Till now, you understood how to make a winning VFX and Animation sample resume. Now, it is time to make your CV stand out in a clutter. 

This specific blog article will talk about in-depth technicalities that will help to show your software and technical expertise in your resume. Make sure to follow it rigorously. 

Technical keywords / industry relevant keywords

Your resume / CV must not be just a list of your past experience and job details. It must make sure that it show your proficiency in using industry standard softwares and techniques. On an overall impact, it must showcase your problem solving abilities.

Each job role within the pre production, production and post production demands a unique set of skills and software knowledge. So, make sure to add the technical keywords / industry relevant keywords as per your genre you are applying for. It shows your professionalism and specialized expertise. Aligning it with industry standards can help emphasize your skills. Moreover, such technical language can be the key to standing out in a competitive job market.

Apart from human HR people, many MNC uses ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) to filter the resume on the first level. If you haven’t used the industry relevant keywords, it can be rejected, even if you are qualified. 

For your quick help, we have provided the major list of technical keywords / industry relevant keywords as per major job categories of Animation and VFX. Do use them and add/delete as per your expertise.

1. Pre-Production job

• Storyboarding
• Concept Art
• Visual Development
• Matte Painting
• Digital Painting
• Character Design
• Environment Design
• Mood Boards
• Animatics
• Art Direction
• Previsualization (Previs / Previz)
• Script Breakdown
• Shot Planning
• Production Pipeline Setup
• Wacom
• XP Pen
• Huion
• Photoshop

2. 3D Modeling job 

• Hard Surface Modeling
• Organic Modeling
• Polygonal Modeling
• Digital Sculpting
• UV Mapping
• Retopology
• Anti-aliasing
• High-Poly to Low-Poly Workflow
• Asset Creation and Management
• Subdivision Modeling
• Character Modeling
• Environmental Modeling / Designing
• Level Creations
• ZBrush
• 3ds Max
• Maya
• Blender
• C4D 

3. Texturing job

• UV Mapping
• UV Unwrapping
• Procedural Texturing
• PBR Materails
• Texture Baking
• Shader Development
• Material Creation
• Texture Maps (Diffuse, Specular, Normal, Roughness etc.)
• Photorealistic Texturing
• Hand-Painted Textures
• Texture Optimization
• Texture Resolution
• Texture Reconstruction
• Seamless Textures
• Substance Painter
• Substance Designer
• Mari
• Modo

4. Lighting job

• HDRI Lighting
• Global Illumination (GI)
• Image-Based Lighting (IBL)
• Three-Point Lighting
• Ambient Occlusion
• Light Baking
• Volumetric Lighting
• Ray Tracing
• Physically Accurate Lighting
• Lighting Setup for Animation/VFX
• Shader Development
• Environment Lighting
• Scene Illumination
• Look Dev / Development
• Color Grading
• Shadows and Reflections
• Interactive Lighting
• CGI / Render passes 
• Maya
• 3ds Max
• Katana

5. Rigging job

• Character Rigging
• Skeleton Setup
• Joint Placement
• Skinning (Weight Painting)
• Blend Shapes (Morph Targets)
• Facial Rigging
• Control Rig
• FK/IK (Forward and Inverse Kinematics)
• Deformers
• Hierarchical Rigging
• Stretchy Limbs
• Dynamic Rigging
• Muscle Systems
• Custom Rigging Tools
• Python Scripting
• MEL Scripting
• Auto-Rigging Tools (e.g., Advanced Skeleton)
• Constraint Systems
• Biped/Quadruped Rigging
• Secondary Motion Controls
• Rig Optimization
• Weight Transfer
• Modular Rigging
• Joint-Based Facial Rigs
• Maya
• 3ds Max
• Blender

6. 3D Animation job

• Keyframe Animation
• Posing
• Rigging
• Character Animation
• Shape Animation
• Motion Capture (MoCap)
• Facial Animation
• Lip Sync
• Timing and Spacing
• Animation Curves
• Body Mechanics
• Squash and Stretch
• Inverse Kinematics (IK) / Forward Kinematics (FK)
• Cycle Animation
• Walk Cycles
• Dynamic Animation
• Performance Animation
• Technical Animator
• Maya
• 3ds Max
• Blender
• Cinema 4D

