Welp, my 3D career's probably over
polycounter lvl 13
Haven't had a studio job since Jan 09, out of freelance work, out of money, out of time to find more work before January, my portfolio isn't where I want it to be, and my wife is just about fed up with me burning time trying to get work without actually getting results.
Didn't figure it would end like this.
What the hell do I do now? I'm sure I'm no the only person who's been in this spot... I just can't see how to dig myself out.
Didn't figure it would end like this.
What the hell do I do now? I'm sure I'm no the only person who's been in this spot... I just can't see how to dig myself out.
Replies
I think especially in these times it hard to get a job in the industry and it becomes ever more important to keep updating and advancing your skills but also your portfolio.
Coming to sites like Polycount help a lot to as your able to network with individuals all over the world, i wouldn't have gotten my job if it wasn't for the contacts i made here at Polycount.
Also what i have been seeing over and over again is that this is a young persons market as we are able to move to anywhere in the world without really up-rooting too much as we dont all have wife and kids in our early 20's.
My best advice if you do still want to do this is to post up your portfolio get a crit and work on what needs to get fixed.
Cheers,
Arman
Eh, that's part of the problem.
I'm married and we a kid young (I'm 25, my son's 6... you do the math. :poly121:). We're not really mobile because of extended family circumstances and finances. I'm in Seattle, which helps, but if it's not within driving distance of Seattle, I'm pretty much limited to offsite, which is a huge crimp in things.
Portfolio, for what it's worth, is at www.garagebay9.com. Basically all airplanes and flight-related stuff as far as my studio work (I was at MS Flight Sim). I'm trying as fast as I can to build stuff that doesn't have anything to do with planes for my portfolio...
edit: and take out the "Who 'That Guy' is" section of your resume... it's really weird and unnecessary. Basically you want your portfolio to be images that are easy to find and see, and a list of your skills and jobs. Employers find out about your personality when they interview you.
edit2: You should also simplify your job descriptions to short, bullet-point phrases, if not just a simple list. Think of it like a stats sheet from a really awesome RPG where you get paid to win.
Two more pieces that aren't posted there, are these even worth posting?
Have you thought about applying at places that do simulation work for the military or Air Force? Lockheed Martin, Meggit, etc...just a thought. The pay and stability is waaaay better than the gaming industry.
I figured it was 3+ years old, wasn't up to par, and over-specialized to boot. I've been hearing from lots of local artists that there's kind of a stigma attached to Flight Sim in this area because it was seen as "not modern" (and in a lot of ways, it really wasn't).
Yeah, I actually tried. Applied at a place called AeroTech (subsidiary of Thiokol), looked into Lockheed-Martin and Boeing (my uncle works at Boeing as a software engineer), nobody was interested. Most military applications prioritize function and user experience accuracy waaaay above graphics. And the one place that was vaguely interested wanted me to move to the Texas gulf coast, and I couldn't do that.
That is an awesome description. When I have money I owe you a beer.
In the past 12-15 months I have been in and out of work. First getting layed off at Raven and then leaving / getting layed off at Budcat in July (before the studio shut down). I have a wife and 2 kids (5 year old son, 17month old daughter). Since Jan of 2007 we have lived in San Diego, Maine, Chicago, Wisconsin, Iowa, and now Maine again. It fucking sucks moving and uprouting my family, BUT we have done what we have had to do to survive. The economy sucks. Right now our industry is kinda wishy washy for lack of better words and you gotta do what you gotta do to survive.
So after losing my gig at Budcat in July my wife and I stuck it out in Iowa for a bit. I did a bit of freelance when I could find some, applied for other jobs, worked on some things and she took a job in the evenings. In the end it wasn't cutting it so we moved back to Maine to be closer to family and have a cheaper cost of living. With no money at all after getting here I took a job working construction with my cousin. I work m-thursday (sometimes on fridays) but it is out of state in Vermont most weeks, or if I am in state working I am up by 4:00am and out the door by 5:00-5:30 to get to work on time. Home around 6:00-6:30 at night. Eat dinner with the family, shower and try to get in some work on my folio or an art test.
It doesn't leave much time to do anything and it sucks. Underpaid like mad and the works rough, but the important part is I am helping my family get through this mess. I don't get as much time to work on my folio as I would like to but when I do get the chance I work as much as I can on it.
I've been doing art test after art test lately as it's winter now and there isn't too much construction work to be done in the snow. At least not with the guys I was working with.
