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Longest span you have been Unemployed?

What is the longest span of time you have been unemployed for?

This question sorta came about from almighty_gir's excellent post. There are plenty of "the economy suckzor!" and "Wher all da jabs at?" threads and I don't mean this to be one of those. This isn't a sob story and I am not asking for a portfolio review. I am really just curious.

I left my studio job a little more than a year ago of my own free will. I wanted to do some subject matter I liked a little more. I don't regret leaving but after a year I have some icky feelings starting to creep on me. I am still pretty motivated and still making/finishing art but after a year sometimes I can't help to think maybe I did the wrong thing.

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  • JO420
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    JO420 polycounter lvl 18
    I lived apart from my wife for 2 years working in a company due to visa issues preventing me from living with her. Worked at a game studio with lots and lots of commuting back and forth to see her.

    In this time i was fortunate enough to work about an hours flight from her but in this time unhappiness and comfort left me really lacking any sort of concentration and proper portfolio upkeep.

    So i was laid off after the project but luckily i got my worked visa sorted and finally was able to end these 2 years of a long distance marriage. So then started my 7 or so months of unemployment.

    I was frankly relying too much on prior work and experience and i had no real organized portfolio. Had some interviews but in the end i didn't land the jobs and when you are desperate for a proper salary, missing out on a job really stings. So if i wanted to stay in this industry i needed to whip myself back in shape and get a proper portfolio up and some up to date finished work.


    So i worked and worked,finished some pieces and got a website up and i landed an indie gig which paid a salary that barely covered food,so low in fact i paid no taxes on it but i got some new experience in the process and i even learned a new texturing style. But again it wasn't enough.

    Eventually i found a job, a surprisingly good project and a salary so that has sparked a lot of energy i didnt have during those comfortable years and i am working my ass off to make really fucking good Warhammer environments. This renewed sense of energy im using to make this game as good as possible for my part and hopefully this will lead to work beyond.


    The lesson i learned is that i want to remain in this industry i need to keep my abilities and keep producing work and improving. I still live my life,work,etc but no matter what i want to have something new for my portfolio in the pipeline so if i lose my job again,ill be ready.
  • Rurouni Strife
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    Rurouni Strife polycounter lvl 10
    I was unemployed for a year and a half straight out of college but thats what you get for not knowing exactly what you want to do in 3D. Party my fault, partly the focus of the school.

    After my contract at Sony Bend ended, I was unemployed for about 6 months? It was the slow holiday season of hiring, then GDC, then I finally got some tests.
  • PogoP
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    PogoP polycounter lvl 10
    I was employed before I even left uni, and I haven't been unmployed since!

    I now work from home in the UK for a San Francisco based company, working on Natural Selection 2.
  • Richard Kain
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    Richard Kain polycounter lvl 18
    I spent the first half of this year unemployed. About five months, all told. Before that I had never been unemployed for any longer than three and a half months.

    I don't mind unemployment, I have a tendency to save up, so it usually doesn't hit me too hard. And getting some time off is usually nice. I just don't like the feeling of having my savings bleed away with no means of replacing them. When I'm unemployed I feel a constant pressure to alter the situation. It spoils the fun of having so much time on my hands.
  • glottis8
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    glottis8 polycounter lvl 9
    Maybe 4 months.

    Lucky to get call backs pretty soon after my applications... It does take time for all the process to go through.
  • ambershee
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    ambershee polycounter lvl 17
    16 years.

    After the age of 16, probably about two months.
  • skylebones
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    skylebones polycounter lvl 10
    A few years ago I got laid off from a studio. But I was seriously burned out and contemplating leaving games all together. So I started my own custom paint business and did that for six months or so. Painting helmets, motorcycles, rc cars, whatever. It was nice to create something that was tangible and real. But that was serious hard work and paid like crap. I realized I really do love games, just not the some of what is considered 'normal' practices like crunch time. So I decided to go back into games but find a studio where I really would fit in nicely. It took me about six months to find another studio job.
  • Progg
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    Progg polycounter lvl 11
    A year and a half after my first internship. Sucked, but makes you work hard to appreciate what you have when you have it.
  • Gestalt
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    Gestalt polycounter lvl 11
    I've actually never been formally 'employed', and no it's not because I'm a 'slacker' and don't want to do the work (well at least most of the time). I've built sort of fear of 'employment' to be honest; I'd work for free if it were legal and I were interested. For a long time I wanted to help on a farm in exchange for food and shelter, but lately I've been looking into becoming a beach bum and wanderer. I just need to acquire enough money to make my way to a decent beach...
  • D4V1DC
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    D4V1DC polycounter lvl 18
    1Y/6M so far.

