Latest Independentanimation Podcast Episodes

Episode 8: Burnout

Animation Is Hard - January 26, 2017 00:32 - 21 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
The podcast returns after a long absence! Mike and Matthew devote this episode to the complex problem of burnout: how to recognize it, how to deal with it, and how to help others avoid it. They also touch on changing attitudes towards mental health over the last 20 years, and why quitting a job ...

Episode 7: Stepping Up Your Game

Animation Is Hard - June 21, 2016 22:11 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
Animator Guen Goik chats with Mike and Matthew about how to continue improving yourself as an animator once you’re out of school, so you can get better animation jobs. It takes more than just good animation techniques—communication skills are just as important. Guen also talks about IK hands, Em...

Episode 6: Sacrifices

Animation Is Hard - May 29, 2016 03:34 - 28 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
This week’s episode goes to some dark places. Many personal sacrifices are required when committing yourself to a major creative project. All that time and energy has to come from somewhere. Mike and Matthew share their tales of woe about poor health choices, missing out on great TV shows, and t...

Episode 5: Making It as a Freelance Animator

Animation Is Hard - May 01, 2016 00:40 - 29 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
This week, Mike and Matthew chat with freelancer Kyle Bernard about his experiences as a working animator. Along the way, they learn about the importance of networking and moving to Burbank, how to figure out what your client rates should be, and the one shot you should never include on your ree...

Episode 4: The Pipeline

Animation Is Hard - April 12, 2016 18:08 - 41 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
This week's episode is all about the technical aspects of making your own animated short: asset management, naming conventions, file versioning software. Sounds boring, right? Well, actually yeah, okay, it is pretty boring. But that's part of the problem! If you skip over the boring stuff to get...

Episode 3: Team-building

Animation Is Hard - March 31, 2016 14:00 - 39 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
Mike and Matthew go deep into the world of freelancers: where to find them, how to negotiate with them, and how to make sure everyone ends up happy. They also cover copyright ownership, payment terms, kill fees, and how not to be a bad client.  Once your team is assembled, you’re going to want ...

Episode 2: The Inverted Pyramid

Animation Is Hard - March 13, 2016 19:24 - 35 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
Mike and Matthew talk about the importance of working out your creative decisions early, during the scriptwriting and storyboarding stage, and how these decisions filter through the stages of pre-visualization, editing and animation. They also discuss the ways to incorporate freelance artists in...

Episode 1: Why Animation Is Hard

Animation Is Hard - February 01, 2016 21:59 - 38 minutes ★★★★★ - 46 ratings
Mike and Matthew introduce the show and tackle some of the reasons why animation can be so challenging: story problems, budgetary constraints, unrealistic ambitions, limited animation techniques, and the need to get better at firing people.