There are much worse things that could happen to ya to make you give up but don't man. I don't know your whole situation but you're a young dude. I understand about the wife not seeing the results of the hard work but that's how it is. Just try and talk with her. My wife has done the same thing when I would do an art test or apply at places just to get the big no thanks or no replies at all. It's part of our industry, take it or leave it.
If this isn't what you really want to do then find something else you love doing but if making game art is what you want to do then my best advice is take any shitty job you can find that will help pay the bills until your folio is up to snuff so you can get that job you really want. Any money coming in is better then no money right?
I know that is a lot to read but I hope it helps a bit. Don't give up.
It's also a difficult time of year. A lot of studios have shipped their titles for the holiday season and will be putting off interviews until after the holidays. Now's a good time to grab a seasonal temp job, make some money and give yourself and family a little break for the holidays, and use what free time you get to work on portfolio pieces unburdened by the stress of having to find a job. Come January or February, the hiring will (hopefully) open up a bit and you can sneak in somewhere in preparation for E3 pushes!
Good luck!
Listen to Jesse first of all. He's been through "the shit", and still doing his best to make it happen. He knows where his heart is, has a good set of priorities, and on top of it all has a family to support.
Second, don't give up. Listen to what others are saying and get a paying job. Anything that will bring in dollar signs to appease the misses will help you and your situation tremendously.
What I think will help you most is scraping your current portfolio and stop applying for game jobs for the time being. I know it sounds like a tough nail to bite, but it is advice someone gave me a good time ago and it helped ten fold.
Once you've done all that, start applying again. Maybe look for some solid off-site freelance/mod work to get you back in shape and slap on your resum
I got laid off in January of 09, and with all the local studios I figured it wouldn't take long to get a new job at all. Boy was I wrong. About two weeks after I got laid off almost every local studio either had massive layoffs or closed shop. It was ugly. I wracked my brain trying to figure out ways to make money until the local places start hiring again. Eventually I started custom painting RC car shells to help make ends meet. At first it barely made anything, and it was rough. I just barely bought a house and I had a child due in a couple months with no insurance.
But I stuck with that, and continued working on my portfolio. I painted rc stuff from 8am until 2pm, and from 2pm to 2am I worked on my portfolio while taking what little freelance I could(Completely re-did my portfolio 3-4 times within this time period). Then slept for six hours, rinse and repeat. But I focused on things that I feel were keeping me from getting a job. At my previous studio I didn't have to paint textures at all, so I focused purely on that.
It was super hard, and very disappointing to make small change custom painting, and getting turned down from every game studio around. But eventually things started to change. A few people started racing my rc shells in national races, my paint work was being featured in magazines, and manufacturers started using my shells and referring customers my way. Along with that I sped up my process, was able to charge more, and built up a good reputation. Eventually it started doing well enough to pay the bills at least. That took a little bit of stress off, and made me realize that when times get tough I can get resourceful and make enough to take care of my wife and son. I didn't want to custom paint forever, but it was one step to help me get where I was going to get.
Eventually I bit the bullet and gave up on waiting for local studios to hire and decided to apply out of state. I ended up getting an offer 2,000 miles away and packed everything up and moved. I started my new job in May. It's rough having no family around, but I think it was a great decision and I'm pleased with the way things turned out. And during that time yeah I was stressed as hell and it was the roughest time of my life. But I learned a lot about myself, my weaknesses and strengths as an artist, and what I want out of my career.
So hang in there! Things will get better, as long as you keep working your ass off for it. Few people get jobs handed to them. You gotta keep applying, keep optimistic (Which is the hardest part), and keep working on the weak spots in your art.
And as cheesy as it sounds, I listened to this a lot.
[ame]
Also redo your website and start a critique thread for it:
-The front page should always be your gallery
-Never have a solid white background, same reasons you don't want one on renders
-Less is more
From what I can tell, I think your portfolio needs a LOT of work.
That very first piece you have, should highlight the strongest/most current piece you've created. The lighting doesn't match the background, the shaders seem off, and the presentation is a bit lazy.
You have no wire frames or texture flats, so we can only really guess how you've created them. And it doesn't look like you're keeping up to date with current techniques.
I'm not seeing any Ambient Occlusion bakes, or usage of a curvature map, not to mention the texel density seems very uneven throughout.
Keep in Mind Jesse Moody is currently looking for work as an Environment Artist, and he has years of experience on AAA titles, and has a AAA portfolio to show for it.
You're competing with guys of his caliber for those few positions.