    Was going to be a sob story but you didn't want any of that in your thread and who really cares anyway.

    1y/6m, I left the opportunity I had because I was up all hours of the night and on the phone all morning to the afternoon with a person who enjoyed yelling and talking down to me so I had enough of that, their is the reason for my unemployment currently.

    If you think I should have stayed their I will give you the previous employer and you can enjoy my experience.
  • The Mad Artist
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    The Mad Artist polycounter lvl 13
    I was unemployed from November of last year to about April of this year, so roughly half a year. Partially it was that long because for the first couple of months I wasn't looking for a full time gig all that hard, and secondly I wasn't looking to move, so my options were a bit more limited. But since getting out of school and entering the field that's the longest.
  • R3D
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    R3D interpolator
    6 months but managed to land a compositing job at a local animation studio.
  • haiddasalami
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    haiddasalami polycounter lvl 14
    About 6 months when I graduated though I was just working shitty jobs during that time.
  • JacqueChoi
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    JacqueChoi polycounter
  • ErichWK
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    ErichWK polycounter lvl 12
    After graduating College...a year and a half. After my conctract at Insomniac.. 3 months? After my contract at High Moon about a month. Hopefully I won't have to go through the pain and heart break of constant declines and rejected art tests again.
  • mystichobo
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    mystichobo polycounter lvl 12
    I've been unemployed since after I finished uni and my internship late last year (well I've done non gamedev related stuff, but nothing to shout about - cruddy retail and catering jobs mainly).

    In that time I think I've done quite a bit, I moved to the UK from Australia 5 months ago, and in that time I've replaced pretty much everything on my portfolio.

    I'm currently doing unpaid work on an indie project with a couple of friends (definitely going to post a thread once I get the second level done), which is coming along okay.
  • Yozora
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    Yozora polycounter lvl 11
    You shoulda turned this into a poll, then we can get some semi-interesting statistics :p

    I got a job about a year after graduating/actively looking for a games job.
    My "timeline" went like this;

    - Graduated ->

    - Unemployed 1 year ->

    - Working remotely 1.5 years ->

    - Unemployed 3 months ->

    - Contract job, 3 months ->

    - Unemployed 3 months ->

    - Current job, just hit a year
  • leleuxart
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    leleuxart polycounter lvl 10
    I'm still in college, but I haven't tried applying to anywhere yet. I don't feel comfortable with my portfolio.

    But, I have a question that kind of relates to the topic: Did any of you get part-time jobs at retail/non-art stores during your downtime between studios? If you don't, how did you get by without work? A big savings account or living on ramen?

    That's the hardest part for me with wanting to get into the industry. I have a couple grand in savings, but when it comes to living for weeks/months without a big job and moving multiple times, I'm a little worried about the money situation.
  • PixelMasher
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    PixelMasher veteran polycounter
    i have been lucky enough that the couple times ive been laid off i either had a new job lined up within an hour or so of the layoff or so or the other time I had a week or so of unpaid downtime between jobs after inking a new deal a couple days after being laid off. I guess you could say I have been lucky, but its also a prime example of the importance of networking.
  • Baj Singh
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    Baj Singh polycounter lvl 9
    Fortunately, i've been lucky to have been here for nearly 5 years. However, if I did lose my job I would probably look around locally for another game job (I don't think i'm ready at this time in my life to move me and my family abroad) and if I couldn't find one then I would just find another job on the side to keep the salary rolling in whilst I work at home.
  • Autocon
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    Autocon polycounter lvl 15
    - Internship at SOE while in school ->

    - Declined contract job offer, finished up a month of school ->

    - Graduated ->

    - Unemployed 2 and a half months (worked on folio entire time) ->

    - Contract job at Bungie, 8 months ->

    - Unemployed 2 months (most of that time spent on the Naughty Dog art test, shit is BEAST!) ->

    - Current job at Naughty dog, few months over 2 years.
  • Frump
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    Frump polycounter lvl 12
    4 months and counting...

