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Submissions Open for Freefolk Paid VFX Internship Competition

Studio’s Futurefolk initiative is designed to help find the next generation of visual effects talent; applicants being considered for a one month paid internship.

Soho-based VFX studio Freefolk has launched the fourth annual Futurefolk competition, their initiative to nurture, inspire and kick-start the careers of the next generation of VFX talent. The one month paid internship provide experience within Freefolk Commercials and Freefolk Film & Episodic, in either the 2D or 3D department. The scheme will again result in one female-identifying and one male-identifying VFX student being offered a placement.

“We all know how crucial it is to discover the VFX experts of the future and this initiative allows us to find the talent and nurture it,” commented Freefolk managing director Vittorio Giannini. “COVID and remote working has had a major impact on entry level and junior artists. The development and career progression of this group has been stalled so through Futurefolk and our existing junior staff, it’s our duty to do all we can to reverse this.”

Due to COVID restrictions last year’s internship was fully remote. Despite being unable to experience the facility environment the winners still felt the opportunity gave them invaluable industry insight.

The Futurefolkers of 2020 were Carina Carlsson and Daniel Evans. At the time of application Carlsson was completing her Digital Effects MA at the NFTS and Evans his undergraduate at Bournemouth University studying Computer Animation and digital effects.

“I feel very fortunate that I was able to do this internship with Freefolk as many of my classmates now weren't as lucky and the lockdown massively affected their ability to gain industry experience via an internship since many companies didn't run theirs last year,” commented Carlsson. “I really appreciated how much my mentor checked in, through a combination of both calls and messaging via Google Hangout.”

“I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Freefolk,” noted Evans. “It taught me a lot about how a professional production team work together to achieve the end product and overcome challenges along the way. It was an enlightening experience that I feel very lucky to have had, especially during these extraordinary times.

“For anyone thinking of entering this year,” he added, “I’d say, focus on your reel and portfolio, doing as much as you can in your own time. Your own projects are what will make you stand out amongst others.”

“The demands of content creators are really ramping up as we exit the pandemic and so the need to grow the VFX workforce with highly skilled and talented people is ever more important,” shared UK Screen Alliance chief executive Neil Hatton. “Freefolk’s paid internship program is the ideal opportunity for someone to get a foot in the door and gain the experience they need to build a rewarding career in VFX”.

The initiative is open to all VFX students - pre and postgraduate. This year’s placement will be either remote, at the studio, or a combination of both. Deadline for submissions is midnight August 1. Additional information is available here.

Source: Freefolk