I know you mentioned your portfolio hasn't been updated since 2009... which is (unless you're UBER gosu) inexcusable for a professional artist.
(drunkenly advice)
Oh and no whining.. I've got a fulltime job, teach and have a wife and three kids. If I can find the time. So can you. It just means less sleep.
Speaketh the truth. I worked a hardcore job 12hrs/day while I learned 3D. There's no reason I wouldn't go back to a menial job to sustain myself, should circumstances require it. You do what you have to do, simple as that. Stay strong man, keep making art and reading tutorials. Keep posting your work here and getting critiqued. You'll improve yourself and by doing so, your situation as well.
If you do need to find some work. Get something that will allow you the time to work on your stuff. Reading Jesse's experience. My god, I would have had a nervous breakdown.
(and as people say your website is ugh. Maybe just make a wordpress and call it donw)
I think that the only thing you need to do (besides redoing your folio) is simply to take art classes, read on art theory, and start seing things with a fresh pair of eyes. And no, doing hardsurface modeling does not mean one shouldn't take life drawing classes. Check out some of the Massive Black videos and listen to guys like Whit Brachna.
Good luck!
Edit : after digging further on your website I see that you, indeed, started to take life drawing classes. I can feel you enjoyed them since you post pics from them. I dont think you should post all that (maybe a few good ones you really like) but yeah, keep on learning about art. Even tho you want to focus on executing hardsurface models, its still crucial to develop the skills to *look* at them properly. This is also true for your website - it needs to be more clear, make better use of contrast, and so on. Again, good luck for whats coming next.
As for your website, heres a honest piece of advice, I hope you wont take it badly (its hard to let go of something you most likely spent a lot of time building) : Flat black background. Your info at the top with the necessary links. Thumbnails linking to full size images. Done! All that can be done in about an hour.
You just have to keep at it and stay positive. I think things have a way of working themselves out if you just keep doing the right thing. My wife and I are both game artists who got laid off at the same time from sister companies. It got to the point for us where we almost lost our house. I kind of secretly wanted it to happen because we are literally stuck in it, in an area with few game studios. We couldn't afford to sell it, if it could even be sold in the first place. But we stayed positive and kept ourselves busy looking for freelance and what not. Things eventually worked out. She got her old job back after the company recovered a bit and I got a job teaching 3D modeling at a local college.
I miss production a lot and fear I will never get another studio job. Some things that help me deal with it is I came up with a really cool project I am really into, basically making my own game. I also try to enter every game art contest I can find and participate. I treat that as if it was a job and it makes me feel better. I also get nice portfolio pieces.
Hang in there man and keep us updated.
In realistic terms I like what the guy on page 1 said about:
"If you wanna stay local, know the studios in your area, the work they do, and build your portfolio around that. A couple pieces to appeal to each top choice studio would go a long way."
I'm hoping to get a job in London and my target is EA. The studio in London focuses on Mobile and Social games so I'm currently working on an Iphone game with a friend to show them I am worth their time.
Of course. my situation is different to yours. I'm a young 21 year old who has the luxury of living at his parents home with no worry of paying bills and I have time on my side. It's actually quite sickening how this industry is pushing the more experienced, mature developers away and it needs to change.
If I ever had the money I'd be sure to start a studio that makes games that take risks, doesn't drop employers and so on. That's the dream world of course
Yeah man. I didnt read all of the rest of this thread but lemme say...
Your site design isn't doing you any favors. You've got decent work, but you're presenting it horribly. You need to fix that right away. The two pieces you posted in this thread, I would say...are NOT folio worthy. Keep practicing and getting more completed pieces together.
I was unemployed for 3 years(barely freelancing) until I JUST got my job at Vigil. Today was my 2nd day. However, it required immense sacrifice. I lost my vehicle, my long-time girlfriend, my cat, my home and most of my friends. I lost 20+lbs of weight because I wasn't able to afford enough food.
I think I was suffering from a similar syndrome. Hopelessness can set in and stick hard, and rapidly turns into clinical depression. So my advice is to just hang in there. Get other work until you can find game stuff again. Its a very competitive field we've chosen and it requires an uncommon level of commitment and skill. Never forget that. You've chosen to do something very difficult, because you love it. You can't be so surprised that you don't always succeed or that its harder than you anticipated. However, like the saying goes...
Winners never quit and quitters never win.
You lost your cat too?
My god....the humanity of it all...
Poor cat.
