Granted fine we get the fact you plan to work at your artwork in the meantime. Buts its the uncertainty and variables of your plan that make no sense.
Lets say you move to a part of California that has a few studios in your vicinity.Here are a few variables to consider.
1. Studios open and close,you could be in a part of town that has a few studios and what happens if one closes. All of a sudden you will have a pool of experienced artists out of work looking for new jobs. If some of these artist live near where you are there is a chance they could apply for the same job youll be looking to get. And if something like that occurs yo could see your prospects dry up.
2. Just because you are around game studios does not mean they will hire you nor will it mean there will be positions at the time you are there.
A perfect example of this is when i applied to my current job in Denmark i asked is they gave any sort of special consideration to local artists/artists from Denmark. The answer was no,quality was what mattered so even though there might have had artist living right down the street from my current employer there was no garuntee that they would get that job or any advantage.
3. Job markets change,there could be plenty of jobs when you move there there might not be,in a year alot can happen.
So when you say im going to work on my stuff and then moving to California afterwards you are restricting your possibilities by going somewhere there might not even be jobs.
EDIT: a good example of this is Austin,plenty of studios but Midway just laid off alot of people and now im hearing rumors of NC soft possibly doing the same, if there are any new artist living there and hoping to break in those sort of closings could make it real tough.
No to mention its hard to see where your work is focused on from what ive seen. Is it characters? If it is good luck,character artists are the hardest jobs to break into it. Is it enviroment,vehicles??
I've moved 12 times in my life. The older I get the more crap I have, the more stuff I have to move around. With each move from here on out its not so easy to make the decision to go. Friends, a family I have to support (not just myself) , I own my house bla bla bla
If I was going to make a life altering move to another state I'd do it when your young, can fit all your crap in a shoebox, and aren't tied down. Would I do what you're doing? Sure but probably not without a job lined up. Whatever you think is a good amount to live on until you find a job, double it. It never hurts to have more cash then you need, and you'll need it.
Living in a lower cost of living area will give you more time and more money to work on the things you need to work on. But you have some time to save up, train up, plan your move and think things through. Hopefully the roommates will help keep costs low.
Out of all the advice I've read, Bobo's makes the most sense. Before you actually move, crank out at least one outstanding piece before committing. And go into this with a back up plan. <cough> move to TX* <cough> <cough>
Going to get personal here its not an attack.
I think the biggest hurdle to your learning isn't that you learn better from other people, its that you haven't worked on developing your critical eye. Other people can critique their own work better then you can because they've worked and thought hard about what looks off.
I've seen you take a lot of critique, say thanks and then not really do anything with it.
I'm not sure if you're really in love with what you do and don't want to change it? Or you don't agree with the crits?
Or you might not understand the reasoning behind the crits and you feel embarrassed that you need clarification and don't ask?
I'm not sure what it is, but you need to be able to look at your stuff with a critical eye and make changes. Don't be afraid to experiment or try out crits you don't agree with just to see where they take things.
I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes hopefully it will help you understand where you're at, and what you need to do, to be happy. I won't bother diesecting the quote since it pretty much speaks for itself and things really start to click when you break them down on your own and chew on them for a while.
Tyler Durden: Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off.
yeah, See it this way, the lower the cost of living, the less u have to pay, the more time u have to work on ur OWN art and improve. And anyway Like i always say, Once u realise u suck then u can improve.
Good luck, a lot of stuff can happen in 10 months, you may continue working on your portfolio and get a job somewhere between now and then in another state. One of your friends may back out or get a job in another state. There's just way too many open ended options for me, but hey good luck man! I'd move out to CA if I was young and had friends 'already' living out there.
Hell, I just moved my wife and sold our house to move to Dallas to get out of Tampa, since I know the 3d job market sucks in that area. Seriously, good luck don't get upset with folks here it's the internet for reals. Text is just text, don't read any emotion into it.