    Starting to feel hopeless, only had 1 interview (within a week of being laid off) and a major lack of responses since.

    I'm financially stable right now, but at the beginning of my unemployment it was tough. Jacque's situation sounds awfully familiar, though a lot more severe. Studio hadn't paid me, EI late to arrive, student loans, credit cards...

    I was also unemployed for 5-6 months after college, but I was living at home and had no expenses or cares, so I don't think that counts.

    Trying to stay positive!
  • reverendK
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    reverendK polycounter lvl 7
    Got laid off from a non-game job while i was in school..then I started tutoring. it paid peanuts, but it got me to and from. Got this job a few months before i graduated. been here just over a year and finally moved to full time a month ago or so.
    Being laid off right now would suck though...i have exactly 0 moneys saved (thanks, Christmas) and i haven't had my current salary long enough for unemployment benefits to pay much...my thoughts go with anybody trying to find work right now. Keep up the faith, keep busy and don't stop trying. Momentum is an easy thing to lose.
  • Lamont
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    Lamont polycounter lvl 15
    Unemployed in the general sense. Not longer than a couple weeks(the need to take care of wife and kids is more important than where my paycheck comes from). From working at an actual game company about 2.5 years, and that was because I had to learn a new language and I kinda wanted a break after the Midway Meltdown.

    So in those two years while learning Japanese, I studied mobile spec artwork, painting textures without sourcing them (Japanese mobile style), better use of colors and C#. So when it came time it made it easy to get a job at a company here in Japan.
  • Hazardous
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    Hazardous polycounter lvl 12
    I get the sense that some HR people (& immigration) look at 'not working inhouse' as being unemployed - mainly because it’s so hard to prove exactly how long you were *actually* working on freelance.

    If I was to look at it that way, then I've been unemployed for periods of up to 3 years.

    Tangent:

    I got over worrying about money and financial problems back when I had little to no money to worry about - and I think that’s helped me to no end. Life seemed to be stuck on replay when I was in that frame of mind i.e. creating stuff because I HAD to get a job. Years would go by, and it never ever worked out for me, somehow I'd always end up in exactly the same place until I put in the time to find something I enjoyed, and simply worked at that no matter where it took me.

    I have friends on my list who have been without a job or freelance work for ages, but they are also the same guys who don’t have any online presence or if they do, its minimal at best, yet they can’t seem to see why they can’t get any work, and aren’t willing to 'see' the problem.

    I haven't had that feeling of having no work or no opportunities to pursue for such a long time now, from my perspective there are more opportunities now than there ever has been, EVER. So when I hear that times are tough out there and it’s difficult to get a job, I actually read that as, this person can’t see the real issue yet. (Don’t hate me, it’s not a personal attack - I mean it purely from the point of coming from exactly that position myself and working my way out of it)

    I'm extremely grateful to be in this position, but I don’t attribute it to luck. I attribute it to being honest with myself and recognition of the problem first and foremost and then the time I put in searching for something I enjoyed, and restructuring my life around that. Everything else fell into place after I made that critical choice and change in mindset to focus on what I enjoy most to make ( 3D girls ) rather than what I need to do to get work ( 3d everything else )
    This didn’t mean all I do is make girls, or the only jobs I took was if it was a girl model – it just meant I slowly started to connect with people and companies and clients who enjoyed what I enjoyed. That’s the critical difference as opposed to what I used to do which was I was putting out there what everyone else enjoyed at the time or whatever was called for at the time. Leaving NO ROOM for what I liked, no room for ME and my art. Subsequently connecting with people that were cool and all but never REALLY gelled with on that art level.

    The problem for me with the 'I got laid off, so need to make art right now just to get by and get another job' is that it’s a quick fix – it doesn’t solve the underlying issue which is that you'll need to keep doing this every time you get laid off, or lose your job etc. It makes periods of unemployment seem long and particularly laborious, because it’s not fun. It’s not fun because you probably aren’t doing what you enjoy and your worried about your $$$$ going down the drain. Recognize that. Do something about it.

