B is for Believability
Don’t lie during your interview. Don’t put work in your portfolio or on your reel that isn’t yours. Don’t take credit for work you didn’t do. One artist presented beautiful work in his portfolio and demo reel that was not his own. No one ever found out until he was interviewed by an employer who recognized the pilfered work as his own. How often do you think that employer tells that story?

Your performance is key to building your believability. Don’t exaggerate your skills, experience or ability. You can be positive and confident, but don’t claim skills you don’t have. If you land a job you can’t handle, what is the point?

If you are a person who gets things done, is easy to get along with and delivers on promises, then you will get more jobs in the future.

C is for Commitment
Another negative entry on an invisible résumé occurs when an employee leaves before a project is complete — abandoning the team. If done with sufficient notice this is acceptable because a replacement can be brought in. But it is not a good idea to suddenly bail because a better project comes along. Let the team know that they need to find a replacement for you — or better yet — ask the new company to delay your start date until after your expected finish date. The new company should be willing to accommodate you, as it would not like to be left in the lurch at the end of its project.

D is for Dependability
It amazes me how many freelancers fail to deliver work on time. You must deliver the work by the deadline. There was one artist on a television show who simply didn’t show up to deliver the work on the day it was due. When finally reached on the phone, he said he needed three more days to complete it. He was granted those three days, but never got another freelance assignment from that producer. If you are going to be late, let your client know before the deadline. They may be able to arrange some help for you.

One candidate, let’s call him Daffy, was interviewed and hired. He was supposed to start work on Tuesday, but called to say he needed an extension to start the following Monday. The company agreed to this, but the following Monday, Daffy did not show up for work. The company finally reached him and Daffy admitted that he had accepted another offer. For leaving an employer in the lurch, Daffy added a huge blotch on his invisible résumé.

The animation and visual effects industry is a tight community, and reputations matter as much or more than talent. Make sure your invisible résumé is stellar and you will have little trouble finding work. If you are easy to deal with, reliable and have a can-do attitude, you’ll make the team.

Pamela Kleibrink Thompson is a recruiter, hiring strategist and career coach. She is recruiting artists for a visual effects film being produced in Los Angeles. As an employer and recruiter, she has had personal experience with all the examples in this article and hopes that both veterans and students can avoid these mistakes in the future.