My portfolio still sucks and I'm working as a non-paid intern partially to learn max and model daily. You don't have to rework the models to death people crit on, just put them into the next model so people can see the improvement. You also need to be modeling, texturing daily even if you don't do it for your portfolio it will get you used to getting everything as second nature. Just make a plan like one prop a week and you'll have like 30 or so models done before June.
Join IGDA I know Orlando IGDA had workshops and stuff a few times a year and lots of events happening at EA Tiburon every couple of months. Good luck make a plan and knock out some shit, you may realize you may not need to go to CA.
Also remember your friends are trying for the same goal as you and as they maybe friends they are also your competition. Make sure you are working as hard or if not harder to accomplish the same goals. Friends also move out when they get girlfriends, want their own space etc, too bad you can't try living with them now so you don't move across country to find out they are friends but you can't live with them because they are slobs.
After some coffee, I change my mind. You should find a sugar momma that loves to cook, clean, works 80hrs a week, and is up for posing for a few hours every night. Humm scratch that last part, all the life drawing models I've ever had to draw where "interesting"...
Sef even if things go one way or another (hopefully for the better), I always appreciate (or love to laugh at) the threads you start that get people so riled up. I understand their logic in that you've asked plenty of us to take you under the wing in numerous different things so for you to say 'WELL I'M DOING IT ANYWAYS' seems rather ignorant. I agree with Dekard though; you don't know where you'll be by June so who gives a shit... let's just watch and find out.
Just for the record, your stuff is certainly improving from the shit on your website so at least that's something to say... granted if you were really passionate about this and not just thinking you'd want a job in the industry but refuse to take the steps that veterans are suggesting you'd have that amount of shit to show off every week.
And closing note... set up a blog, dude. I know General Discussion is meant for this kind of stuff, but you have a gift of failing at wording anything right and pissing people off with most of the threads you actually create. Friends and people interested in your progress can hop on as they please and then gtfo.
Sef even if things go one way or another (hopefully for the better), I always appreciate (or love to laugh at) the threads you start that get people so riled up. I understand their logic in that you've asked plenty of us to take you under the wing in numerous different things so for you to say 'WELL I'M DOING IT ANYWAYS' seems rather ignorant. I agree with Dekard though; you don't know where you'll be by June so who gives a shit... let's just watch and find out.
Just for the record, your stuff is certainly improving from the shit on your website so at least that's something to say... granted if you were really passionate about this and not just thinking you'd want a job in the industry but refuse to take the steps that veterans are suggesting you'd have that amount of shit to show off every week.
And closing note... set up a blog, dude. I know General Discussion is meant for this kind of stuff, but you have a gift of failing at wording anything right and pissing people off with most of the threads you actually create. Friends and people interested in your progress can hop on as they please and then gtfo.
heh you know thats probably the best advice I heard, I might just go about doing that.
I have a gift of saying Left and people hear right. I really have never been a gifted talker atleast online.
well Aesir and a few other people gave me the answers I originally went about trying to find out on here anyway
When you post a new thread, it's an event. I assume you're young. You logic is backwards. And you've proven consistently that you're a selective listener, only taking the advice you're wanting to hear. You make a post, and then become upset with all the responses you recieve. You're probably in for a rude awakening.
To answer your PM, yes, I've seen most of that, even tho I was originally commenting on your website. While your newer content is an improvement, it's not enough. The work you post either has a lot of harsh contrast in colors...or too little. Nothing you post shows any proper usage of lights. Any lights used are much too dark, with over-saturated colors, and no visible source. Many of your textures appear to suffer from dodge and burn overuse. You lack many of the basic fundamentals of art. Color, light, proportion, anatomy.
If you're taking a year to advance your interests...I suggest you take some classes. I hear Florida has schools. I suggest you post more work, and take advice. Focus on the areas you're best at, while working on those you're not. And stop posting in GD about things centered around your life, if you can't handle the criticism.
