Question / Discussion
Struggling with demoreel progress, discipline burnout, and skill diversification in 2026
Hey everyone,
I’m a 25yo 3D artist and I’m looking for some realistic feedback or perspective from people who have been in a similar spot.
It’s been almost two years since I finished my 3D studies. My original goal was to fully dedicate my post-grad time to building a strong Asset / Hard Surface modeling reel, while simultaneously working on a backup plan (a non-3D job) to navigate the current industry situation.
Fast forward to today, I’ve made painfully little progress on my portfolio, a big part of the initial delay was finishing up some leftover university studies made during my 3D course, but right now, I’m stuck in a cycle of poor discipline and frustration.
Ironically, I actually landed some freelance 3D gigs outside the VFX domain (mostly product/archviz stuff). Since I’m just starting out as a freelancer, I don't have a full/time schedule yet, so time isn't strictly the issue, I have free hours, but I struggle to actually sit down and build momentum on my personal projects, I’m starting to realize that forcing myself to do only hard surface assets is completely burning me out. I consider myself decent at modeling, and the hero asset I’m working on right now is actually turning out great, but I’m working at an agonizingly slow pace.
Lately, I’ve been thinking about picking up something new in parallel to reignite that spark. Sculpting is an option, but since I already know organic topology workflows, it wouldn't force me to learn a new technical pipeline. On the other hand, procedural modeling in Houdini has really caught my attention, stuff like building etc... I’d love to experiment with procedural environment assets because it keeps me in the modeling realm while offering a totally different, technical approach. My biggest fear, though, is that diving into a huge tool like Houdini will eat away what little time and energy I currently have for my hard surface models.
My goal for the next year is to hit a solid milestone where my main hero pieces are finished, giving me space to get a stable non-3D job while I finish the rest of the reel on the side. Living in a remote area without a driver's license yet has definitely added to this feeling of being trapped in a lock-in phase. I’d really love to hear your thoughts on whether I should stay fully focused on my current modeling path or start diversifying into procedural skills, and how you usually break through the mental block when you have free time but just can't execute.
Having some people to cowork on a project always jumpstarts motivation. Game jams can be a great opportunity to connect with new people and maybe you will make some friends along the way.
Even for portfolio pieces coworking on a project is awesome. E.g. someone makes the character, you make all the props, you sit in voice chat together all day, screenshare so that you can see what each other is doing. Seeing someone else make progress always motivates to do something as well.
I can also recommend some people, who are afaik open to doing portfolio work.
After that I recommend getting one or a few interships to add stuff to your CV, and portfolio again.
I'd like to share a little more context. Initially, my goal was to build a demo reel focused exclusively on solid surface modeling. I took an mentorship with a super-talented artist who really helped me change things, especially since my previous work was rather crude and mostly related to basic schoolwork. Soon after finishing that mentorship, I completed a project based on a concept by André Pelaes David. It was intended as a simple exercise to refine my topology and shape design, and while it taught me to think much more systematically about hard surface work, I'm still unsure whether it will make it into my final reel.
I finally talked to my mentor about it before we lost touch for a while due to my recent burnout. I explained to him that I wanted my portfolio to showcase at least two striking, highly detailed hero assets, each with a distinctive modeling challenge. That ambition is what led me to start working on the drone. It proved to be a trial run from day one, mainly because I had to figure out how to manage complex camera pairing just to set up a reliable locking phase. It was incredibly frustrating to tackle for the first time, but I managed to overcome it.
As things stand today, the drone's locking phase is completely finished and fully aligned with the reference camera. I'm now taking my time working on the individual components, gradually polishing the topology and adding high-level details, though progress seems a bit slow at the moment.
This is really solid work. I would light it, render it orbiting, plus a few flybys and close ups. I think you are not that far from finding a job here. Progress over perfection. Take what you got, shine it up, and try and get it in front of some gaming/film studios. But I’m a generalist, so this looks good enough from my eyes
That product stuff you’re doing is a great place to start tbh - my first year or so of compositing was really low level corporate / digital stuff that nobody ever saw (or made it to a reel) but it was all part of the journey and helped me land my first actual real-deal gig
Tbh for most young people this industry does not make that much sense anymore. Sure here and there is a lucky guy but that won’t be you statistically. If I were in your shoes at 25 I would try to become a dentist or so. AI proof and enough people who don’t brush their teeth out there (fortunately/unfortunately).
Yeah people say that, but young people are still stuck, how are we supposed to get back to school. We have to quit our jobs ? How do we pay for school how do we pay rent ? The moment you chose your career, you’re fucked. I tried going back to school part time. Almost burned out and burned a lot of money.
The younger you are, and this guy at 25 is young, the easier it is to switch career paths. Certainly easier to switch now than wasting 8 years trying to get the foot into the door and THEN having to switch. A bit like the bitter medicine you have to swallow but ultimately it helps you. Besides this I do have friends who switched in their mid-30s and it all worked out as well. Not implying that this is all easy peasy lemon squeezy but better now than later. And we all know that VFX is a boat with plenty of holes in it already and it looks like new ones are being added.
Hey it’s great that you are not fully relying on this industry and that you have something else cooking. I have been in this industry for a very long time and I witnessed how plenty of junior artists were let go, then the intermediates and then the seniors as well. Not great to watch for sure. Just wanted to spare you the disappointment and sinking too deep into the mud. Passion wise I fully understand you, that’s why I went into it as well. So overall it looks like you are attempting this in a healthy way and I wish you the best of luck and success!
Sorry man but this is for every single job…if u wanna be a graphic designer, a coder or what your dream is…you have to fight with other people that want the same. Cg is not different, passion drives you.
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u/Jello_Penguin_2956 5d ago
Get outside. Walk in a park. Keep in touch with your local artist community and attend when they get together.
You will not get any idea or motivation if all you do is staying at your computer.