We paid a visit to City Academy Bristol recently, with members of our team, Comfort and Mohamed, offering some career inspiration to Year 10 students.
Comfort, assistant director on JoJo and Gran Gran, and Mohamed, who is an animator on the multi-award-winning series, gave the students some insights into their career journeys so far.
Mohamed talked about how he loved to play video games and draw when he was a teenager, taking inspiration from cartoons he watched. He wasn’t too sure which direction to take, but after a bit of practice at home, decided to study for a BA in animation and then secured an internship. Mohamed also explained what an animator does, and the skills needed.
Comfort talked about her route into animation: how she did a degree in graphic design and a postgraduate animation course, assuming she would immediately get a job in the industry, but that it was some years before she landed her dream job. She initially worked at the checkout at a supermarket before moving to Ghana. There, she worked as an editor, whilst also producing her own short films, and later returned to illustration and animation.
Hannah Murdoch, welfare and HR manager at A Productions, said: “A big thank you to the students and teachers at City Academy Bristol for welcoming members of the A Productions team to their school. We are passionate about creating diverse and inclusive teams, but to make this happen and create a strong school-media pipeline of talent, it is vital we raise awareness of careers early on by collaborating with schools.”