On a side note, you may already know this, but just in case:
If you really want to get better as an artist, "getting better as an artist" is not a goal. It's a dream, maybe, but it is not a goal that can be actualized.
You are going to have to set smaller, incremental goals, such as model a solid this, texture a solid that, sculpt this then that. They are going to need to be small goals, not sculpt a whole character, or model all of the assets of an alleyway scene, but instead model a hardsurface tire, or create a few really solid props one after the other.
Honestly, I wish you the best. It is simply my way to be hard/harsh. Moving away with no prospects is IMO a stupid idea, but youth is a time for such ideas.
I have a gift of saying Left and people hear right. I really have never been a gifted talker atleast online.
Just something to think about, do you think that you come off this way in person? I know plenty of talented artists that have come to interview at my place and we've turned them down because of their personality. Sometimes you have to take a look at yourself and think about things like personality and appearance. Even little things like some of the misspellings you have on your site hurt a bit.
not sure how it works in the states - but I'm sure it's similar:
Wont getting a place to rent be difficult if you have no job lined up? When I moved to London, we had to produce a lot of paper work, including current job / salaries / references / bank statements etc. It would have been really difficult finding a place if I didnt already have a job lined up.
I moved here with a friend, who luckily got a job at the same studio and he also had to produce all the same paperwork.
Hmm I'm massively presuming that you are thinking to rent :P Like I said, may be different and i'm sure it's not the same everywhere but it may be something you want to think about.
massbot, how it is here, if you dont have rent history, or a giant bank account you can show them, then you need to get your lease co-signed. Usually by family.
Not to beat a dead horse, but it sounds like all you're looking for is approval from SOMEONE. And the second someone approves of your decision, you'll just listen to that ONE person on everything they say, despite an entire thread of people telling you its the WRONG decision.
Oh well,
Goodluck.
I hope moving to California somehow makes you a better artist. But from practical experience, the things that make people better artists are:
Why not just try and get to be a better artist where you live and then impress a studio enough that they help you relocate?
Or at least that you have the promise of a job, before you jump into ridiculous rent?
I cannot imagine moving to California is going to make your portfolio any more impressive. Maybe this advice is completely unwanted, and i'm not in the industry myself, so take it worth a grain of salt, but it looks like you're trying every way except the obvious, right way, to get into the industry.
I agree with this post, I would be sending my portfolio out like mad and waiting for a phone call before I made such a life altering decision. I wish you the best of luck my friend, it takes huge cajones to up and move across the country.
Good luck man, hope your investment pays off in full!
I live in La, and as soon as I get an offer anywhere else but Cali , believe me I will be as good as gone, California it's nice but way too expensive, I would listen to what everyone else is telling you, moving out here wont increase your chances of getting an easy way into the buizz, you have alot of things to consider , we have tons of game schools around here so you can do the math.
I realize you're not looking for more nay-sayers, but I also feel the need to chime in that this might not be the best course of action.
I'd focus on portfolio first, relocation second. If anything I'd save up and move where the cost of living is dirt cheap so I could spend as much time as possible on my personal work.
Again though, it's your call. It could work out great. So if you are dead-set on this plan, then good luck.
[edit]
Since I moved from FL to CA last year, I'd say you can expect to pay double whatever you're paying in rent for a similar living arrangement.
Also keep in mind the state tax. FL = 0.0 %, CA = 9.3 % or something like that.
This is growing into an epic thread and as much as I agree with what is being said here, I completely understand where you're coming from. I moved out of home while I was studying full time and only just managed to get a crappy part time job. I moved in with 2 guys which I was studying with and it was the best decision I had ever made.
These are the kind of trials you need to put yourself through while you're young because once you're older and have responsibilities to family and such, there is no way you can take risks like this.
So I say, good luck, mate! Go for it with all your might. If it fails and you realise it was a big mistake (as it seems to be consensus here), then you can always move back home to Florida. You've got just under a year to drastically improve your skills (and a lot can happen in that time), just don't lose focus and you'll get to where you are going.
