How to Become a Professional in Freelance illustration

Here are two ways to enter the business drawing field: becoming a professional in freelance illustration and registering with a professional bureaus/design firms.

I will add a third option that you may like to try. It is a combination of the first two methods. This is a direct approach to business drawing. You will become a regular contributor to the business organization, but not a design staff employee. Your job is to contribute designs, cleaned up and refined to become functional images.

You will be doing the following:

-Creating and changing the layout of the business (for example changing the spot of an Excel spreadsheet cell, moving a logo from one screen to another, changing the font type to text, rearranging items on a worksheet, etc.)-Answering telephone calls-Arranging meetings- Preparing and setting up equipment and tools needed for the business- Helping others do the same things- Observing the type of materials used by the organization and making them as user-friendly as possible- Cleaning the premises whenever needed and doing Capital equipment and office accessories maintenance.

Oh! You might even have to clean up the image projected on the corporate monitors. Hmm, that's a scared thought, isn't?

Okay, you know the business, you know the material, but what about the people in the graphic design department? Will they be able to come up with something original that will help the company, or will they be trapped with just enough to satisfy their clients?

Graphic design does not have to be a lonely profession, but a team of creative designers can be happy working together in the beginning of their career, before bed nights, traveling days and cold office spaces.

Have you seen the new production of 'Despicable Me'? There are actually two teams of people in that movie: the cartoon team and the production team. The production team is made up of six individuals who lead and direct the different aspects of the movie. On the other hand, the cartoon team is made up of a team of people who work as a team under the supervision of one single director. That director is responsible for creating the finished product.

Did you know that behind every 'star' that appears in a movie, there is a team of people who work behind the scenes? All of those people are well paid animators, illustrators, graphic designers, artists, writers and project managers. They are the ones who give life to the movie stars, whether they are dogs, talking animals or smiling people.

If you become the next feature director on 'A Beautiful Mind', you can expect some of the following:

-Seniority-A big fat contract with a hefty salary-Working with a small team-PUTA's- nights and weekends on set-Working with a small staff- supplying a venue with a tortuous budget and tiny details- low on materials and supplies

It is true that almost anything is possible. With a career in feature directing, this is just one of the ways in which you can put your feature directing dreams to practice. And, if you are lucky enough to be chosen for the job, you will also learn many of the other skills that will be required to run your own successful movie.