You've maybe seen these things on my Facebook, but I'll post it here anyway. I've been doing some modeling as my self-imposed holiday homework. It's strange that I'm supposed to be a 3D modeler but don't have many models, so that has to change. I'm aiming to make as many Maya models as possible, and let one of the lecturers check them when uni starts, only after

that will I go on to finishing off with ZBrush/textures/fur/rendering/rigging if I'm lucky. I have a few categories in mind:

Disney style: Goofy

Cartoon characters, from 2d or 3d designs. Useful to practise translating different art styles into models.

Amphibian: Poison dart frog

Animals from various families. Useful for thinking up plans to solving limb variations. Also I think it's more practical to focus on animal or creature modeling for a portfolio since there are more occasions to model those rather than human characters when it comes to movies. You can always use live footage or 3d scans for humans, but animals might not be cooperative, and creatures just don't exist.

Fish: Veiltail goldfish

Bird: Sparrow

Mammal: Grey wolf

Invertebrate: Rhinoceros beetle

One more category I want to do is other people's art pieces; from painting, or art dolls, etc.