I too am planning a similar move some time in the near future, but not after I do a bunch of visits and actually line up a job. But importantly, not until I think I'm ready. You have the benefit of having a bunch of housemates lined up and you are already in the country.
Keep pimping your work, and don't get disheartened by everyone's comments here. They're saying it because they really do care and don't want you to flush your life down the toilet.
There is a lot of really great advice here. One of the best thing you can do in life is learn from the mistakes of others. I just moved from SoCal to Texas after ten years of living there. I'm sure that it's probably hard to hear what others think of this move, but many of these strong opinions are coming from a place of experience. I would focus on your portfolio foremost and apply at studios everywhere in the country. That way when you land a job and end up moving you'll most likely be doing it on their dime.
I moved to Santa Monica after college and lived with 3 guys in a 1 bedroom apartment where I could barely afford rent and worked shitty hours doing QA.
I wracked up 5 grand in credit card debt (which I just paid off, 5 years later), and spent a couple years doing absolutely nothing for my career.
BUT, I had an absolute fucking blast, and I would do it all over again if I had the choice.
If you want to do it, then do it, life is short. But be prepared for financial hardship and a lot of stress.
If you stick with it, it can work out. Of the 4 people I moved here with, 3 of us worked hard (eventually) and landed jobs in the industry and are now very successful. The 4th didn't have the same dedication and he ended up moving back home at 30 years old with nothing but debt to show for it.
Dude i live in Vancouver and i cant even get a job here!!!! its not because where i am sucks its because i suck :P you gotta be realistic about things before you do them. i would work on your stuff first work work work work work listen to what people say ( i should take my own advise i know :P ) even though the way they say it is like there talking down to you. There still trying to help.
I live with my mom ,dad ,and brother, Im 20 years old i know its sad. All my friends think im a failure my parents think im a bum and frankly there right, All i do is work on my art.
I don't go clubbing because i want to finish unwrapping a model, I don't go out drinking because maybe my texture needs a tweak.
but remember your moving to cali, i have been to cali its a blast and easy to get distracted. just remember your going there to become a better person and gaining alot of life experience i wish you the best of luck.
Just remember to have time to work on your art if you know you wont be able to stay in florida!!!!! because at the end of the day if your gonna get distracted by women drugs or alcohol your fucked!!! and that wont help you with your career!
Replies
no more words just ok , fine.
Lets say you move to a part of California that has a few studios in your vicinity.Here are a few variables to consider.
1. Studios open and close,you could be in a part of town that has a few studios and what happens if one closes. All of a sudden you will have a pool of experienced artists out of work looking for new jobs. If some of these artist live near where you are there is a chance they could apply for the same job youll be looking to get. And if something like that occurs yo could see your prospects dry up.
2. Just because you are around game studios does not mean they will hire you nor will it mean there will be positions at the time you are there.
A perfect example of this is when i applied to my current job in Denmark i asked is they gave any sort of special consideration to local artists/artists from Denmark. The answer was no,quality was what mattered so even though there might have had artist living right down the street from my current employer there was no garuntee that they would get that job or any advantage.
3. Job markets change,there could be plenty of jobs when you move there there might not be,in a year alot can happen.
So when you say im going to work on my stuff and then moving to California afterwards you are restricting your possibilities by going somewhere there might not even be jobs.
EDIT: a good example of this is Austin,plenty of studios but Midway just laid off alot of people and now im hearing rumors of NC soft possibly doing the same, if there are any new artist living there and hoping to break in those sort of closings could make it real tough.
No to mention its hard to see where your work is focused on from what ive seen. Is it characters? If it is good luck,character artists are the hardest jobs to break into it. Is it enviroment,vehicles??
If I was going to make a life altering move to another state I'd do it when your young, can fit all your crap in a shoebox, and aren't tied down. Would I do what you're doing? Sure but probably not without a job lined up. Whatever you think is a good amount to live on until you find a job, double it. It never hurts to have more cash then you need, and you'll need it.