7. Simulation / FX job

• Particle Systems
• Fluid Simulation
• Cloth Simulation
• Rigid Body Dynamics
• Soft Body Dynamics
• Smoke and Fire Simulation
• Physics-Based Simulation
• Crowd Simulation
• Destruction Simulation
• Real-time Simulation
• Hair and Fur Dynamics
• Wind and Force Fields
• Pyro Effects
• RealFlow
• Houdini Dynamics

8. Rendering job

• Render Optimization
• Ray Tracing
• Global Illumination (GI)
• PBR (Physically Based Rendering)
• GPU Rendering
• CPU Rendering
• Render Farm Management
• Render Blades
• Cloud Rendering
• Path Tracing
• Denoising Techniques
• Render Passes (Diffuse, Specular, AO, etc.)
• Render Layers
• Real-Time Rendering
• Rendering Engines
• CGI Pipeline and Workflow
• VFX Pipeline and Workflow 
• V-Ray
• Arnold
• Redshift
• Octane
• Mental Ray
• Unreal Engine
• Unity

9. Roto / Rotoscoping job

• Matte Creation
• Articulate Roto
• Keyframing
• Alpha Channel Creation
• Spline-Based Masking
• Edge Refinement
• Roto Brush Tool
• Precise Masking
• Frame-by-Frame Animation
• VFX Roto
• Stereo Roto
• Motion Blur Roto / Rotoscoping
• Hair Detail Roto
• Object Isolation
• Foreground/Background Separation
• Artifacts Removal
• Depth Mattes
• Silhouette
• Mocha 
• Nuke
• After Effects

10. Paint / Prep job

• Wire Removal
• Rig Removal
• Cleanup
• Regrain and Denoise
• Film Restoration, Cleaning, and Repair
• Scratch and Dust Removal
• Marker Removal
• Clone and Stamp
• 2D/3D Paint
• Dust Busting
• Frame-by-Frame Painting
• Nuke
• Photoshop
• Silhouette

11. Matchmoving / 3D Tracking job

• 3D Camera Tracking
• Object Tracking
• Scene Reconstruction
• Camera Projections
• Lens Distortion Calibration
• Coordinate Systems Alignment
• Focal Length Analysis
• Camera Path Export
• Nodal Pan Tracking
• 2D/3D Tracking
• Matchmoving Integration with CGI
• Point Cloud Generation
• Motion Capture Integration
• Syntheyes
• PFTrack
• 3DEqualizer

12. Compositing  job

• Layer-Based Compositing
• Node-Based Compositing
• Keying (Green Screen/Blue Screen)
• Rotoscoping / Roto
• Camera Projection
• Color Correction
• Depth of Field (DOF)
• Motion Tracking
• Multi-pass Compositing
• Masking
• Matte Painting Integration
• Lens Distortion
• Post Production Workflow / Pipeline
• Match Grading
• Color Grading
• Shot Finaling
• Nuke
• After Effects
• Fusion

13. CG / VFX Generalist job

• Procedural 3D Modeling and Texturing
• Shading
• Lighting
• Technical Rigging
• Technical Animation
• Character Animation
• Python and other Programming Languages
• Particle Effects
• Dynamics Simulation
• Photorealistic Rendering
• CG / VFX Compositing
• CG / VFX Pipeline and Workflow
• Agile/Scrum for Creative and Technical Teams
• Cross Platform Project Management
• Virtual Production
• AR and VR Integration
• Pipeline Development and Workflow
• Cloud-based Workflows
• Python Scripting / Programming
• Photoshop
• Maya
• 3ds Max
• Houdini
• Blender
• Marvelous Designer
• Substance Painter / Substance Designer
• Arnold Renderer
• V-Ray Renderer
• Nuke
• Game Engine Integration (Unreal Engine, Unity)
• AI (Artificial Intelligence) and MI (Machine Learning) in Animation and VFX

