Ask A Recruiter: Christine Huot at Mainframe Studios
Mainframe Studios is a Canadian animation studio headquartered in Vancouver, which started at the bleeding edge of computer graphics. The studio was founded in 1993 to produce ReBoot, the first TV series entirely animated in 3D. For over a decade, the studio operated under the name Rainmaker Entertainment, but has returned to its roots as Mainframe Studios. Recent productions include Octonauts: Above & Beyond, Unicorn Academy, SuperKitties, Cocomelon as well as the studio’s first 2D animated series, The Guava Juice Show.
At the time of writing, the studio is gearing up to hire a 3D Lighting Artist, Keyframe Animation Artist and a Keyframe Animation Director in Vancouver. We took this opportunity to reach out to Christine Huot, Director of People and Talent at Mainframe Studios. Christine oversees and advises on HR strategies for the studio, which provides work for around 350 employees across Vancouver and Ontario. We invited Christine to offer her advice as a recruiter to artists applying to work with a crew like Mainframe Studios.
How would you describe the projects which Mainframe Studios is best known for?
Christine: Mainframe is mainly known for children’s 3D television series, with a spatter of feature films like Escape from Planet Earth and Ratchet & Clank. Mainframe’s best-known projects are the ones that Mainframe did early on, such as Beast Wars: Transformers (Beasties in Canada), Reboot and Barbie.
The first two of these arguably are culturally significant to many Canadian 90s kids who grew up with these shows. With Mainframe working on the various Barbie series and specials dating back to the late 90s.
How is your studio structured and what are the range of roles at Mainframe Studios?
Christine: Mainframe is largely still a CG studio but we are working on our second 2D project right now —Phoebe & Jay, which will premiere on PBS this fall. We hire for all roles within the pipeline from pre-production to post and all the support positions, like TDs, IT, accounting, etc.
When reviewing reels and portfolios from 3D animators, what does Mainframe Studios typically look for?
Christine: For all portfolios, it is really important to show a variety of work. And remember to put your best foot forward! Start with a bang and put your ‘money shots’ at the very beginning. It is always important to remember that everyone who is reviewing your portfolio, from the recruiter to the hiring manager, have limited time to review all the portfolios that come in for a role. So you want to really wow them up front.
Specifically for animation portfolios, if you have really strong skills in, say quadruped animation, and you are applying for a job on a show like Unicorn Academy, it would be awesome to see a strong sample of that work.
Regardless of your experience level make sure to show the basics; show strong timing, spacing, weight distribution. Make sure movement is fluid and remember the physics. Is that movement believable? Show clear character expressions, gestures and actions.
For candidates under consideration, what is your best advice for acing a job interview at Mainframe Studios?
Christine: It is always good to do some research on the company and watch some episodes of shows they have produced, especially if you know you are interviewing for a specific project that already has episodes released. Be prepared to discuss your shots and your work process. You are good at what you do, that is why you got the interview, so be comfortable with talking about your work and be proud of it.
Other than your actual portfolio and experience it is good to showcase your communication skills. Think of how you can give clear concise answers to questions, ask questions of the interview team and it would be good to think of examples of how you have communicated with your teams in the past on an issue. Or how you keep your supervisor updated on where you are with tasks.
Communication has always been very important, but now with hybrid or remote work environments it has become an even more critical piece of the hiring process, since we are often not all in the same room all the time.
How would you describe the workplace culture at Mainframe Studios?
Christine: Mainframe has an open and inclusive culture that encourages pushing creative and technical boundaries. Depending on the show, crew will work remotely or hybrid from our newly renovated Vancouver studio. Our culture club hosts lots of fun events throughout the year in addition to hosting spotlights on topics, covering areas such as mental health, DEI and studio updates.
What challenges and opportunities does Mainframe Studios anticipate over the next year?
Christine: The industry is still recovering after the downturn that started in 2022. Finding new opportunities for partnerships for service work and developing our own IP remains a focus. That is more difficult but we are really proud of the work we have in the studio and the amazing talent we maintained and recently hired. It is this group of people that will continue to make Mainframe a creative force to be reckoned with. And will set us up to thrive in the years to come.
As always, we are innovators at our core. Our teams are always hard at work creating new ways to push the envelope on the quality of our projects, making workflows even more efficient and of course increasing the bar on creativity. We are excited for the stellar projects our teams are currently working on and can’t wait for everyone to see their amazing work.
Want to access more information from Mainframe Studios?
If you enjoyed what you read from Christine Huot, be sure to visit the studio’s website and careers page. Artists can also follow Christine on LinkedIn.
Interested in being featured in our next Ask A Recruiter article?
Feel free to get in touch! We feel that these articles provide a helpful channel of communication between studios and artists, as the advice that applicants receive can make it easier for recruiters to identify quality candidates. You can always email me at mike@cartoonrecruit.com.
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