Living in a lower cost of living area will give you more time and more money to work on the things you need to work on. But you have some time to save up, train up, plan your move and think things through. Hopefully the roommates will help keep costs low.
Out of all the advice I've read, Bobo's makes the most sense. Before you actually move, crank out at least one outstanding piece before committing. And go into this with a back up plan. <cough> move to TX* <cough> <cough>
Going to get personal here its not an attack.
I think the biggest hurdle to your learning isn't that you learn better from other people, its that you haven't worked on developing your critical eye. Other people can critique their own work better then you can because they've worked and thought hard about what looks off.
I've seen you take a lot of critique, say thanks and then not really do anything with it.
I'm not sure if you're really in love with what you do and don't want to change it? Or you don't agree with the crits?
Or you might not understand the reasoning behind the crits and you feel embarrassed that you need clarification and don't ask?
I'm not sure what it is, but you need to be able to look at your stuff with a critical eye and make changes. Don't be afraid to experiment or try out crits you don't agree with just to see where they take things.
I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes hopefully it will help you understand where you're at, and what you need to do, to be happy. I won't bother diesecting the quote since it pretty much speaks for itself and things really start to click when you break them down on your own and chew on them for a while.
Hell, I just moved my wife and sold our house to move to Dallas to get out of Tampa, since I know the 3d job market sucks in that area. Seriously, good luck don't get upset with folks here it's the internet for reals. Text is just text, don't read any emotion into it.
My portfolio still sucks and I'm working as a non-paid intern partially to learn max and model daily. You don't have to rework the models to death people crit on, just put them into the next model so people can see the improvement. You also need to be modeling, texturing daily even if you don't do it for your portfolio it will get you used to getting everything as second nature. Just make a plan like one prop a week and you'll have like 30 or so models done before June.
Join IGDA I know Orlando IGDA had workshops and stuff a few times a year and lots of events happening at EA Tiburon every couple of months. Good luck make a plan and knock out some shit, you may realize you may not need to go to CA.
Also remember your friends are trying for the same goal as you and as they maybe friends they are also your competition. Make sure you are working as hard or if not harder to accomplish the same goals. Friends also move out when they get girlfriends, want their own space etc, too bad you can't try living with them now so you don't move across country to find out they are friends but you can't live with them because they are slobs.
agreed
Just for the record, your stuff is certainly improving from the shit on your website so at least that's something to say... granted if you were really passionate about this and not just thinking you'd want a job in the industry but refuse to take the steps that veterans are suggesting you'd have that amount of shit to show off every week.
And closing note... set up a blog, dude. I know General Discussion is meant for this kind of stuff, but you have a gift of failing at wording anything right and pissing people off with most of the threads you actually create. Friends and people interested in your progress can hop on as they please and then gtfo.
heh you know thats probably the best advice I heard, I might just go about doing that.
I have a gift of saying Left and people hear right. I really have never been a gifted talker atleast online.
well Aesir and a few other people gave me the answers I originally went about trying to find out on here anyway
To answer your PM, yes, I've seen most of that, even tho I was originally commenting on your website. While your newer content is an improvement, it's not enough. The work you post either has a lot of harsh contrast in colors...or too little. Nothing you post shows any proper usage of lights. Any lights used are much too dark, with over-saturated colors, and no visible source. Many of your textures appear to suffer from dodge and burn overuse. You lack many of the basic fundamentals of art. Color, light, proportion, anatomy.
If you're taking a year to advance your interests...I suggest you take some classes. I hear Florida has schools. I suggest you post more work, and take advice. Focus on the areas you're best at, while working on those you're not. And stop posting in GD about things centered around your life, if you can't handle the criticism.
If you really want to get better as an artist, "getting better as an artist" is not a goal. It's a dream, maybe, but it is not a goal that can be actualized.
