Insights by the Pros with Supervising Animator Pep Lluís Lladó Porquer

Learn from Pep Lluís Lladó Porquer’s journey as Supervising Animator Sony Imageworks, his journey, insights, and how iAnimate helped shape his animation career.

‘’iAnimate helped me polish some of my skills to better prepare me in the industry.’’

From Passion to Pictures: Supervising Animator Pep Lluís Lladó Porquer’s Animation Journey

Pep Lluís Lladó Porquer is a seasoned animator whose journey reflects a relentless pursuit of passion, creativity, and growth across borders. Describing himself simply as “a human being who chased his passion for animation,” Pep’s career has taken him through multiple countries and into collaborations with talented artists from around the world. For nearly 12 years, he has been a key part of the team at Sony Pictures Imageworks, contributing to an impressive range of films including Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The Mitchells vs. the Machines, The Sea Beast, and Vivo, among many others.

Pep mentioned iAnimate as a pivotal influence in shaping his understanding of the animation industry. Through its workshops, he gained valuable insight into how feature animation studios operate, allowing him to refine his approach and shift toward more character-driven performance. This experience helped “re-wire” his creative mindset—an evolution that continues to inform his work on some of the industry’s most celebrated projects today.

Animation Pro Interview

Animation Journey and Inspiration

iAnimate: Tell us a bit about your animation journey and throughout your time with us.  Who or  What inspired you to become an animator? How did you become an animator, and when did iAnimate become part of your journey?

Pep: I started 18 years ago in TV shows in a small town in Spain with a very small animation team. I had everything yet to learn and it was one of the best experiences since it taught me to be efficient and fast. After that I worked on some other projects until I finally found myself in London, working at Framestore in some of the best VFX films at the moment. Then it really hit me how much talent there’s out there and I definitely learnt as much as as could from everyone surrounding me. After a few years of VFX work, I wanted to try jumping on feature film and thats when iAnimate help me polish some of my skills to better prepare me.

Finally I got hired by Sony Imageworks almost 12 years ago where I found my place. 

iAnimate: What it is like working at your studio?

Pep: Theres a huge variety of styles when it comes to working at Sony Imageworks. From the most cartoony, like hotel Transylvania, to more naturalistic like Jacob and the SeaBeast, and more stylized like Spiderverse or Kpop. Working, exploring and adapting to such range of different animation styles really helps to keep a creative approach, stay versatile, and continuously improve.

Animation Lessons and Growth

iAnimate: How did iAnimate help prepare you for the industry? What were the most important things you learned at iAnimate?

Pep: It was a great insight on how feature animation studios work, and it helped me to change my focus and re-wire my brain a little bit with more character focused notes and workshops. 

iAnimate: What is the most challenging shot you’ve ever animated, and why did you succeed at the shot?

Pep: Every shot is challenging in its own way! And an opportunity to learn. Animating chibi Zoey on Kpop: Demon Hunters was definitely a lot of fun, and some roarball shots on GOAT was definitely challenging but I loved every minute of it.

iAnimate: What do you think it was about your demo reel or interview that got you the job?

Pep: I knew Sony Imageworks was going to hire for the next Hotel Transylvania, so I decided to do a personal test and match the style of the movie as best as I could at the time. I guess it caught their attention and they liked it, since that’s pretty much what they needed to see. the rest of my reel was more VFX oriented so that test its what landed me the job.

[Pep's Current Reel]

You can reach Pep via:

Animation Career Advice & Tips

iAnimate: Do you have any demo reel or interview advice you can share with animators on the job hunt?

Pep: Be intentional and cater your reel to the company you want to get hired by. Research what‘s the art style of the company, what projects have they done before, and maybe even what’s the project they are hiring for. Keep it short and strong and show pieces that match their needs.

iAnimate: If there’s one animation tip or technique you’d share with someone wanting to animate in a feature film, what would it be?

Pep: Specificity. Stay away from cliches and bring some new and fresh ideas to your work. As supervising animator, I love when animators show their shots with unexpected takes on their refs, or bring new ideas to the table. In every film we want our characters to be and feel unique, and there’s something unique about each animator that only you can bring to the shot.

iAnimate: What other advice do you have for current or future iAnimate students?

Pep: Don’t skip steps! Basic foundations are key. It's very tempting to want to animate that really cool acting shot, or that high-energy action shot early on. But at the end of the day, it’s all built on basic animation principles and foundations. It’s crucial to master those, so when you finally get to animate those cool shots later on, you are set up for success.

iAnimate: Given that there’s so much to learn, how would you recommend a brand-new animator start their training?

Pep: Be consistent and trust the process. Learn as much as you can from every single test, exercise or shot, no matter how small.

iAnimate: What makes a great animator or an animator that a studio would hire?

Pep: Be a team player! Animation is a team sport, and it takes a whole team (sometimes huge ones) to deliver a project. So being able to work within a team respectfully, with optimism and passion is something that people will remember. Be someone people want to work with!