. I can make the environment much better and realistic, better lighting, better texturing AND the whole animation longer. As it is now, the airplane looks like it is going too fast while it moves towards the position where it takes off.

Vimeo!

3d animated octopus from _vs on Vimeo.

When I first saw this video I could not believe it was an animated octopus! It's moves look so realistic. It doesn't seem like it doesn't belong to the frame. It looks like one piece. Very impressive! This is what I would love to do in my life. I would like to find a job creating animations like this one for movies! :)

Brainstorming Activity

Part A.
1. List 5 things that you love to do:
Hanging out with friends,watching movies, listening to music, dancing, learning about Astronomy.
2. List 5 things that you hate to do:
Waking up late, sitting all day in front of the computer, staying inside the house all day, lying, using the car all the time to go outside the house.
3. List 5 things you are proud of in your life:
My family, getting my Bachelors, doing well at school in a foreign country (MCCC), getting into Phi Theta Kappa, doing things that I never thought of doing in my life.
4. List 5 things you are good at:
Getting things done last minute!, math, dancing, swimming, organization.
5. List 5 things that make you unique:
My experiences coming from another country with a totally different lifestyle, quick learner, bilingual, my connection with my family and relatives, my connection with my baby bunny rabbit! hehe...
6. List 5 adjectives that describe you:
Energetic, adventurous,hard-worker, loving, kind.

Part B.
1. List 5 adjectives that describe your work:
Creative, organized, clean, fun, interesting.
2. List 5 topics your work deals with:
Video games, movies, advertisement, documentaries, cartoons.
3. List the media you use in your work:
Computers, Internet, drawing tools, sketchbooks.
4. List the colors that you use most often:
Black, white, red, green, blue.
5. List 5 emotions your work conjures:
Happiness, mystery, excitement, interest, inspiration.
6. List the titles of the work you would like to highlight:
"Leo, the lonely lamp"(3D Animation), "Disco Robot"(3D Animation), "The light house" (3D Modeling), "In the time of dragons" (Photoshop), Master copy "The boy" (Graphite Drawing).

Part C.
1. List 5 adjectives to describe the kind of company you'll work for:
Interesting, unique, positive, exciting, fast paced.
2. List 5 adjectives to describe the kind of boss you'd like to have:
Understanding, helpful, cheerful, friendly, funny.
3. List 5 things you will have to do for your job:
Modeling, animating, texturing, sketching, come up with new ideas.
4. List 5 words describing your industry:
Fast changing, intense, fun, expressive, creative.
5. List the reasons your job exists:
To entertain, teach and inform people, to advertise.

Resume.

OBJECTIVE _______________________________________________________
To contribute my skills and talents in a creative work environment. Also to advance my knowledge and skills by working with a strong team.

EDUCATION _______________________________________________________
Mercer County Community College, NJ, USA
Digital media Arts Major with concentration 3D Animation
2007 - present

Technological Educational Institute of Lamia, Greece
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Informatics
2001 - 2005
GPA of 3.4 on a 4.0 scale

ACTIVITIES DURING EDUCATION
Thesis / Dissertation
Restoration of Digital Images
2005
GPA of 4.0 on a 4.0 scale

ATTENDANCE AT MEETINGS / SEMINARS
2002: «NEW COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES – NEW DIRECTIONSAT EDUCATION AND LABOUR MARKET – TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE (TEI) of LAMIA»
2002: (two days seminar) «INSTALLATION, ADJUSTMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF O.S.(OPERATING SYSTEM) LINUX – TEI of LAMIA»

SKILLS ___________________________________________________________
1. 3D software: Autodesk Maya
2. Adobe Software: Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects
3. Web design programs: Dreamweaver, Microsoft FrontPage
4. Operating systems: Windows 9x, Xp, Server – Linux
5. Programming languages: Pascal, C, Java, Visual Basic, VHDL
6. Programming Cisco routers and Switches
7. Mathematic packages: Matlab, Mathematica, Spss
8. Programs for implementation of multimedia applications: Macromedia Director, Macromedia Flash

EXPERIENCE ______________________________________________________
Dominos Pizza, Robbinsville NJ
2006 - 2007
Pizza Server/Cashier
· Provided prompt and excellent customer service
· Training team members
· Built positive relationships with team members

Montessori Daycare, Hamilton NJ
2006
Classroom Aid
· Observed and supervised children.
· Read to children.
· Played games as directed by lead teacher.
· Helped tidy kitchen after snack time.

Internship at NETWave - Information Technology and Telecommunications Systems S.A – Athens, Greece
2005 - The company dealt mainly with the development of barcode programming.
Software Engineer
· Analysis, design and implementation and testing of software

Tourist Information/Reception Center – Greece
2004
· Responsible for arranging hotel rooms.
· Responsible for arranging daily excursions to local islands in Greece.
· Giving information to tourists pertaining to local beaches and sights.

Family Owned Café - Greece
Supervisor
· Manage, communicate, organize and keep store and products in order.

LANGUAGES ___________________________________________________________
Greek (birth language)
English (First Certificate of Cambridge University and TOEFL)

HONORS &
AWARDS ______________________________________________________________
· President’s Honor List: Fall 2007
· Dean’s List: Fall 2008, Spring 2008
· Awarded certificate for scholarly achievement in the field of Visual Arts: Fall 2008
· Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society (Alpha Theta Gamma Chapter): Fall 2008

My work experience.

Volunteer:

• Beach Cleanup Program – Greece (1995).
• Volunteer at church – Greece (1996).
  I sang in the choir which shows teamwork, cooperation and communication skills.

