Knowing when to put yourself on the line for what you believe in these days can be a precarious task. Trusting yourself more than you trust your co-worker may be your first line of defense. Now you have to weigh the odds even when the top brass encourages you to “speak freely” under promises of providing an “open work environment.” Not true. When in doubt you have two choices: 1) Put up or, 2) Shut up.

Making sense of the rules and regulations that govern every aspect of our lives, particularly how we work and whom we choose to work with, isn’t always a case of black and right. You think there is a higher judge, a fairness police that sorts it all out, making the nimrods with jobs seem like the lucky ones when the rest of us need to struggle to survive the politics. Not knowing which end is up is never easy. Not knowing which end is down is even harder. When the rules of the game change and you seem to be lost in figuring it out, don’t sweat the small stuff, just change the rules.

Recently, the Executive Director of the VES delivered an open letter to the VFX community describing what he believes are a number of issues currently facing the VFX industry. The letter was passionate, but is his approach to the issue of globalization potentially damaging?

Pamela Kleibrink Thompson discusses an important facet of empowerment.

Walking on a tight rope? Feeling like you may need them, but they don’t necessarily need you? Wondering when you might be fired or worse just “ignored” enough to make you want to quit? Managing to survive in your career when the odds are building up against you takes a certain amount of courage and guts. It’s not easy not to feel wanted or needed when you were hired to do a job and you feel like you are constantly looking over your shoulder, uninvited to attend meetings or questioned at every turn.

Mark Simon discusses how to match talent with the right attitude.

Figuring out what you want from what you don’t want when the choices are not always abundant or exciting, may make you feel like you are forced into a corner without too much wiggle room. When you are faced with the inevitable challenge of choosing a job when the choices are limited, make room for yourself and move the borders. Knowing that there are limitless choices in the Universe of Jobs makes it easier for you not to feel like you are sorting fact from fiction in your quest for your next career adventure.

Special Guests: RISD Senior Animation Students 2011 Live, from the Rhode Island School of Design, graduating senior animation students take over the show and grill the very Alan Foreman and Joel Frenzer on their animation information. Topics: jobs in animation immediately after school, maintaining your own art practice while working in the studio, secrets of FFAF podcast production, beatboxing, general fears, and the rapture. Refereed by RISD Animation Professor All-Stars, Amy Kravitz and Bryan Papciak.

Pamela Kleibrink Thompson celebrates the teachers that made a difference.