I NEED TO HIRE A MAYA ANIMATOR
I need to find Maya character animator for my short film!
Finding quality animators to create unique performances for your characters on short films is a task that we all face. This page is created to help you find the right animators for your film. ~Good luck!
How much will a quality character/creature animator cost me?
- The cost of animation production varies from person to person depending on their experience and the complexity of the character/creature. Below, is a simplistic breakdown
- Most experienced animators working in features and game production make anywhere from $2,000-4,000 a week. A feature animation quality shot can take up to a week to 6 weeks to create depending on the complexity of performance and number of characters/creatures. A game rig move/animation can take from 2 hours to a day to create.
- These evaluations depend on the complexity of the character/creature design.
Cartoony VS Realistic Animation? It’s all hard and really only matters on a number of characters and complexity of the scene.
- Student/Nice Guy: Free-$500
- Intermediate: 500-1000$ a week
- Advanced/Experienced/Senior: $2500-4k a week
Places to find CG Animators/Riggers/Artists:
- 11 Second Club Forum: Making A Short Film
- 11 Second Club Forum: Job Board
- Creative Crash Animation Forum
- Creative Crash Animation Forum
- CG Society Collaborative Team Projects
- CG Society General Discussion
- CG Society Character Rigging
- CG Society Animation
- Unity Collaboration Forum
- Digital-Tutors General Discussion Forum
- Polycount – Unpaid Work Forum
- Polycount – Freelance Work Forum
- AWN Animation Co-op Forum
- Upwork
Linkedin is a Great Resource:
Also, Approach Animation Schools that Teach Rigging:
A couple of rules first:
- Do not post an ask for free animation on a job board
- Be very clear about pay and expectations in your ad.
Example Animator For Hire request Ad for forums:
Hi, my name is xxxxxxxx and I am a 3rd-year xxxxx student at xxxxxx, directing a CG thesis film called “XXXXX”. XXXXXX is a romantic comedy, exploring themes of xxxxxx using CG animation techniques rendered in a stylized way. Our characters are human, and we would like realistic character performance, rather than an exaggerated ‘cartoony’ feel (more like Paperman, not like Hotel Transylvania).
Our animatic can be seen here: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Password: animator
I am looking to hire animators, to work to existing Maya Pre-Vis. Animation work would begin on November 1st 20xx, and scenes must be completed (including revisions) by January 1st 2016. Salary would be paid flat-rate, per-scene, dependent on experience.
The ideal candidate:
- Has experience animating characters in Maya
- Possesses a strong sense of animation timing, and storytelling
- Animates stylistic character performances, with a strong sense of camera animation
- Has good knowledge of cinematic language, camera terminology and the ability to use motion blur, depth of field and other effects, to create realism
- Is team-oriented and able to successfully take direction from a supervisor
- Is adaptable, flexible and accepting of change, often tossing out ideas and starting anew
- High consistent standard of quality and speed
Please submit reels, by end-of Sunday, October 18, to xxxxxx
This is a paid/unpaid(?) position. The animator will get full credit and special thanks.
This film is xxx sec long and will be submitted to animation festivals. The film will NOT be used in a commercial context. So, making money is NOT the goal.
If you are interested, please send me links to your reel and/or website videos with your work.
A little about me – websitexxxx.com
Thank you for your time,
Your name