Goodbye, Animation Mentor!

18 months, and it's already over!
Class 6 flew by so fast! I had a wonderful time animating my short film and I am happy with how it's progressing. I was able to finish most of the animation and I will post it once I finish it. I am attempting not to look at it for a bit so I can view it with fresher eyes =).
My mentor Greg always gave very helpful critiques. He is a very kind guy and has a great ability to pin point problems in my animation. My short is a little bit cartoony in some areas, and Greg was great in helping me out with that.
I finished my last class of Animation Mentor at the end of March! I remember being so nervous starting the program 18 months ago. It has been an absolutely amazing experience! I really don't know how else to put it! I'm so glad I took the classes and I am so excited about everything I've learned and everything I have yet to learn.
It's pretty strange, but it's like the excitement kept on growing with each class I took. Every day I felt I was learning. Sometimes small things, and sometimes I would have giant lightbulb moments. It's such an incredible experience to animate. I have been working as a professional artist for years, but there is nothing like animating for me. I can't explain, but it's such an amazing feeling to see your thoughts live on screen instead of just in your head. I'm honestly gonna miss it. I feel really lucky to have the mentors that I did. Each had his own different teaching style and I am so thankful for them pushing me. Being able to learn from the very people whose work I admire on screen has been invaluable.
Taking this course has also taught me alot about myself. I was always scared to say my dream out loud. I don't think I ever really did. At least not with any sort of conviction. As the classes went by, I was able to admit it to myself. Then finally one day, I was able to say it out loud.

I WANT TO BE AN ANIMATOR!

Last Thursday I sent out my first demo reel ever. It's a strange feeling and it's hard to let go. Sometimes I look at my work and think it looks pretty good. Other times it's like looking through a pair of crap colored glasses and everything looks horrible. It's hard to see what's really true.

Whatever happens, I feel strangely calm about it. I learned another important lesson in my time at Animation Mentor, and that is to never give up.