Student Spotlight - Sandra Leydier

"Thanks to iAnimate, I learnt a new solid workflow, when I needed to inject creativity into each of my shots. Now I'm not really afraid of having to animate things that I've never done before."

Student Spotlight features Sandra Leydier, a young animator from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She is working now in the VFX industry. Sandra is a fresh graduate from an animation school, Ecole des nouvelles images. She found her way through iAnimate and learned what she really needs to break into the industry. Sandra is now working as an animator on Cinesite, Montreal.

Sandra decided to enroll in iAnimate, because it's one of the best animation online schools and she did not feel ready to join the industry with only her school in France. “No joke, I knew that thanks to iAnimate, I would feel more comfortable in my work.”, Sandra said. “This is one of the best choices of my life! I graduated from my physical school in France in June, and the week after my graduation, I was contacted by several studios. I could never have stood out as a young graduate without iAnimate! Inside all of these physical schools, I never learned a workflow, I needed to visualize how professionals animate. Now, I took pleasure in animation thanks to my iAnimate mentors, and I thank them very much!”, Sandra added.

Student Animation Journey

Sandra took the following Creature Animation Workshop and Feature Animation Workshops here at iAnimate:

• Creature Animation 2 with Scott Holmes (Cinesite)
• Feature Workshop 3 with Alexis Wanneroy (Fortiche Production)
• Feature Workshop 4 with Alexis Wanneroy (Fortiche Production)

Sandra’s creative workflow is a foundation she learned from her instructors at iAnimate. She believes in the importance of preparation and professionally doing her shots. Here are Sandra’s processes in doing her assignments and shots:

1. When I was starting an assignment, first of all, I make a plan for my shot. I write on paper what's going to happen in my shot.
2. Then, I film myself several times until I have a convincing reference.
3. After that, I put my reference in Maya to help me to work very close to my reference till the splinning pass.
4. Finally, I clean up my animation!

Sandra's Student Reel

You can reach Sandra via:

Student Spotlight Q&A with Animator Sandra Leydier

iAnimate: What do you think of your Online Animation Instructor(s), and how did they help you?

Sandra: Alexis Wanneroy's knowledge and experience have been invaluable to me. He doesn't hesitate to open your shot and show you how to fix your issues. It's something you don't have in any physical schools. He also makes some draw overs on your shot to be sure, you'll understand what he says. Scott Holmes's artistic experience and knowledge were priceless. He is very clear in his feedback and explains why. He makes demos like Alexis, which is very interesting since he allows me to understand how Scott animates in straight ahead. It allowed me to see 2 different workflows!

iAnimate: How did iAnimate help you to evolve as a character animator?

Sandra: I have gained autonomy and I can adapt myself whether it is in acting, body mechanics, and creatures. I managed to develop a new eye for my own animations, which made me grow a lot as an animator.

iAnimate: What kind of animator do you consider yourself after taking your workshop?

Sandra:

“I have evolved as I never expected as a student. I'm now the animator that I always want to be as a graduate. I became independent in my own animation thanks to a critical eye developed by my mentors.”

iAnimate: What kind of animation project do you want to work on?

Sandra: For now, I'm looking to work as an animator in the VFX industry, and, in the future, work in the feature movie industry too.

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