We recently asked three alums of Moore's Animation & Game Arts program to talk about how their college classes prepared them for their careers.
Lauren Niedelman ’18
Niedelman is a designer for Allied Wire & Cable in Collegeville, PA, a specialty manufacturer of electrical wire, electronic cable, heat shrink tubing and wire management products.
“At Allied I design promotional materials for the company's marketing campaigns. This can range from creating posters to newsletters for various holidays or special events.
“During my classes at Moore, I learned the fundamentals of 3D modeling as well as 2D and 3D animation. In my animation classes I learned the steps to properly create a short film through script writing, storyboarding, rough animation and the final clean animation. I used these steps to direct a short animation for my company for the Thanksgiving holiday. I've also been using my skills in 3D modeling to recreate the products that we sell, so customers can view what they are buying in a 3D space in real time.
“I use the time-management skills I learned at Moore to get my work done quickly and efficiently. I also use my communication and planning skills to share and create new projects for myself and my team. I believe it has been because of what I've learned that I was recently named employee of the month.”
Megan Barker ’17
Barker is an illustrator for Duolingo, a Pittsburgh, PA-based language-learning platform.
“My main role is to make illustrations that appear in the Duolingo app. I also have a few secondary responsibilities such as making art for our social media posts. I meet weekly with my art director to prioritize art requests and create a schedule for deadlines. Then I get to work on illustrations. We use art to make Duolingo fun and entertaining, which keeps people motivated to learn a language.
“Duolingo turned out to be a great fit for me because I had already been exploring how I could make the world a more understanding place through educational and interactive visuals. This medium is an efficient method for educating people about different perspectives because of its ability to be immersive. Duolingo does this by gamifying language learning.
“My professors at Moore taught me important concepts in successful animation pipelines that I’m currently using at work. An illustrator can benefit from an animator’s understanding of concepts like staging and storytelling. Because I’m familiar with vector animation, I’m able to understand how to construct my illustrations in a way that would make them easier and more enjoyable for our animator to animate.
“Moore’s courses on game design helped me to consider more options for how my audience might be interacting with my art. In my work at Duolingo, I learned how important it is for us to make an experience that people will want to use.”
Alexa Whitby ’17
Whitby is a 3D artist at Jostens, a company based in Eagan, MN, known for producing yearbooks and class rings.
“I was originally hired to help build 3D models and render out 3D images of our jewelry for our website, catalogs and posters. Over the last few months, I've started to take on more responsibilities as a developer. I can't be super-specific, but I've been working on creating a 3D product visualization app!
“I use skills I learned at Moore every day at my job, technical skills like drawing, 3D modeling and rendering, as well as the programming knowledge from our game design classes. Applying for fellowships, internships and preparing for Senior Show taught me to push myself out of my comfort zone, which has been so important. Taking on new and different projects is creatively rewarding, and has given me the chance to meet and collaborate with some amazing people.
“So far, my favorite part about working at Jostens has been the freedom to innovate. My boss is so open to new ideas, and is very supportive in allowing me to create opportunities for myself where I can excel.”
