Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/16039
higher learning By JENNIFER AUSTIN A partial rebound L ast year at this time, the global econ- omy was generally acknowledged to be in a downswing, and most studios While there has been an increase in hiring in the film and game industry, a turnaround is far from complete. were reporting fewer projects and more ap- plicants.The situation is a bit rosier now in 2010 — not a complete reversal, but show- ing progress.“We’ve seen an up-tick in hiring since the end of 2009, primarily among smaller- to medium-sized, privately-funded, independent videogame developers,” says Chris Scanlon, account manager for Digital Artist Management (www.digitalartistman- agement.com), a recruiting agency that spe- cializes in interactive entertainment (games). Last year, studios outside the US seemed to be less affected by the down economy, and business is still good this year at the UK- based Double Negative (www.dneg.com), according to its recruitment manager, Han- nah Acock.“We’re busier than ever at the moment and receive around 60 applications per day,” she says.“Over the last 12 months, we have seen a large increase in the number of new recruits from the US, Australia, Asia, and New Zealand, but we’ve still continued to hire a large amount from within the EU (European Union).” Inside the US, business is looking up in some quarters.At Rhythm & Hues Studios (www.rhythm.com), for example,“We have new work on the boards,” says Barbara Mc- Cullough, manager of recruitment. Stressing that she could only speak for her company, she says business had been a little slower pre- viously but has picked up in recent months. Many of the studios (film as well as game) At Rhythm & Hues’ headquarters, business has picked up recently. interviewed for this article report similar con- ditions, but not all the news was good. In March 2010, Disney announced that it in- tended to close ImageMovers Digital Studio in San Rafael,CA.That same month,Toronto’s CORE Digital Pictures shut its doors. “It’s been a really odd year,” says Debra Blanchard, president of Fringe Talent (http://fringetalent.com), a recruiting agency focusing on visual effects and ani- mation artists for the film industry, noting that things got off to a promising start, but that the recent closing of both Image- Movers and CORE has shaken many in the industry. “It’s been kind of shocking and sur- prising,” says Blanchard, who adds that nonetheless, projects are still ongoing and that there are geographical pockets that seem to be flourishing. For example: “Van- couver seems to be coming alive, and staffing,” she says. SOCIAL NETWORKING Heading up the list of what’s new in stu- dio hiring this year (besides the tentative economic recovery) are the maturation of social networking as a tool for both re- cruiters and job seekers, and the impor- tance — which sounds almost counterintu- itive in the Internet age — of maintaining human contacts. Last, it is vital that the job seeker maintain a virtual presence, such as a Web or blog applicant doesn’t have to start from scratch. By the same token, potential applicants should stay up to date on who the right contacts are.“There are so many people ap- plying blindly through the Website,” says Tor- rano, explaining that such efforts are nearly useless. Applicants should address their in- formation to a particular individual.They can find recruiters’ names by subscribing to stu- dio pages on Facebook or LinkedIn, or even by cold-calling the studios and asking for London’s Double Negative, which worked on the visual effects for Iron Man 2, reports they are busier than ever... good news for those looking for work. site, so that his or her materials may be re- viewed by studios on a moment’s notice. The use of social networking sites, such as LinkedIn or Facebook, is not new, of course, but the way in which they are being used has evolved. LinkedIn, the more profes- sional of the two networks, continues to be more seriously considered by recruiters. Josilin Torrano, recruiter at Nickelodeon Animation Studios (www.nick.com), particu- larly likes using LinkedIn for hard-to-fill posi- tions. But the importance of Facebook is not to be downplayed. At Electronic Arts (www.ea.com), for ex- ample, the company’s Inside EA page has more than 100,000 fans and is an excellent way for a candidate to gain familiarity with the company, according to Cindy Nicola,VP of global talent acquisition for EA. Staying in touch applies to those not seeking work, as well. Knowing what is going on at a studio is of primary importance. Then, when it comes time to seek work, the www.postmagazine.com names.“Just make sure there’s some kind of human connection,” advises Torrano. CG artists also need to make it easy for recruiters to stay in touch with them.“If an applicant doesn’t have a Website or a blog, they are doing a disservice to themselves,” says Torrano, explaining that recruiters want to be able to see an artist’s work immedi- ately upon request.That means that demos should be available online, as well. If you de- cide to mail your reel to the studio,“some- one else might get the job while we’re wait- ing for your package,” adds Torrano. Almost across the board, studio re- cruiters report that the economic situation past and present has altered the hiring pool — sending ever-larger numbers of qualified applicants into the market. “Unfortunately, volume doesn't always mean quality; it can be a little more time consuming to find the right one,” says Nicola. For more, visit our Web Exclusives section at www.postmagazine.com. September 2010 • Post 45