Jobs:

• Family Owned Café: Supervisor - Greece.
  Ability to manage, communicate, organize and keep store and products in order.
• Tourist Information/Reception Center – Greece (2004).
  I was responsible for arranging hotel rooms and daily excursions to local islands in Greece and giving information to tourists pertaining to local beaches and sights.
  This allowed for me to better develop self reliance, communication and organizational skills,
  analytical skills and management skills.
• Internship at NETWave - Information Technology and Telecommunications Systems S.A – Athens, Greece (2005).
  Here I worked as a computer programmer. The company dealt mainly with the development of barcode programming. I was able to master the art of multitasking along with learning better communication and cooperation skills, dealing with deadlines and working under a high pressure environment.
• Montessori Daycare, Hamilton NJ: Classroom Aid (2006).
  Observed and supervised children. Read to children; played games as directed by lead teacher; helped tidy kitchen after snack time. Provided me with the ability to learn patience and how to communicate and handle difficult situations with children. I also learned from this experience how to tolerate and better understand children’s way of thinking which I believe will help me tremendously within my field of study.
• Dominos Pizza, Robbinsville NJ: Pizza Server/Cashier (2006 - 2007).
  Here I was able to gain more experience in the work field with a hands on approach with the customers. The job allowed for me to better my communication and organizational skills while I learned about teamwork and how to work under pressure.
  

List of requirements.

Most of the jobs I searched are looking for people with self reliance, multitasking, organizational skills, exceptional communication (written and oral), idea conceptualization, analytical skills, detail oriented, and creativity. Also they must be able to handle deadlines single-handedly and work under pressure, while still contributing great energy to the team and company. These are some general skills apart from the main ones such as knowledge of Autodesk Maya, Photoshop, After Effects, etc.

Entry level jobs.

Entry level jobs in my field (3D Artist) are very hard to find. I used two different websites to search. These are: Craigslist and Monster.
I searched in New York City but I couldn’t find an entry level job in my field. Then I searched in Los Angeles, CA and I found very few entry level jobs.
When I typed the word “Photoshop” for New York City and Los Angeles it gave me many results! Although, I have to admit that there were more entry level job offers in New York City than Los Angeles.
I realized from my research that Graphic Designers have more entry level job opportunities than 3D Artists!

The tools I will use in my field.

The hardware that I will use as a 3D Artist is a computer (Mac or PC) and a laptop so I will be able to work outside the company if needed. Also I could use a graphics tablet, sketchbooks and pencils.
The software I will be using is Autodesk Maya, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe After Effects. These are the ones I can say I know quite well, but I know there are a lot of programs that I can work with on my future job which I would like to learn how to use. Programs such as Autodesk 3D Studio Max, Final Cut Pro (which I think I will learn how to use next semester), etc.
The first website I used to search for jobs is Highend Careers

I tried to find jobs in New York City but I didn’t find any, so I searched in my second choice, in California and I found some, such as:
Cloth Developer/ Character FX

Then I tried the Idealist.org
I couldn’t find anything there! It was very confusing and time consuming and at the end it couldn’t find a match.

The third website I used is Monster
Company: Digital Evolution
Job: 3D Artist
It is very organized and easy to navigate. It gives you the opportunity to save the job you found or apply for it and it even supplies you with a link to all the other opening jobs of the company. What I like a lot about this site is that it gives you a salary range for the job you are looking for!

As I searched throughout these sites, I ended up with only two that I liked. Within seconds I found on both sites a good variety of jobs in my field! These two sites are Craigslist and Monster. I like Craigslist because I found more jobs than I found using Monster. I also believe that Craigslist has better navigation system than Monster. But what I loved about Monster is the amount of information you can receive about the job and the company!
I believe that a combination of both sites would be the ultimate job search engine!

Companies

Pixar studios
DreamWorks Animation SKG
Walt Disney Animation Studios
Blue Sky Studios
Project Firefly, Animation Studios

About me - questions

• What software do you know?

I know Maya, Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator, Dreamweaver.

• What creative skills and talents do you have?

I can draw, dance and embroider.

• What are you favorite things?

I really don't have any favorite THINGS. But I love my bunny rabbit and I like walking and talking to people.

• What are you interested in?

I'm VERY interested in Astronomy! I like everything about space such as Planets, Stars, Black Holes, etc. I also
like Archaeology, traveling and learn about other cultures.

• What are you passionate about?

I love animals! I love talking about Astronomy!

• What do you HATE, can't stand or despise?

I don't like animal abuse and I can't stand watching people throwing their garbage on the floor when the garbage
can is two feet away from them!
I also hate using the car all the time to go for shopping or in general outside the house.

Job Research

I would like to be employed within an animation studio where I will be able to present my ideas and be creative. My dream would be to work for a company such as DreamWorks Animation SKG or Pixar studios. I’m not sure yet about what specific I want to do such as being a 3D Modeler, 3D Animator or concentrate in Lighting or Texturing, or maybe even teach. I’m open to trying different things. I also have my bachelors in Computer science so I could work as a programmer, too. Although, when I searched for jobs I didn’t give much attention in the Programming field. I searched only in 3D Animation field.
The website I used to search is Craigslist. In the beginning I tried to find jobs in New York and I chose the most interesting ones that are listed below:
3D Artist/Digital Retoucher
3D Animator/Artist
3D Modeler/Animator
Realtime 3d Video Game Artists
Later I tried in California and I found quite a few, such as:
Fulltime Maya 3D Artist
Character Animation Artist
The website is very easy to navigate, it is very organized but it does not give you the opportunity to apply for the job (like Asbury Park, Monster, etc does). The only contact information that it gives you is an e-mail address.