Programs and student software
- ASWF Summer Learning Program Academy Software FoundationMentorship
Free, remote summer program for underrepresented people in VFX and animation. The 2026 cycle (apply by April 21, run June 1 to July 31) is over.
- ILM Jedi Academy Industrial Light & MagicInternship
Paid internships and a trainee track. No openings were listed on 2026-10-12.
- Epic MegaGrants Epic GamesGrant
2026 had two windows (January 12 to March 20, June 29 to September 4). Results land December 7 to 11.
- Google Summer of Code Blender and othersMentorship
Blender took 8 projects in 2026.
- Maxon student plan MaxonStudent software
One-year student licence. The price sits behind a login.
- Houdini Apprentice SideFXStudent software
Free, non-commercial, watermarked.
- RenderMan non-commercial PixarStudent software
Free for students and educators.
Dates and eligibility change each year. Confirm on the program's page.
Demo reel, the short version
- About 1:00 for students. 1:30 to 2:00 for professionals. Never over 3:00.
- Best work first, not most recent.
- Aim at one role. A generalist reel gets skipped.
- Name, role and email on the first and last card.
- Add a breakdown sheet: what you did on each shot, and who did the rest.
The Academy Software Foundation keeps a longer guide on its DIWG wiki.
Reading path: stylised rendering
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, hand-made qualitybefores & afters
- Painterly rendering for animationDisney Animation
- Kubelka-Munk colour mixingvanity_ibex
- Toon and cel shadingOffscreen Canvas
- Generalized Kuwahara filter (Kyprianidis)Paper
- Line Art modifierBlender manual
People to follow
- EntagmaHoudini and generative tutorials, weekly.
- Toadstorm (Motion Operators)Houdini pipeline and open source tools.
- vanity_ibexRendering and colour mixing, written up in depth.
- PlattipusHoudini and USD splat rendering from Sydney.
- Self ShadowThe yearly SIGGRAPH links list.
- Offscreen CanvasWeekly picks on shaders and stylised rendering.