Help! Focusing portfolio.

sharsein

I just finished the trains project in my portfolio, need advice before plunging down a rabbit hole.
This is my portfolio: https://sharonhoosein.wordpress.com/

I got laid off from my job around 6 weeks ago. There, I started out as a QA Tester but stayed later so I could do art for the company. After the game I started with shut down, I got my dream job of being a game artist. For around 3 weeks. Then the company shut down. I was the only artist on that project, though I got great advice on the lighting and concept side from senior artists who were on another project.

My MFA thesis in horse anatomy is still the piece everyone compliments. However stuff like that is too work intensive to be side project. At the time I thought I could use my rigging skills to carve out a niche doing posed animal anatomy reference apps/sculpts. Then I went to CTN and discovered no one actually cares about that stuff.
I'm really good at picking up new skills/software quickly, and enjoy scripting when I actually have time to figure things out. Thought about being a rigger, but I don't have any good animation work. I also started out in computer science and failed miserably in college, so even if I tried the tech artist route I'd hit an IQ ceiling.

So my questions are:
1) Given my current portfolio, is there a single project with around a 1 month scope that could tailor it for a entry level 3d generalist or maybe environment art position?
2) Would including a rigged character in my portfolio make sense if it was simple style? Should this character be humanoid, or could something like a dog still be helpful?
3) Is there a way I can tie in my animal anatomy study, some rigging and current work so my next opportunity does not require completely changing direction yet again? If it matters, I live in the US.
4) How do you approach specializing in being a 3d generalist?

Bartalon

1)  You could try doing any of the Monthly Community Noob Challenge events.  If you search for it on here you'll find a few dozen to choose from.  You'd have to really knock it out of the park though.  Frankly speaking, your environment work is not up to entry level environment artist standards yet.

2)  If you wanted to focus on rigging / animation then I'd say yes.

3)  I can't answer this one.

4)  Personally I am very much against people starting out as generalists if their goal is to make it into AAA, but I guess it really depends on what you're looking to do and how long you can afford to not find a lot of work.  Generalist-type skill sets are pretty useful in very small studios / startups, but beyond that it's going to be tough to find work as a freelancer or AAA generalist starting out.  The reason for this is because people starting out simply haven't had enough time or experience to be good at everything.  So they are instead kind of bad at everything.  It's more practical to start as a specialist and over time, with experience, become a generalist as you take on different responsibilities and positions at the studios you work for.  Larger studios tend to want specialists because they have enough manpower to allow their employees to perform a focused set of work, such as character art, environment art, concept art, animation, VFX, world building, etc.

If you want to specialize: pick a discipline, drop everything else, and run with it until you get hired.

sharsein

Makes sense, thanks!

Shrike

Some bulletpoints:

Gray = Mediocrity > no gray backgrounds, no gray website. Put a bit of effort into this. Website white, tasteful gradient for renders with a ligher spot in center
Cut rune story
Cut Dragon head
Cut Train room, these can not be saved 
Longbeard seems good, get better screenshots and in the same size and format at best, shows that you worked professionally 
Rerender horse, if possible in another software, put a bit of time into presentation, there is so much you can do with a highpoly render. Do something 'art gallery' style classy. 
Id suggest taking 1-2 months and work on some props. Realistic, generic, something that shows off your ability to make as real as possible looking assets. 2-3 is enough, quality over quantity. Small diaorama, a fire hydrant on a pedestral, some weed and a ground texture, thats enough. A old barrel with cigarettes on it, a muddy ground, some vegetation and a bit of trash. Tasteful, small in scope, realistic. No sci-fi or made up nonsense. Something that can stand on its own (thats why the tiny diaorama), its 50% more effort than the single prop but 300% more worth. Do 2 with great execution thats all you need, cut the rest, polish the horse, thats it. You can do it in the time if you work hard.

MrHobo

Shrike said:

... Small diaorama, a fire hydrant on a pedestral, some weed and a ground texture, thats enough. A old barrel with cigarettes on it, a muddy ground, some vegetation and a bit of trash...

Dioramas are a great way to pack a lot of high quality content into a single portfolio piece, however I would argue against a wooden barrel/fire hydrant/ ground pedestal project as a portfolio piece. As a learning exercise or an exploration on materials sure, but in this day an age I would say you are better off coming up with a more complex diorama, a small bedroom that has been partially burned in a fire, a messy office desk piled with junk, etc. 
Barrels and fire hydrants do not say anything beyond your ability to do basic modeling and texturing, which doesnt help you because it is expected that everyone applying for the job can do basic modeling and texturing.

Shrike

Sure, but he dosn't have much time and I think displaying the ability to do realistic props that can actively be used in a production environment is of much higher concern than doing more sophisticated / aesthetic environments at this point.  

sharsein

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions. To clarify: the one month deadline was because I wanted to know if I picked the right project would I have a realistic shot at getting a job that would let me keep my apartment. Seems like it's best to just plan on moving out.

Given that photogrammetry and 3d scanning technologies/libraries are improving, what ways do you approach making realistic portfolio pieces so your efforts don't get made obsolete by tech?