Getting my foot in as an artist trouble..........HELP!!!

chrishircock

hello artists, I am an artist who wants to get a job as a character artist. But I am having trouble of getting my foot into the industry sadly. I'm currently doing a masters in game technology as a 3D artist pushing to be a character artist. Been trying to get a job before my course ends but no success with replays saying I don't have the skills they are looking for. I have a tablet game already out on google play called Astral Switch which I was the character artist and animator for the game and currently working on a PS4 project for the course as mainly a character artist and 3D modeller. Need help with some feedback and tips please. I would greatly appreciate it thanks.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.ac.bcu.gamercamp.astralswitchrelease&hl=en_GB 

https://chrishirkill.artstation.com/ 

Brian "Panda" Choi

I appreciate you've gotten actual game assets done.  Your games help to further prove that fortunately.

I don't like your design sense.  I have a feeling you designed most of the characters yourself.  It could be stronger, and/or use more appealing original concepts.

You texturing overall leaves me wanting.  For the realistic characters, it doesn't seem to be enough.  No fabric normals for the fabric threading.  For the cartoon characters, no addition to the flat coloration.  I want more depth from your textures.  I want more body, and maybe just simplisitically, more complication.

Logan 5's skin looks more oily than skin like. Hair cards should definitely be more feathery.

Tactician needs more feathery hair cards and it should not be shadowing on itself so harshly.  The concept seems weak.

Technician is your strongest human character.  Outside of rendering quality and hair refinement that is needed.

Mantis seems to have failed to follow the concept a lot. Certain silhouette feels of "thin limbs" and material changes like with the scythes are not apparent on the model.  A lot was lost from 2D to 3D translation.

In my estimation, you're not there yet.  Overall, it seems to be an issue of polish and refining your design sense to be more appealing, or at least stronger.

chrishircock

Thanks for the reply. So lower the roughness on Logan and render it again. I use substance painter render setting to render those shots. Great for textures but not for hair planes. Planning to create a low poly pirate to replace the zombie. The woman concept wasn't created by me but a concept artist in the project that I went back and forth to receive feedback. Get rid of mantis on my portfolio?

chrishircock

Also what can I do to improve my polish and refine my design sense in order to be more appealing?

Brian "Panda" Choi

Depends on the asset and what challenge you're tackling.

You design sense can be helped by continuing sketches and concepting on your own, and getting those designs vetted by others, etc.

chrishircock

Okay, currently as I am now, would I be able find a role as a prop artist or something so I have a foot in and improve my skills on creating character models in my free time? If not, what should I do?

Brian "Panda" Choi

No, I don't see any props that outpace your character work.  There may be exceptions.

As a solution, right now it sounds like you're hustling already.  It's hard for me to think of something else that could significantly help.

JordanN

chrishircock said:

Okay, currently as I am now, would I be able find a role as a prop artist or something so I have a foot in and improve my skills on creating character models in my free time? If not, what should I do?

Don't make the same mistake a lot of students do when they're desperate for a job.

It's tempting to want to settle with "anything" just to get into the industry, but this is your life you're committing yourself to. Any lack of experience will immediately reveal itself since this is a money making business. There's no consequence in just waiting and building a stronger portfolio, versus going straight into the grinder and forcing yourself to keep up with the veteran talent.

chrishircock

In order to make a good portfolio, should I base my models on concepts on ArtStation or should I make my own or make fan art like characters from Warcraft and other games?

Brian "Panda" Choi

Usse someone else's concepts in the immediate future.  As stated before, your design sense is a little too weak to be immediateely appealing.

chrishircock

Thanks, I was thinking of doing Robert Downey in tropic thunder, a low poly cartoon style pirate. Peharps a female knight on a horse. Hopefully I'll get these done before Christmas. What do you think?

Brian "Panda" Choi

Without seeing a concept, I am not confident in making a judgment call. So much of this is about the visual look of this as opposed to the verbal pitch.

A white man playing as another white man playing as a black man would be interesting in so far as that I haven't seen a 3D black RDJ character model before.

Cartoon pirate is going to be really dependent on the concept since it's been done before.

Female knight on a horse will run into the same challenge.

chrishircock

for the pirate what about this concept https://www.artstation.com/artwork/wynrY.

Concept from Jake Bullock



this concept from  Felix Pelletier-Marion

chrishircock

I could skip the horse

chrishircock

I like your artwork, what software do you use to render out your images as your characters' hair is very light on it's planes compared to mine in substance painter. Also any tips on how to texture the hair on the character's head like your "Tara" Character.

Brian "Panda" Choi

Most, if not all, of my work is in Marmoset Toolbag.  Substance Painter lacks the shader options for organic elements like skin and hair.  IRay is nice, but not for super final beauty shots.

I'd prefer black RDJ.  If it's well executed, you'll have something strong on your hands.

chrishircock

Right, when I'm free and finished with my masters, I'll start right away with him and afterwards I'll do the private. I have to buy marmoset to get those renders properly unless substance painter does a update that fixes that issue with the hair.

Brian "Panda" Choi

There are free realtime rendering engines like Unreal or Unity.  Even slightly better if you can render your game assets in an actual game engine./

chrishircock

I might do that, but still get marmoset as it looks handy to have. Earlier you said about the fabric normals and the threading, I don't understand what you mean.

Brian "Panda" Choi

Like your characters with clothes, there's no detail normals for the fabric. 

chrishircock

Were you just talking about the zombie and not the others right, if so I understand lol I was kinda consfused there well the reason why I didn't put fabric normals on the clothing on the zombie was to give off the cartoon feel to it like plants vs zombies like look. I guess I failed in that department lol 

Brian "Panda" Choi

It's regarding your characters that are trying to be fairly realistic.

You could also apply the same detail to the cartoon/stylized characters and still maintain the stylized look.

chrishircock

Oh, then I don't understand. There are fabric normals on the clothing, perhaps they are too light as I did lower the opacity of the normals of them in substance painter cause I believe it was too strong.

Also what the characters lacking that is preventing them to be realistic, is it the texturing or the sculpting or both. How could I fix and improve on that. 

Brian "Panda" Choi

When I say fabric detail normals, I mean detail nromals that account for the weave/threading

chrishircock

Got it,  increase the intensity of the normal of material. What about the faces, how could I improve those?

Brian "Panda" Choi

Study figure drawing and anatomy, which is admittedly the usual.

chrishircock

So the anatomy wrong, around the eyes I guess but I do measure it by 5 eyes across and 6 upwards.