2-3 years experience?!
polycounter lvl 17
I spent a night this week emailing a bunch of companies. I didn't exactly expect any of them to reply with a "Oh we need you!", but I was hoping to get some good feedback. So far they've just shown me examples of what they're actually looking for and Funcom says my work is too "cartoony".
Anyway. What pops out to me is that companies generally want entry-level artists to have 2-3 years of experience. This is something I always see, even when I was 16 and trying to get a job as a waitress, or all things.
How the hell do you get 2-3 years of experience when you're entry level?
My mind just screams at the notion. How are you supposed to break into an industry when the industry expects you to have already magically conjured up experience from thin air?
Is it just luck to get a job that doesn't expect you to have years of experience out of college? Anyone have some experience with this?
Anyway. What pops out to me is that companies generally want entry-level artists to have 2-3 years of experience. This is something I always see, even when I was 16 and trying to get a job as a waitress, or all things.
How the hell do you get 2-3 years of experience when you're entry level?
My mind just screams at the notion. How are you supposed to break into an industry when the industry expects you to have already magically conjured up experience from thin air?
Is it just luck to get a job that doesn't expect you to have years of experience out of college? Anyone have some experience with this?
Replies
experience might be a loose term .. they might want you to have some mod/editing experience ... and perhaps some contract/freelance experience .. basically they want to be sure that you have a level of professionalism and know-how..
it could also mean 2-3 years of experience with the software ...
I am assuming you're looking for a 2d job though. Hate to say it, but it's damn hard to get a job doing pure 2d work. It's usually contract work that concept artists get. Atleast that's what I understand/am told.
With 2D art you are either going to concept (probably the smallest and most elite group of artists in the industry), textures for 3D models, sprites or user interfaces.
How would someone use this:
http://orahlith.com/portfolio/peace.jpg
In creating a game? The only one that comes close is this one:
http://orahlith.com/portfolio/hippo2.jpg
But I don't think it's your stand-out piece.
This piece is :
http://orahlith.com/portfolio/teahouse.jpg
And I could see that being used in a magazine or periodical as content art.
If you are really set on doing game art, start making art that could be used on games you want to work on. Find out what those assets are and reproduce them.
Good luck
And Leech was bang on with your portfolio (and not as blunt as I will be) - you don't have a portfolio of game art, you have a bunch of pictures. You have a domain name, but are hosted on a free site. The presentation of the work is non existant.
And I'd drop all that personal stuff from a portfolio site.
I took a look at your site and I can see that you need to improve your skills. When a company tells you that your work looks so and so, it may be a polite way of telling you that your work is not good enough.
Now honestly your stuff isnt realy up to industry standards at all.Its too early, Take more time!
You need about 2 - 3 more years of improving your work. I see your portfolio, and it's what you'd expect cluttering deviantart. Nothing special yet. You should study color theory more, as the colors in your work are bland. And, as stated, focus more on art that can be used for games. Do model sheets, concepts, etc.
In the meantime, gain experience working internships or maybe find a position in QA. Funcom has an awesome QA department here in the US that may be hiring later in the year.
As for what they expect:
http://community.ageofconan.com/conan/frontend/files/CONTENT/conceptart36.jpg
Work towards those standards. I have the same problem, trying not to be cartoony.
Also, working for very small indie studios can be beneficial. Most likely a better experience than working for a mod.
Most of us have been where you are orahlith, but hard work and honesty regarding your skills will always help you get where you want to be.
Also, working for very small indie studios can be beneficial. Most likely a better experience than working for a mod.
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i.e. don't work for any one offering you a percentage of sales
the other factor that is in effect when looking to get your foot in the door that i didnt see anyone touch on is that sometimes it all about being in the right place at the right time. sometimes a company will need 4-5 people immediately and they take their pick from the first 10 quailified folks.... yeah thats sucks... but what it means is resubmit your work after you build up more examples... thats not after 1 piece, but when you get a decent amount of material up, write them back and tell them you're still interested and you are working to show you can do the job...
