Make an impressive collection of sample works. Generally, for audio-visual jobs especially in film-making, gaming and advertising, the actual videos you present to potential employers is as important, or sometimes, even more important than your resume.
You can do your own personal projects for short films, fan videos and spec commercials. Highlight your skills as a 3D modeler in these projects. Accept even small commissioned works or even pro bono projects to further build your credibility and professional experiences for your sample works.
Prepare your demo reel and resume. Making a demo reel requires collecting your sample works and choosing the best footage that can impress employers with your skills. These typically include any work you have in films, video games, music videos, advertising or any corporate video work. Highlight the most impressive and professional works you did as a freelance artist or as a former employee of any company.
You may also make separate reels for gaming, for film and for music video and commercial works as these more focused reels can help employers see if you are fit for the projects they actually do. Yet, it is also good to have a show reel that features all types of 3D modeling works you do.
Make an online portfolio using your own Web site and/or sites like LinkedIn and PitchYourProject and upload your demo reels in your social networking and video sites like Facebook, YouTube and Vimeo. Keep the links with you, especially your preferred link where anybody can simply access your reel from their own computers at any given time.
Making your reels available online allows easier and more convenient viewing of them by potential employers, who can readily see your works anywhere with an Internet connection. This is better than waiting for a day or more for a physical copy in a disk or downloading them for a few minutes or even hours on slow Internet connections. This also provides you better exposure, which makes it possible for you to get discovered by potential employers because they like the works you made after watching them online.
Look for prospective jobs online or through your friends, colleagues, networks and connections. Aside from searching on job posts in employment Web sites, check the official Web sites of companies you want to work in like film and animation studios, gaming companies or even some possible state or federal jobs that require expertise in 3D modeling.
Make a list of your preferred job posts, then customize your resume and cover letter for each company to which you apply. Make a tailor-made resume based on the needs of a company. Make sure your resume provides links to your online portfolio and demo reels as well.
Send your resume by e-mail or through an employment Web site. These two are the standard and formal ways to send your application. Some also hand over their resumes, along with a disc containing reels and sample videos, to the company's office. If you know somebody from the company and that person is recommending or referring you for the job, you may also hand it over to that person.