Those who got jobs in the US games/film industry, care to share your career path?

BrianShray

Im from a small SEA country (Malaysia) and my life goal has always been to move overseas, preferably to the US followed or Canada, a close second. I did a 3year Diploma program here then worked about 3 years as a 3D Generalist (Modelling/Shading/Lighting/Comp)

I live with my parents for the time being, so, over these years, I have literally been saving up 75-80% of my salary while i figure my next move. Currently, at age 25, i think its about time i do just that.

From what I have read, a degree can greatly improve my odds when looking for work overseas, especially for the US H1-B visa type. Thankfully, the college where i did my Diploma here is affiliated with a number of Institutions in the UK that will allow me to skip to the final year. Therefore, my next step is to secure a degree for future Visa purposes from Hertfordshire,UK (intake Sept 2018) 

At  the end of the day, nothing beats a good portfolio for getting the job offer, but when it comes to the immigration side of things, it can be very tough. Because of this, I'd really love to try to get some advice and plan an optimal route and set goals for myself.

With that said, my question is.
Has anyone got any stories/advice ?

pior

If you want to go work in the US, then you should look at their official government websites where you will find all the Visa conditions and requirements.

"It's my understanding that in order to get a work visa, you need a degree"

No. You may need a certain numbers of years of experience (counted as "points") , and years of education somehow count more than actual work experience.  And most importantly, you will need an employer to sponsor you. There are also multiple work visa types (H1B, O1, E2 ...), each with their own conditions, which can change over time.

In short ... research the actual, official requirements first and foremost. One safe way to look at this is to dismiss any word of mouth advice you may hear/read online (including my own just above, as it relates to my own US Visa experience dating back to almost 10 years and therefore has a high chance of being outdated).

Good luck.

NikhilR

In my opinion it would be more practical to go to Canada first, then the US if you still want to. Once you become a Canadian citizen it will be easier to work in the US under Nafta (if its still around)
Canada isn't too different from the USA, true there are more opportunities in the USA, but the lifestyle is relatively the same.

PixelMasher

there is always studios in shanghai or singapore, lots of game art outsourcing studios or even big inhouse places like ubisoft. Getting to the US or canada is going to be a lot easier if you have some actual production experience under your belt, both in terms of getting a work visa, and companies being interested in putting in the effort to get you on board.

BrianShray

pior said:

If you want to go work in the US, then you should look at their official government websites where you will find all the Visa conditions and requirements.

"It's my understanding that in order to get a work visa, you need a degree"

No. You may need a certain numbers of years of experience (counted as "points") , and years of education somehow count more than actual work experience.  And most importantly, you will need an employer to sponsor you. There are also multiple work visa types (H1B, O1, E2 ...), each with their own conditions, which can change over time.

In short ... research the actual, official requirements first and foremost. One safe way to look at this is to dismiss any word of mouth advice you may hear/read online (including my own just above, as it relates to my own US Visa experience dating back to almost 10 years and therefore has a high chance of being outdated).

Good luck.

Thank you for your response. 

Yup, I completely agree with everything you've said. 

As a matter of fact, over the course the past year or so, I have been reading up on all the most current requirements. Also, I have searched all over the PC forums aswell for as much information and have come across quite a wealth of information. With that said, im always appreciative of any additional help I can get, be it informational or motivational as sometimes regardless of all the preparation, it can boil down to simply being at the right place at the right time with the right papers.

Currently I am at a point where I have worked and saved enough for myself over the past few year (given the terrible exchange rate) to essentially upgrade my Diploma to a Degree from a rather well known institution within a year with zero debt. Plus, i could also use that year while I study, to focus on levelling up my folio. 

In all honesty, its a big step and is personally very intimidating. But hopefully a good choice.

NikhilR said:

In my opinion it would be more practical to go to Canada first, then the US if you still want to. Once you become a Canadian citizen it will be easier to work in the US under Nafta (if its still around)
Canada isn't too different from the USA, true there are more opportunities in the USA, but the lifestyle is relatively the same.

Thank you for the advice. True, it may be easier that way and I am definitely open to the idea. In fact, I have also considered taking the Mentorship Programme over there at Think Tank which seems like a excellent way to level up my skill aswell as having the added advantage of physically being  there when job searching. A couple of Light/Comp artist who I used to work with also managed to snag a job there fairly easily with the help of the far less convoluted visa process. Their advice to me was also to go for a Degree first as it can an hold more weight and provide an added advantage.