    For the type of person I am, the quick fix route felt aimless yet I still did it. Even though I wasn’t going anywhere, wasn’t making my mark and just kept floating from project to project adding my one tiny brushstroke to a grand (or shitty) painting. Instead of being looked up and called upon for something that I enjoyed, I hoped something would come my way and begged to do whatever was necessary. Hoped and begged. Recognize that too. Do something about it.

    I found myself bending to the whims of the industry, instead of shaping the industry around me. Sounds extremely self-absorbed but I don’t mean it in that way - it’s really difficult to describe but ultimately I guess it can be wrapped up in a phrase that goes something like 'Put out what you expect to get back'

    Break the rules, bust out of the mold and go ' I am fucking doing this ' and I don’t give a shit about anything else.

    Build yourself a foundation for badassery: Be persistent and consistent. Pump out artwork that you like, because you like it not because other people do.

    Depending on your personal situation you may have to save up enough to live for 6 months to 1 year in order to really get going so do whatever you need to do to get that cash. Dumb shitty jobs, whatever, but SAVE SAVE SAVE. When you finally do have that money, see it as an investment in you, set a time, and do it. Take 6 months or even 1 year and If you don’t squander that time, and blast the world with YOUR art - you'll never be unemployed ever again...because you would have built something that you don’t have right now.

    A foundation for badassery that will carry you through when you’re laid off.
    You’ll make new art friends, new clients, job offers / opportunities will seem to always be floating around somehow. Reach that next level & pull people/clients/companies that like what you like toward you, by making art that you love.

    Take care of YOUR art, and it WILL take care of you :)
  • Shanthosa
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    Shanthosa polycounter lvl 11
    Have you considered writing a book?

    I know I would buy it.
  • oXYnary
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    oXYnary polycounter lvl 18
    4 years. And then some stuttering with temp jobs until I got something fulltime. Much like Gir, I was focused so intently on the game job being my only option. the measurement of my success in life, it ended up hurting me, as I could no longer have fun the further I went without work. It got to the point I was considering killing myself as a failure.

    That being said, comments like "shut up and do art" are counterproductive unless you know each individuals needs. A better response to those people would be "what is stopping you from doing your art?"
  • aesir
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    aesir polycounter lvl 18
    Hazardous: You're also really good at what you do. I think that's a pretty big part of why things are going well for you.
  • Steve Schulze
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    Steve Schulze polycounter lvl 18
    How do you keep the moral fortitude to get to that position, Hazardous? It's tough to get past that feeling of utter futility of putting time and effort into game art in Australia.

    Of the few large studios left, most are on the verge of shutting down and the remainder are run by people who should never have been given power or out and out criminals.

    There are hundreds of tiny indi studios, especially in Melbourne, but few of them have any money, many are extremely inexperienced, and the majority have little interest in anything beyond pixel art.

    The local industry is super saturated with artists and that situation is exacerbated every year when the local games colleges churn out another small army of graduates.

    The carrot of going overseas exists, but, and perhaps this is where your experience differs from my own, without a bachelor's degree and perhaps some handy overseas relatives, you're chained to this barren dust bowl until you have ten years of experience.

    It's not impossible to make a go of it here, but it's pretty tough not to become demoralised and then apathetic by the apparent futility of it all.
  • Bek
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    Bek interpolator
    ^ Ouch, my future is bleak :P
  • Steve Schulze
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    Steve Schulze polycounter lvl 18
    Heh, yeah, I kind of depressed myself a bit there. Do take into account that those are the words of someone who's had a good few years to get bitter and cynical about how things are. I think you do need to be realistic about what you're getting yourself into though. Games are a tough industry and Australia is tougher still.

    But, there are folks that escape and thrive - Look at Hazardous and Nizza Waarg.
  • TrevorJ
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    TrevorJ polycounter lvl 9
    Hazardous and Warg, are both from Australia? didn't know that.

    Interesing stories everybody
  • Steve Schulze
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    Steve Schulze polycounter lvl 18
    Mhmm, And it's not just the Polycount Uber Elite. There's other folks like, off the top of my head, Gavku and Muzz and any number of others doing good stuff here too.

