How are the chances when you create a piece like UE4 "Rebirth" Cinematic?

TirvasFreeze

Hi,

How would be the chances for applying as Environment Artist if you have something similar to the Cinematic "Rebirth" created by Quixel.
The Cinematic impressed me a lot and i was wondering if that is already the highest level of Environment Art and it's gonna get you "100%" a Job

Taylor Brown

I mean.. yeah of course if you applied with something of that magnitude on your portfolio you'd turn some heads. Just realize it took a team of experienced artists to make it over an extended period of time using the resources of their company to capture photogrammetry scans. In my opinion, it's not a realistic project to work on purely for the function of getting your first job in a reasonable amount of time. There are people who single-handedly pull incredible shit like this off but that seems incredibly rare and they tend to have a lot of experience under their belt.

NikhilR

While quality is certainly appreciated, whether it translates into a 100% chance of a job to the exclusion of every other factor that influences the hiring process is debatable.

For instance I think it does matter that this project comes from Quixel, and the people involved have a fair amount of credibility that is useful in making their case.
Also depends on how much each artist is evaluated given available opportunities.
Then comes visa status.etc though come to think of it, it might be the first one.
And some other controversial elements that I won't discuss here.

And more importantly if the project requires an artist of that level.
I know of several cases where really stellar artists have been hired to great fan fare, only for them to leave for something else either because they were bored or burned out or the company made little attempt to retain them or give them something challenging to work on.

Really comes down to what you're looking for, from a job and if that job is compensating for something that is lacking in your personal life which adds to its importance.

The best artists I know did what they were passionate about and the job was an opportunity for them to apply that passion, that's it.
But not all applicants are good artists, or artists for that matter.
Like you don't need to be Rembrant to make a subway sandwich, yet the sandwich makers are called sandwich artists.

They make the same exact sandwich to the tastes of the consumer every single time.
All the ingredients come from a distribution centre, the operation is an assembly line and this approach is very critical in many studio operations especially on large projects.

You won't always get to do what you want, or be creative on every aspect of the project, and several studios are guilty of not being able to appreciate the full potential of who they hire, many times the opportunity just isn't there and more often than not its just business as usual.

One of my colleagues job is to correct art received from outsource studio. Its been his job for the past 2 years. Does the work involved rely absolutely on the skills demonstrated in his portfolio? 
Perhaps.
Could anyone else with a portfolio not as good as his, or better be assigned to a different task.
I hope so, but its not always possible. 
Was any of this listed in the job description or talked about at the interview? 
No.
And more importantly,
Is he a rockstar, samurai ninja? Certainly not being compensated as one unless you consider the sad plight of the poor devils during the Meiji restoration.

I really do hope the visa issue is resolved at some point, lot of great artists overseas that could use the transition for a better life. 
But if they know how to market themselves they can have a pretty decent freelance career too.

sacboi

@Taylor Brown +1

And WOW! thanks for posting that link, indeed deeply immersive stuff made by just one guy. It's as if I had actually crossed the State borders into outback South or West Australia, especially when wearing headphones