Meet Daniel Scott, our awesome Production Assistant! Daniel is a recent addition to the Brown Bag family having joined us this year all the way from Australia! We managed to catch up with him for a few minutes to discuss what his role involves and what he loves about animation.

How did you get into animation?

When you leave university with a film and television degree, you take the first media related job that comes along. Mine just happened to be in animation. Loved it from day one and haven’t looked back since. 

How long have you worked in the animation industry?

This is my third year and third production. My first was ‘Bubble Bath Bay’ for the ABC network in Australia, a pre-school show about talking boats. My second was ‘Beat Bugs,’ a children’s programme for Netflix that features the Beatles catalogue.   

What's your current role and what does it involve?

I’m a production assistant on ‘Doc McStuffins’ Season 4. I do whatever I can to make everyone else’s job easier. Keeping folders up to date, co-ordinating artist’s time and prepping deliveries to send to clients are among some of my daily duties. Doing my job well allows the rest of production to focus on their tasks without the distraction of minor issues. 

What are your biggest influences/inspirations?

Sounds cliché, but my biggest influences in life are my parents. When I told them I wanted to follow a creative career they didn’t hesitate to support me. My work ethic and drive to succeed in this industry comes out of my respect and appreciation for them.

What’s your favourite tool to use and why?

Kinda boring…But I love ‘Bulk Rename Utility'. This is now my third production as a Production Assistant and the first time I’ve had access to proper renaming software. It’s saved me a lot of tedious file renaming work that had driven me crazy on previous productions!

What advice would you give someone considering getting into animation?

Be persistent. Even after getting my first and even second job, I wasn’t sure I wanted to stay in this industry. It’s a complicated, stressful and difficult world to get used to. But if you stick at it and work hard, after a while it’ll just click. Although I now feel comfortable and competent in my position, I’m still learning new things about my job and the industry every day.

What do you like most about working in animation?

It’s brought me to the other side of the world! Since leaving school, I’d been looking for a good excuse to move to Ireland. The industry experience I’d built up in Australia allowed me to move to my favourite city in the world, and continue to develop my career.

What’s been the most challenging thing about working in animation?

Like most jobs in the media, the most challenging thing is the contracted nature of employment. It can be stressful at times to not know where (if anywhere) you’re going to be working next year.

Outside of animation what are you most passionate about?

I love to travel. Being so isolated down in Australia, it’s great to now live in a country where I’ve got mainland Europe on my right and the USA across the pond on my left.

Are you interested in getting into animation? Keep an eye on our Behind-the-Scenes and Tutorials pages for more interviews, #Tutorials and #TopTips!