Sorry for ALL CAPS but I think you should have done this before the wife and kids man...
Good luck though I hope you get a job, if not in the game industry, who cares, as long as you can support your family until things get better.
No real to be unhappy your whole life/unemployed/scrape by due to "extended family". Plane tickets round trip on Southwest are really cheap so if grandparents/uncles and aunts/brothers and sister want to see you/your son they can make the easy cash and come visit every once in a while. Most company's help with relocating to a new place so moving shouldn't be to expensive on you. If you cant move due to "extended family" being deadbeat family members you have to support, personally I have always been a fan of dropping the dead weight. They will just be an anchor on your life dragging you under.
Hope its not to harsh for you. Good luck in whatever choice you make. Your career is only over if you want it to be.
Do whatever shitty / normal job you need to do right now, but dont loose sight of your mission to become a better artist.
Its not easy, but when you break it down, strip away all the bullshit you will be left with:
Do whatever job now to take care of family, highest priority.
Continually get better as an artist, secondary protocol.
Secondary Protocol means staying active as an artist, participate in challenges, hell just make art - throwdown against your peers, anything to keep yourself producing / learning etc.
The longer you maintain focus, the greater your chance of getting your break.
Go for it dude! For yourself, your family, FOR SPARTA!
I went to uni for 3 years, learnt Maya (grad at 07), realized it would be a dream working in the games ind and Ive been struggling with that for about anothre 3 years. Im currently back in school trying to broaden my 3d skills to include things like lightning and rendering to at least get a job making commercials or whatnot, anything to land my first job involving 3d and get out of the groc. store business.
Im 27 now, got a gf with whom I plan to spend my life with and as you, in lack of a better word, pretty much stuck in a city. Let's just say she's pretty sick of me being stuck in this situation. I'm spending way too much time in front of the pc, way far from relationship freindly. We're barely getting by financially and numerous times Ive been thinking of just quitting and getting any job just to be able to start my life if you now what I mean. But this is a dream and a huge passion of mine as it is for pretty much everyone else in here and I dont want to give up just yet.
I got an internship coming up lasting from january to june at a small 3d studio here and I really effin hope that this will land me my first real job. I need to get away from the supermarket job.
Well, just me rambling, getting some stuff off of my chest more than helping, my bad.
With current situation of industry it is hard to get a job. Personally I have stopped looking for a job cuz I wouldn't want to leave my home for a game job anyways with so much instability in this industry right now. Maybe in the future when things will be better.
Then knock out some environments in UDK or CE2.
Go to GDC, and network network network.
If you want this, fight for it. If you're a gamer you should know not to stand still.
Just stick to my motto: DEATH BEFORE DISMOUNT!!!!
...that may also help keep the wife in a good mood too...
(totally went there.)
As for staying in there, just remember you're not just doing this for yourself, but your family too. Get any old job to pay the bills but keep passionate about the games industry, there are some peeps getting in and letting everyone know. This always gives me a little hope haha...
Good luck!
Redesign it as soon as possible, and as simply as possible.
you have to think that big companies are the ones that hire the most. I remember i got through the whole process of interviewing with Sucker Punch... it took them 2 months i think to get back to me since my application, only to stretch 2 art tests i made for them, phone interview and finally flying there, through almost 2 months... only to meet with one of their CEO's telling me "I understand your position, and so far you have done well, or you would not be meeting with me for this final interview...... I feel like you are centered but your situation might put you on the verge of being desperate, being out of work for so long" anyways... i come back... i think i did pretty well... and they reply to me a we are looking for someone with more exp, when i asked what was it that they would like to see more exp on, their recruiter just tells me they are just looking for a senior artist with 5 years of exp instead of 3.... after eeeeeeeeeverything... and thats the story with a lot of people applying right now... they take forever to reply... only to look at the amounts of years that you have and say "he is a strong artist, but we can get a more experienced one"
Well... after each blow and being persistent I am finally at one awesome place. I work for 1st playable productions where they really take care of their employees, we are involved in the design and production of the whole game and people here are just awesome! Time will pay you back in time.. you'll see.. just keep working on your website and portfolio and always talk to people man. i find that people that are in the industry and that you know might hook you up if they know where you are.
Anyways.. .don't give up and we are here with you!
yep it did happen to me too
it happen that i had 1 year extra school course (technically haven't got a job yet at that time) + 6 unemployed month after all the honored graduation, and cg exposure. gave me lots of nerve.
but yep as naive as it sound :
die with sword in hand
[ame]