14. Motion Graphics / MoGraph job

• Motion Design
• 2D, 2.5D and 3D Animation
• Kinetic Typography
• Explainer Videos
• Title Design
• Video Montage
• Infographics Animation
• Stop Motion Animation
• Looping Animations
• Broadcast Graphics
• Web Animation
• Social Media Graphics
• Video Production
• After Effects
• Cinema 4D (C4D)
• Premiere Pro
• Animate
• Resolve
• Particle Plugins (Trapcode Suite, Boris FX Suite, Video Copilot Effects)

15. Production Coordinator / Supervisor job

• Production Scheduling
• Project Management
• Studio and Client Budgeting
• CGI / Animation Pipeline
• VFX Pipeline
• Post-Production Workflow
• Line Producer
• Resource Allocation
• Team Management
• Film / Television / Commercial Production
• Budget Tracking
• Timeline / Delivery Management
• Daily Reports / Dailies
• Shot Tracking
• Client Communication / Relations
• Client Compliance and Contracts (e.g., NDAs, copyright agreements)
• Production Management
• Task Prioritization
• Progress Monitoring
• Vendor Coordination
• Data Security
• Production Dashboards
• Problem Solving
• ShotGrid / Shotgun
• ftrack
• Kitsu 
• Asana
• Trello
• Airtable 
• Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Drive)
• Microsoft Excel

16. Editing job

• Video Editing
• Non-linear Editing (NLE)
• Color Correction
• Color Grading
• Sequence Assembly
• Timeline Management
• Audio and Video Syncing
• Transitions and Effects
• Motion Graphics Integration
• Multi-Cam Editing
• Proxy Workflow
• Visual Continuity
• Cutdowns and Teasers
• Frame Rate Conversion
• Video Compression
• Export/Render Optimization
• Sound Mixing and Levels
• Keying and Masking
• Storytelling Through Editing
• Shot Finaling
• Premiere Pro
• Final Cut Pro
• Avid Media Composer
• DaVinci Resolve

17. Graphic Designing job

• Visual Communication
• Typography
• Layout Design
• Color Theory
• Brand Identity Design
• Vector Graphics
• Raster Graphics
• Image Manipulation
• Photo Retouching
• Infographic Design
• Logo Design
• Branding and Marketing Materials
• Print and Digital Design
• Iconography
• Style Guides
• Mockups and Prototyping
• Composition and Balance
• Concept Development
• Photoshop
• Illustrator
• InDesign
• Figma
• Sketch
• CorelDRAW

18. HR / Talent Acquisition job

• Talent Sourcing
• Recruitment Strategy
• Headhunting
• Campus Recruitment
• Candidate Screening
• Interview Scheduling
• Onboarding Process
• HR Policies and Procedures
• HR Compliance and Audits
• HR Operations
• Employee Engagement
• Performance Management
• Compensation and Benefits
• Employee Relations
• Workforce Planning
• Retention Strategies
• Compliance and Labor Laws
• Background Checks
• Job Offer Negotiation
• Talent Pipeline Development
• Contract and Freelance Recruiting
• Performance Metrics
• Exit Interviews
• Studio Branding
• HR Business Partner
• Social Media Recruiting (e.g., LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter)
• Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) (e.g., Greenhouse, Workday, Lever)
• Human Resource Information System (HRIS) (e.g., BambooHR, SAP SuccessFactors)
• LinkedIn Recruiter
• Indeed / Glassdoor / ZipRecruiter / Naukri / Monster Jobs
• Microsoft Office Suite
• Google Workspace
• Slack / Teams (for communication)
• Job Market Analysis
•  

Using these keywords in context can highlight your technical skills and familiarity with industry-specific tools, workflows, and techniques, making your resume stand out for roles in animation and VFX.

The last part of how this series of how to make resume of Animation and VFX artists focuses on cover letter and freelance projects.