    I feel like maybe I went a little too far with the doom and gloom stuff as its kind of overshadowing the point of my post which was to ask how you keep your chin up and keep on pushing through when things get tough and the morale begins to wain? Even in places where things are a little more rosy, getting a portfolio together is a slow and time consuming process and I'd imagine anyone who's tried it has been caught in that depression and doldrums.
  • Mrskullface
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    non willing: 3 months
    willing: 6 months
  • Hazardous
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    Hazardous polycounter lvl 12
    Jackablade wrote: »
    How do you keep the moral fortitude to get to that position, Hazardous? It's tough to get past that feeling of utter futility of putting time and effort into game art in Australia.

    Of the few large studios left, most are on the verge of shutting down and the remainder are run by people who should never have been given power or out and out criminals.

    There are hundreds of tiny indi studios, especially in Melbourne, but few of them have any money, many are extremely inexperienced, and the majority have little interest in anything beyond pixel art.

    The local industry is super saturated with artists and that situation is exacerbated every year when the local games colleges churn out another small army of graduates.

    The carrot of going overseas exists, but, and perhaps this is where your experience differs from my own, without a bachelor's degree and perhaps some handy overseas relatives, you're chained to this barren dust bowl until you have ten years of experience.

    It's not impossible to make a go of it here, but it's pretty tough not to become demoralised and then apathetic by the apparent futility of it all.

    That’s a damn good question man, I'm glad you asked. Despite us being horribly geographically challenged down here as far as the Games Industry goes in order to progress, I had to completely abolish that entire side of the equation from my mind. There were a couple of key factors to keep the fortitude buffed.

    1) I turned inward, and made this a completely selfish vendetta - with no regard whatsoever to whether there would be any industry to support me, I just set out to get good at one little thing. If my end goal was to build a brick wall, I wanted to put in the time to get good at making bricks, I wanted to be the best at making bricks.

    2) Through this my determination bled out and led me to meeting and connecting with a guy who personified the very meaning of persistence, and who probably doesn’t realize just how much of a rock he has been to me ( Herman Ng or Openaneworld ) who has to be the most dedicated artist I've ever met / worked / lived with. He just never stops and I can’t believe he ever will and that’s why he’s invincible. He didn’t say much at all about this topic but I was able to see how he lived and his philosophy and approach towards what I saw as a big problem to me.

    So with 1) I had a feeling I was on track, but when 2) came along I could see proof that this approach works. Both of those things are vital ingredients I think. Seeing proof that what you’re doing is right when you have doubts is extremely reassuring, and can be that magical leg up when you need it most. That is often the time when lots of people fall into despair and give up.

    I really wish I could be that person to shake them up right at the moment when they are about to give up. I would gladly do it, every single time. I hate seeing that bright flame in people extinguished by the dark side of reality – you know, the what if’s, the self-doubt etc. But because I don’t live with the 'victims' like Herman did with me, all I can offer are words and put them out there in hope that they stir something and keep a potential victim afloat that one extra time needed to propel them forward.

    Any time I felt doubt or that all of this was pointless, I just remembered how badly I wanted that magical immunity that Herman had. So I'd only need to look over and go... here is a guy that’s doing it, there’s your proof Troy, do you want to stay in that loop, or do you want to do what he’s doing, and get out of it.

    I had an extraordinary ability to spend hours and hours face-palming and wishing I could be as good as dudes like Pior, Renaud, Slipgate, Bobo, MM, Daz, Sze, Kolby, Soul and so many others at the time.

    Being a daydreamer, a youtuber, or a forum junky when I was jobless and can’t get any freelance work all of a suddenly became TOTALLY not okay with me.

    Fast forward 6 or so years from that time and here I am, still trying to get better. Although I’ve buttoned off the pace considerably from those times, I’m still trying to improve and still pursuing what I enjoy.

    I still get rejected from job offers, I still sometimes miss out on freelance that I would love - it’s not all glorious. But it’s definitely a massive improvement over where I used to be where there were no job offers and no opportunities to pursue at all. At least I know if I need cash to live I have options.

    All throughout my career I’ve had consistent periods of non-inhouse employment ( ie time to fill with freelance ) – use those times as best as you possibly can, and definitely when possible make time to express who you are, and what you like.


    I would say even when working fulltime, just top up the tank every year by entering a comp, staying relevant, and letting people know you still exist and you can still do what you do.