PixelMasher said:

there is always studios in shanghai or singapore, lots of game art outsourcing studios or even big inhouse places like ubisoft. Getting to the US or canada is going to be a lot easier if you have some actual production experience under your belt, both in terms of getting a work visa, and companies being interested in putting in the effort to get you on board.

Currently I am indeed working in one of the biggest games/animation outsourcing studio here in Malaysia. I joined as a Render/Comp artist to get my foot in the door at the time. I work in the animation section so Im mostly working on TVSeries/Cinematics/Ads . Ill spare you the details, long story short, this isn't the place for me and as time goes by its causing more physical and emotional stress. But im hoping the experience I've gained here over the years will hold some weight on my resume.  

I agree with you, Singapore does sound like a feasible option.
After all, the US is a long term goal and im more than open to as much experience I can gain through my path there. 

NikhilR

NikhilR said:

In my opinion it would be more practical to go to Canada first, then the US if you still want to. Once you become a Canadian citizen it will be easier to work in the US under Nafta (if its still around)
Canada isn't too different from the USA, true there are more opportunities in the USA, but the lifestyle is relatively the same.

Thank you for the advice. True, it may be easier that way and I am definitely open to the idea. In fact, I have also considered taking the Mentorship Programme over there at Think Tank which seems like a excellent way to level up my skill aswell as having the added advantage of physically being  there when job searching. A couple of Light/Comp artist who I used to work with also managed to snag a job there fairly easily with the help of the far less convoluted visa process. Their advice to me was also to go for a Degree first as it can an hold more weight and provide an added advantage.

I've heard good things about think tank the main advantage being that the instructors have good industry connections.

However I do find it more expensive for the amount of time you spend at the school training.

Also make sure that you time studying counts for getting a work permit of equal duration after you finish the program.
 I've heard that getting a post secondary work permit requires you to graduate from a publicly funded school (I think Think Tank is private)

Vancouver is also pretty expensive. Montreal is the cheapest rent wise. Considering the number of studios and places to work they are similar.

If you're considering Montreal, would help to learn a bit of french and get more fluent once you're in the city.

Toronto is horrible for the games industry (especially for juniors, even seniors are undercut).
 Rent and expenses are also much higher.
Film/TV wise is a bit better, but there are 8 schools here pumping out game/animation grads year after year, so its incredibly saturated.
There are no degree programs for game dev, but sheridan does have a 4 year degree BFA with a major in illustration/animation.
Regardless of where you go to learn, you gotta learn alot on your own too and network with likeminded people.

Also if you have to do the visa process, you don't need an agent/representative its all available online on the CIC (canada immigration site)

BrianShray

NikhilR said:

NikhilR said:

In my opinion it would be more practical to go to Canada first, then the US if you still want to. Once you become a Canadian citizen it will be easier to work in the US under Nafta (if its still around)
Canada isn't too different from the USA, true there are more opportunities in the USA, but the lifestyle is relatively the same.

Thank you for the advice. True, it may be easier that way and I am definitely open to the idea. In fact, I have also considered taking the Mentorship Programme over there at Think Tank which seems like a excellent way to level up my skill aswell as having the added advantage of physically being  there when job searching. A couple of Light/Comp artist who I used to work with also managed to snag a job there fairly easily with the help of the far less convoluted visa process. Their advice to me was also to go for a Degree first as it can an hold more weight and provide an added advantage.

I've heard good things about think tank the main advantage being that the instructors have good industry connections.

However I do find it more expensive for the amount of time you spend at the school training.

Also make sure that you time studying counts for getting a work permit of equal duration after you finish the program.
 I've heard that getting a post secondary work permit requires you to graduate from a publicly funded school (I think Think Tank is private)

Vancouver is also pretty expensive. Montreal is the cheapest rent wise. Considering the number of studios and places to work they are similar.

If you're considering Montreal, would help to learn a bit of french and get more fluent once you're in the city.

Toronto is horrible for the games industry (especially for juniors, even seniors are undercut).
 Rent and expenses are also much higher.
Film/TV wise is a bit better, but there are 8 schools here pumping out game/animation grads year after year, so its incredibly saturated.
There are no degree programs for game dev, but sheridan does have a 4 year degree BFA with a major in illustration/animation.
Regardless of where you go to learn, you gotta learn alot on your own too and network with likeminded people.

Also if you have to do the visa process, you don't need an agent/representative its all available online on the CIC (canada immigration site)

Thank you very for taking your time to share some information.
Much appreciated !