Talent Development Program - Character TD Trainee

Job Description

Join us for an opportunity to experience the art of animation and be a part of Walt Disney Animation Studios. The Talent Development Program is available for emerging artists and offers up to a 9 month paid position at Walt Disney Animation Studios. We offer an immersive Trainee experience, where participants will work under the guidance of a Disney Mentor to develop craft skills while applying them in a real world environment.

The Talent Development Character TD Program begins February 2022. Please note, the safety and well-being of our teams is very important to us. We will determine whether this program will be in-person at our Burbank, CA studio or virtual in the coming months based on local state and county ordinance. The deadline for applications is October 31, 2021, 11:59PM PST.

The Character TD Trainee
The role of a Character TD at Disney Animation includes Technical Animation (also known as Creature Dev, Character Finaling, or Character Effects), Simulation Setup, and Rigging. Each craft is highly collaborative and viewed as both a technical and an artistic role.

As a Character TD Trainee, the first four months of your program are structured to introduce you to the art of Character TD animation, our studio culture, and our production environment. These initial months will showcase the skills and philosophies of our Character TD department while providing you nurturing mentorship with a Disney artist. A four month review provides you with real-time feedback and determines future assignments and promotional opportunities that would bring your skills into real-time production environments.

Am I Eligible To Apply? What We're Looking For:
• 18 years or older
• Emerging artists with less than 3 years experience in Technical Animation/Sim/Rigging
• Recent graduates with a degree or equivalent experience

To apply for this position you must upload a resume and a single reel of no longer than 2 minutes that demonstrates your understanding or passion for Anatomy, Tailoring, Cloth in Motion, Hair in Motion, Simulation, and/or Rigging with a reel breakdown (if a breakdown is applicable). All examples should be in the context of performance and demonstrate your sense of appeal.

Examples of Character Simulation May Include:
• Cloth simulation rigs that demonstrate an understanding of tailoring and fabric quality under a broad range of motion
• Hair simulation rigs that demonstrate an understanding of groom structure and hair texture quality under a broad range of motion
• An intuitive interface for working with simulation rigs
• An understanding of the principles of animation and how they apply to simulation
• An understanding of creating appeal in cloth and hair motion
• Creative problem solving ability
• Examples of art-directed simulations
• Demonstration of real world tailoring and/or hair styling knowledge

Examples of Rigging May Include:
• Multiple rig examples that demonstrate appealing articulation through the motion and performance of a character or item, please do not just wiggle your controls or distort your rig without purpose
• An intuitive, animator-friendly interface for interacting with and posing characters or elements to be animated
• An understanding of anatomy and design principles, realistic and/or stylized
• An understanding of collaboration with animators in the development and use of a rig
• Creative problem solving ability in creation of a rig and addressing animators' needs
Other skills may include:
• Ability to work in a collaborative environment and take direction well
• Working knowledge of CG software such as Maya
• Interest in fashion design software such as Marvelous Designer is a plus
• Scripting in MEL, Python, or C++ is a plus
• Tool development examples
• Knowledge of Linux
• Supplemental fine art portfolio of drawing or sculpture that demonstrates understanding of anatomy, design, cloth in motion and/or hair in motion

WDAS continues to build on its rich legacy of innovation and creativity, from the first fully-animated feature film, 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, to 2019's Frozen 2, the biggest animated film of all time, to our 60th animated feature, Encanto, releasing November 2021. Among the studio's timeless creations are Pinocchio, Sleeping Beauty, The Jungle Book, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Frozen, Big Hero 6 and Zootopia.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-r0noz8-18-220-154-41-42 in your application.