    This is ultimately about:

    1) Realizing you do have the potential to be your own power source.
    2) Converting yourself into your own power source.

    So you can:

    3) Stop relying on being forced to take any job, ie borrowing from other power sources because you have to.

    With the ultimate goal of:

    4) Getting more people who want to borrow some of YOUR power source because they want what you have.

    I dont have a degree, and I dont have any relatives overseas apart from here and New Zealand - so the whole overseas thing definitely comes into play. If the opportunity comes up to travel - go ballsdeep man. Don't turn that opportunity down, its the best thing you could possibly do to expand and discover more out about what makes you tick. :)
  • Joshua Stubbles
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    Joshua Stubbles polycounter lvl 19
    11 months, back in 2009. Absolutely horrible. I couldn't find a job for shit. Second longest unemployment stint was 6 months in 2011, right before I got picked up by Timegate. Now, I'm two weeks into my third time unemployed. Fun shit. :|
  • Neox
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    Neox godlike master sticky
    never, i stumbled in 10 years ago, and always had enough work - often enough not on AAA productions, very small, shitty animalgames for kids and such. In the end, the work is the same, be it halo or crysis, or settlers or my beautihotel for cats and dogs, or ponyacademy 125b. Often enough people are just too picky, there is a good side to almost any job and if that good side is just the money, great - then you have more energy to spend on personal projects.
  • nyx702
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    Wow thank you guys so much for sharing your experiences.

    And thank you Haz for sharing your deep insights. I know alot of people, including myself, gain alot from these types of motivational posts.

    Hazardous wrote: »
    1) I turned inward, and made this a completely selfish vendetta - with no regard whatsoever to whether there would be any industry to support me, I just set out to get good at one little thing. If my end goal was to build a brick wall, I wanted to put in the time to get good at making bricks, I wanted to be the best at making bricks.

    THIS is what I am struggling with most I think. Currently my fiance is paying the bills and I feel really guilty about it. Not because of my pride or because I am embarrassed... more so because it's delaying our future and financial goals. I feel really guilty about being selfish like this. She fully supports my endeavors and she knows I would do the same for her. At first I didn't feel bad about it. But like I said in the 1st post, after a year those feelings are starting to creep in. I "know" that in the long term this "should" pay off. But man... there is that fear...that can be crushing sometimes. It motivates me but... I would rather not feel it constantly.
  • Rayph
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    Rayph polycounter lvl 13
    Unemployed about 4 weeks now. Got laid off back in November, job hunting during the holidays is a bitch.

    On the flipside freelance is keeping me going at the minute so there is always something to do!
  • crazyfool
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    crazyfool polycounter lvl 13
    I had about a year unemployed when I left my first industry job as a vfx artist to pursue a career as a character artist. It was really painful at times and i did have offers but they meant moving all over the place. The time I spent unemployed though I don't look back and think what a waste. I worked 10 hour days and 5 days a week to level up what I do, I learnt that I will never be happy with my current skill level and must always push, its something i still do. Everything Ive worked on is under NDA for the past 2 years but the progression month on month is clearly visible. Its killing me I cant show anything haha.

    I freelanced pretty non stop for 2 years after that which some studios think is a label for out of work artists, grrrrrr!!!! When freelancing I found that doing the art was the easy bit, getting the contracts, start dates, managing jobs, your finances and sorting out your taxes were the real work. The worst is when you get too many jobs come in and you have to turn people away and recommend other artists.

    It is frustrating having everything under NDA but I know that if i ever became unemployed I could knock a next gen character out in 3 weeks and do a bit of self promotion. Alot of people dont realise that if you've worked remotely that as soon as times up you dont want to touch your pc again until the next day so personal art has taken a backseat for me. Ive taken alot more to 2D as its so much quicker to knock ideas out and I learn what I need to learn in my day job.

    My advice to anyone stuck in unemployment is do not just knock stuff out but really emphasise the design aspect, quality out weighs quantity everyday of the week in my eyes.
  • Justin Meisse
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    Justin Meisse polycounter lvl 18
    about 1 month when I was laid off from Mythic. I had a month to prepare because HR spilled the beans and the layoff was really just sending me home in November but still paying me that month. I could have had a job lined up immediately but I wanted to enjoy the holidays with my family.