And also realize that some times a company decides that want someone who is already making art thats perfect for their current project. They might be making a tank game and they will automatically dismiss any artist that doesnt have a tank in their portfolio... is that fair to you? no i suppose it isnt, but thats their call. Epic is that way...if your portfolio doesnt look ut200Xish already they wont look at ya... my point is that sometimes you just arent what they are looking for....
its not your fault, dont get discouraged.... the trick is to continue to produce more work. make art thats at least equal to the stuff you see in the newest games or soon to be released. Continue to knock on doors as you progress, organize your portfolio, and do good work. Use the challenges here and at cgchat as ways and inspiration to do new art. woo i'm rambling.... good luck,
if theres a life drawing class near you, enrole in it.
sounds corny but carry a sketchbook 24/7. regular sketching will allow you to drop the anime / cartoony look. If you really like that look, you can always come back to it after you have attained the traditional drawing skills you currently lack.
Practice makes perfect.
I also applied to tons of games companies when I was just leaving college. No one would have me. Some years later, after I got a Job doing something else entirely (although not a million miles away) - my art skill appeared. The same will happen to you, if you plug at it every chance you have.
I'm well aware that my style is still too cartoony for the best of the best. I'm finishing up an internship right now at a small company with a dinosaur of an MMO called The Realm Online. Everything there is outdated (we're animating in pixels) so having an accurate view on where the industry is at is skewed when the place you're interning at is still stuck in 1996.
But it's hard to complain when you're getting a little experience and especially when they want to try and hire you on part time.
I'd be interested in checking out the modding community. If anyone could recomend some good communities/websites to check out, I'd appreciated it. It's something I'm pretty unfamiliar with. I'm aware it exists, but what people do and how they do it is foriegn to me. I was really interested in the Marrowind mods people like Ian from Machall were doing, but Marrowind doesn't seem to like my computer.
Thanks again guys.
a degree, which I do not have
1 shipped title, which my mod experience, game testing, and 5 years working in tech support for games, managed to cover.
So it can be done, but you really have to prove yourself. It took me 5 interviews 2 over the phone. Where I am at we do have strictly 2D artists however they are all branching over into 3D and doing post production work with after effects. There has been talk about making everyone just "artists" but for some reason that hasn't happened yet.
When a company posts that they want experienced people they want to know you know how to make games. They are looking for people who aren't all googly eyed and think working in the industry is all birthday cake and puppies. It can be pretty brutal sometimes. They aslo would like you to know a little bit about how a production line goes. Yes every game is different but there are certain fundemental things that must happen with certain types of games that they want to build off of not teach from scratch.
If you are going for a 2D artist postion, I would suggest learning a little about a 3D package and how to unwrap models. Look at models people have already unwarapped, look at tutorials on how to unwrap. It will help you GREATLY as a 2D artist to know these things and make your job less fustrating.
If you are going for a concept artist position I honestly would give up. Most concept jobs are done via contract, or by art directors or by staff in thier down time. Hardly anyone except (like mentioned above) an elite few.
About your work:
- You have some great pieces! The enviromental ones are outstanding I really like http://orahlith.com/portfolio/japanhouse.jpg and the hippo top notch! On the other hand most of the other characters are not posed correctly to be built off of they are "pretty poses" not construction poses. Its good to have pretty poses those are handy to have to give out to the press, but don't really do much for 3D artists.
Most of the pieces you have with a few exceptions lack an strong light source and that makes them look a wee bit like they came from a coloring book and washes out the drama you might otherwise have. Think about where a light source could be coming from and where it would cast shadows, play with lighting and colors.
Your off to a good start I think you could expand what you know about the industry and show more of what you already know. Good stuff keep at it, don't let the requirements keep you from sending a res in, the worst that could happen is nothing.