You are going to have to set smaller, incremental goals, such as model a solid this, texture a solid that, sculpt this then that. They are going to need to be small goals, not sculpt a whole character, or model all of the assets of an alleyway scene, but instead model a hardsurface tire, or create a few really solid props one after the other.
Honestly, I wish you the best. It is simply my way to be hard/harsh. Moving away with no prospects is IMO a stupid idea, but youth is a time for such ideas.
Just something to think about, do you think that you come off this way in person? I know plenty of talented artists that have come to interview at my place and we've turned them down because of their personality. Sometimes you have to take a look at yourself and think about things like personality and appearance. Even little things like some of the misspellings you have on your site hurt a bit.
Wont getting a place to rent be difficult if you have no job lined up? When I moved to London, we had to produce a lot of paper work, including current job / salaries / references / bank statements etc. It would have been really difficult finding a place if I didnt already have a job lined up.
I moved here with a friend, who luckily got a job at the same studio and he also had to produce all the same paperwork.
Hmm I'm massively presuming that you are thinking to rent :P Like I said, may be different and i'm sure it's not the same everywhere but it may be something you want to think about.
Good luck whatever you do
Oh well,
Goodluck.
I hope moving to California somehow makes you a better artist. But from practical experience, the things that make people better artists are:
The ability to LISTEN to others.
And practicing art.
give me your credit card number
I agree with this post, I would be sending my portfolio out like mad and waiting for a phone call before I made such a life altering decision. I wish you the best of luck my friend, it takes huge cajones to up and move across the country.
Good luck man, hope your investment pays off in full!
I'd focus on portfolio first, relocation second. If anything I'd save up and move where the cost of living is dirt cheap so I could spend as much time as possible on my personal work.
Again though, it's your call. It could work out great. So if you are dead-set on this plan, then good luck.
[edit]
Since I moved from FL to CA last year, I'd say you can expect to pay double whatever you're paying in rent for a similar living arrangement.
Also keep in mind the state tax. FL = 0.0 %, CA = 9.3 % or something like that.
[/edit]
These are the kind of trials you need to put yourself through while you're young because once you're older and have responsibilities to family and such, there is no way you can take risks like this.
So I say, good luck, mate! Go for it with all your might. If it fails and you realise it was a big mistake (as it seems to be consensus here), then you can always move back home to Florida. You've got just under a year to drastically improve your skills (and a lot can happen in that time), just don't lose focus and you'll get to where you are going.
I too am planning a similar move some time in the near future, but not after I do a bunch of visits and actually line up a job. But importantly, not until I think I'm ready. You have the benefit of having a bunch of housemates lined up and you are already in the country.
Keep pimping your work, and don't get disheartened by everyone's comments here. They're saying it because they really do care and don't want you to flush your life down the toilet.
-caseyjones
I wracked up 5 grand in credit card debt (which I just paid off, 5 years later), and spent a couple years doing absolutely nothing for my career.
BUT, I had an absolute fucking blast, and I would do it all over again if I had the choice.
If you want to do it, then do it, life is short. But be prepared for financial hardship and a lot of stress.
If you stick with it, it can work out. Of the 4 people I moved here with, 3 of us worked hard (eventually) and landed jobs in the industry and are now very successful. The 4th didn't have the same dedication and he ended up moving back home at 30 years old with nothing but debt to show for it.
I live with my mom ,dad ,and brother, Im 20 years old i know its sad. All my friends think im a failure my parents think im a bum and frankly there right, All i do is work on my art.
I don't go clubbing because i want to finish unwrapping a model, I don't go out drinking because maybe my texture needs a tweak.
but remember your moving to cali, i have been to cali its a blast and easy to get distracted. just remember your going there to become a better person and gaining alot of life experience i wish you the best of luck.
Just remember to have time to work on your art if you know you wont be able to stay in florida!!!!! because at the end of the day if your gonna get distracted by women drugs or alcohol your fucked!!! and that wont help you with your career!