    Recently I was a contract environment artist and my contract was coming to an end with no available full time environment positions at my studio so I took a chance and switched to character art. Now roughly 6 months later I'm still chugging along as a character artist. I wasn't one of those environment artists that secretly always wanted to be a character guy - it's been a challenge after 5 years of painting wood & stone to painting skin, fur and fabric.

    I'm not sure where I'm going with this, maybe my advice is stop telling yourself "no" don't narrow your opportunities down - think of yourself as an artist not just a ______ artist.
  • thatanimator
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    thatanimator polycounter lvl 6
    1 year and counting~~~

    oXYnary wrote: »
    I was focused so intently on the game job being my only option. the measurement of my success in life

    are..are you me?:poly141::poly122:
  • reverendK
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    reverendK polycounter lvl 7
    a foundation of badassery

    Haz, you're my hero sometimes.
  • Mathew O
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    Mathew O polycounter
    Hey guys, I'm pretty certain that I'm about to lose my job :( Not enough work coming into the studio etc and I'm really scared of what I'm going to do financially but this thread has really cheered me up. It's nice to see so many awesome artists who's folios I have studied have been through hard times and come out on top :)
  • Dylan Brady
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    Dylan Brady polycounter lvl 9
    Its hard to say for me. from the point I decided to stop taking contracts from my first employer doing car models to when I actually had another fulltime job? 3 years.
    I have done some work in between that time, but honestly I probably only made about 5k from 3d work in that whole period.
  • oXYnary
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    oXYnary polycounter lvl 18
    1 year and counting~~~




    are..are you me?:poly141::poly122:

    If so, we need to up the dosages, as it currently isn't enough. ;)
  • Soul_of_Solace
    Seven months currently unemployed. Though I had another unemployed stint that lasted almost a full year back in 2010. It's not fun times. And the worst part is the work I try to do never seems to go anywhere or get finished, as if I begin something, examine it after a while, and decide "well, this is turning out to be crap" and trash it. A good part of it is the feeling I'm always playing "catch up" with everyone else and when I discover something new, I look out there and see tons of other artists who've known those things for years.

    And of course, the knowledge that as each day, week, and month goes by, the likelihood of finding a new job decreases exponentially, doesn't help.
  • Perlinfalcon
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    Perlinfalcon polycounter lvl 5
    Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences here. It is good to know that people can go through tough times employment-wise and then manage to come out the other side. I am just about to make the jump looking for employment in the industry and I am terrified. I haven't even sent out any applications yet, as I'm still finishing up my portfolio, but I still have nights when I can't sleep because of worry about getting a job.

    About a year ago I made a pretty big leap of faith, leaving my previous line of work to live out the dream of becoming a professional artist. I had an interesting job and good pay, but just didn't feel I was living up to my potential. So I've had a great time this past year taking classes to start to learn the software necessary to turn my previously useless fine art degree into something I can use to make a living. Turns out I LOVE 3d modeling, but now that I have taken all the classes I have time for and can afford, it is the time of truth. I'm especially nervous because I'm going to be competing with a somewhat younger crowd. Oh well. So as far as time unemployed, I guess for me the timer starts ticking now!
  • biofrost
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    biofrost polycounter lvl 12
    For me it's about 5 months. I just graduated in July and recently picked up my first freelance gig.
  • Quickel
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    Quickel polycounter lvl 12
    I was laid off for my first time last year in 2011 along with most of our studio. It was a really difficult time emotionally and has been - it's tough getting removed from a place you enjoy for reasons out of your control.

    What makes it so difficult for me is that I have a family and a house and there were several reasonable options in the areas 5 years ago but with 2 of the larger companies closing in the area it has got me personally looking into other areas to prevent having to get up and move every 3-5 years. It took me a month to find anything I could to move into that would pay the bills and was relevant.

    Unfortunately I can't be without a job. Even with savings, PA unemployment maxes at $300-some dollars a week which for most people is a little more than their mortgage or rent. When you have a wife and kids and other bills that's just not acceptable. I love game art but have been looking at ways to use some of my art skills and gain some new skills in programming and web to meet local job needs.

    That's my story anyway.
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