For animation students and applicants
A reel up front, and everything behind it: character design, storyboards, animatics, and the drawing that makes the motion work.
What a animation portfolio has to do
Animation portfolios are usually judged on two things at once: the motion itself, and the drawing and design ability underneath it. A reel shows the first. Life drawing, character sheets, and storyboards show the second.
Animation also covers very different specialisms: 2D, 3D, stop-motion, motion graphics, character animation, and visual development. Your site should make your focus clear quickly, so a reviewer knows how to read the work.
01What your site can hold
Built around your animation work.
Demo reel with a shot breakdown
What you did in each shot, especially on team projects.
Character design
Turnarounds, expression sheets, and model sheets.
Storyboards and animatics
The planning behind the motion.
Life drawing
Observational sketches that show your drawing foundation.
Short films
With credits and your role.
Process
Blocking passes, rigs, or tests, when they show how you work.
02 · Why custom design matters
How we present animation work
A template decides the layout before it has seen your work. We design the other way round.
- Considerate motion
- Loops kept short and muted, full films played only on request, and motion reduced for visitors who ask their device for less.
- Boards viewed large
- Galleries for sheets and storyboards that open full-screen.
- Your focus, stated early
- Your specialism is clear on the homepage within seconds.
- Light pages
- Video embedded from a hosting platform, so pages stay quick.
03 · Before we start
What to prepare
- Your reel and any short films
- A shot breakdown for the reel
- High-resolution character sheets and boards
- Scans or photos of sketchbooks and life drawing
- Credits for team projects, and the tools you used
Always follow each program's own submission requirements first. Your website complements them.
04 · How it works
Five steps, each approved by you
- Portfolio review
- Direction and structure
- Design
- Build and revisions
- Launch
Examples
All portfolio examplesWe don't have animation examples to show yet. Every site is designed from scratch, so the current examples show how we think about structure and color. Your site would be built around your work.
Questions about animation portfolios
Usually, yes. It's what most people want to see first. We place it so it doesn't slow the page down.
Many programs value observational drawing, and some ask for it specifically. Check the requirements for each program you're applying to. If they want it, it gets its own section.
A short list, shot by shot, of what you did: animation, modeling, lighting, or everything. It matters most for team projects.