A junior animator applied at our studio. His reel wasn't really there yet and the test he took was ok. We didn't hire. But he kept working on new stuff. I watched his progress unknown to him, and told the anim director I wanted to give him another chance...

Gave him a new/better test and he knocked it out of the park. Perfect? No. But he showed a drive and potential that wasn't as clear before. He is now one of my animators. And has been doing an excellent job. Don't get discouraged when things don't seem to work out. Get motivated!