What we wish we'd known as a student at 16!

At 16, most of us thought everyone else had a plan.

Pick the right subjects. Make the right choices. Don’t fall behind.

Except… that’s not really how creative careers work.

In this episode, Simon Devereux and co-host Nene Parsotam bring together artists, leaders and emerging talent from across VFX and animation to answer one question: What do you wish someone had told you when you were 16?

The answers are honest, surprising, occasionally brutal… and probably not what you’d expect.

This isn’t an episode about becoming successful by 21 or building the perfect portfolio. It’s about the things nobody tells you early enough: that careers rarely move in straight lines, that changing direction isn’t failure, that software matters less than you think, and that some of the skills that take you furthest aren’t taught in classrooms at all.

From early career panic to sideways moves, from advice that changed everything to advice that turned out to be nonsense, the panel reflects on the pressure young people put on themselves, and what actually mattered in hindsight.

If you’re 16, know someone who is, or occasionally wish you could send your younger self a voice note…

This one’s for you.

Guests:

Joe Raasch - Head of Training, Pixomondo Will Noon - 3D Character & Creature Animator & Previs Artist, Framestore Alex Davy - Storyboard Artist, previously at Blue Zoo Animation Oktawia Sokalska - Junior Compositor, Viridian FX Zain Harris - Colourist, DISAUTHORITY Kara Orapallo - VP Crew Development, DNEG Animation

Listen now! ...and maybe send it to someone who thinks they need their whole future figured out already.