Planning for next GDC (A few necessary questions)
polycounter lvl 4
So I have never been to GDC before but I need to attend next year and network the best I can. I'm going to start planning and reserving now so it's nice and easy. What are some tips you would have for someone who is in such a situation for the first time? I could only afford the the Expo Plus pass currently so it will be purely about networking for me... Will I need to attend all five days of the conference? (not that I don't want too -- considering circumstances with plane tickets)
Generally, the plane ticket is the biggest pain right now... even planning in advance like this... I live in Maryland so the tickets are expensive ... especially trying to get them for morning on a Monday and evening on a Friday... any tips on finding cheap flights?
The second most expensive part is the lodging --- I found a private room with private bath for $500 for 4 days... which doesn't seem too bad to me... I could save a couple hundred by bunking in one of those Hostels with strangers but I don't know how I feel about having absolutely no privacy... what is your view on this? would you sacrifice the privacy for the saved money?
This is meant to mainly stir up conversation about GDC and maybe give some useful tips that others and myself can use to have the best GDC experience possible.
Bonus: Any recommendations for other big opportunities for networking in the industry??
Thanks,
Gustavo
Replies
Tips on finding cheaper flights: set up an alert for the flight with google flights. Generally I think you'll find good rates 6-3 months out, within a month or two rates tend to spike.
Booking a private room on Airbnb sounds like a good idea. Hostels seem gross, but if you're really hard up for money you could consider that. You could also try to find some buddies to split an Airbnb with. If you're willing to stay a bit further from the convention center (Moscone), you can find better rates.
If looking to stay near Moscone, look in the South of Market (SOMA) area. If you're okay with a bit of a commute in, look in the areas around Golden Gate Park (Sunset, Haight-Ashbury, etc). You can often find good prices on rooms or entire houses/apartments near there. Keep in mind it can take 30 minutes to get from there to downtown, so you'll have to factor in transportation time / expense. You can get in via the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit - the subway), but the BART can be sketchy, esp late at night.
In the past you could volunteer to work at the conference itself, and this would give you an all access pass. Worth looking into if you want to attend some of the talks but can't afford the more expensive passes.
A few general tips for staying safe in SF:
Every year there seems to be a story of some poor kid getting mugged or stabbed. Since you're from Maryland, treat it like going to Baltimore basically.
calounge.com
App opens up roughly back end of November, early Dcember. Deadline in Mid-Early January.
I've done it 8 times now, so I can provide additional info on the CA program.
I had not really taken too serious of an interest in AirBnB but after researching, that really does seem like the most secure/clean move and there are a few around Soma for cheaper than what I had found before. It seems my hurdle will be finding the plane ticket but I have set that Google alert and am confident I'll find something. I don't really have any developer friends yet so I don't think I'll be splitting with anyone but its an option I could explore.
Reiterating the importance of safety and awareness is important and I shall remember to be very alert. Baltimore is not a place I take lightly and neither shall San Francisco.
I am super interested in doing some work with the CA program. Always down to be involved, especially if it means I can see some of the talks in person.
@Brian "Panda" Choi -- I will contact you with any questions about CA whenever they open up the applications, thanks for that link too!! 8 years!? That's really cool to be involved for so long! I bet it's a cool way to make friends too...
Gonna talk more about networking since it wasn't really covered yet. I went this year with the basic expo pass with the same intention of networking.
As far as the event goes, Earthquake covered it generally - Mon-Tues are workshops, Wed-Fri are expo floor. I would note that on Friday they have student-oriented talks that you can access with any pass. These talks are about portfolio-building, networking, etc. I think they have a portfolio review, too that may take a while to get into since there's always a bunch of people wanting to go to it (I skipped it).
A lot of the random networking happens during after-parties. If you're the type to chat strangers up without looking like a weirdo, I'd say go for it. I met some interesting people in those, but was unable to stay for long due to an aversion to extremely loud sound. Make sure to bring cough drops, too, because you'll pretty much have to shout to be heard by the person next to you.
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Here I come to my most important advice as weighed by myself: networking happens before GDC. A month or two in advance, I was contacting professionals I wanted to meet on Twitter (very popular animator and artist hangout, but you can use whatever social media you want) and setting up meetings. I managed to get one person I wanted to meet with each day. Keep in mind that I wasn't there to just get a job (at least not overtly). I wanted to talk to them about their projects and being an animator. I also set up some meetings with other students and we had fun talking about our own projects.
In the end one of my friends who went with me was hesitating to contact a very famous 3D artist who happened to be at GDC, but I encouraged him to do so. The worst they can do is just say they're too busy anyways. The 3D artist agreed to meet with us (and a 3rd friend we brought along) and we talked to him for a while. Near the end, he asked to see our portfolios (and my demo reel since I'm an animator). Turns out he was impressed by my reel and he sent it to his studio's animation director with the result that I got my first animation job in a AAA studio. I mention that to make a point that most professionals are happy to meet with students! but you have to be proactive about it. A big part of getting into the industry is luck, but you have to generate some of your own luck, too. Also, be interested in the people you talk to because if you're only interested in their studio then they'll notice.
TLDR start networking early, be proactive, be enthusiastic and nice.
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As a bonus I'll include some "don'ts" -
Don't be afraid of professionals. They were once students, too.
Don't forget to eat and drink water. Can't network if you're emaciated.
Don't walk up to people and just hand them your business card and leave. Some people did that to me and I threw away their cards afterwards cuz I couldn't remember who they were.
Most importantly, don't be a dick. Good life advice in general.
Good luck!
Cheers,
Jason