Question about creating a character modeling reel

yuuva

Hello, I am wondering something about creating a character modeling demo reel. Do companies like it better when you create models based on concepts done by other artists since that will be the same process in a large studio, or is it better to make your own concepts for your models, since that shows your own creativity and character design skills (in addition to modeling skills). So far I have made all my own concept art for my models and I am wondering if I need to change my strategy. Thanks for any replies!

Swizzle

First off: Don't make a modeling reel. Recruiters and other folks often go through a dozen or more portfolios per day, and they want art in their faces as quickly as humanly possible. This means making a clear, responsive website with images they can scrutinize, rather than a reel that they have to scrub through in a video player. More info on that here: http://www.thejonjones.com/2005/10/07/your-portfolio-repels-jobs/

From my experience, people don't care if you're working from an existing concept as long as the execution is good. As for whether you should create your own concepts or work from other people? It doesn't really matter, as long as your concepts are at more or less the same level as industry standards. If you're making your own characters without concept art, just make sure the end result is high quality.

If you're making something based on someone else's concept, there are a few things you should keep in mind:

• Your model should match the concept as closely as possible
• If the concept is for an existing game, you should make the model at least as good as the quality of the existing art
• You should credit the concept artist and provide a link to the original concept

Burpee

@Swizzle

Don't know about the game industry but in the film / advertising industry, most studio want to see Reel,

Still I agree with the rest  

BagelHero

@Burpee
The theory goes that for anything that actually moves, a reel is fine. However; character modelling you can get the point in 10s worth of images rather than a 2 minute video that needs time and attention. If you have animations, go for it, but if not then I'd focus your time into your pieces and portfolio images.

That said, +1 to everything Swizzle said. Spot on.