Articles like these are helpful to study. Making of Shadow of the Colossus Onimusha 3 lighting system (pardon the google translation) Lost Planet graphics system You should also spend some time with particle systems. For example... http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Particle_System_Overview…
If you're a 3dsmax user, check out Allen McKay's stuff, he's worked on a lot high end stuff and is more then happy to share his wealth (of knowledge...). Watch his studio's game cinematic showreel, lots of stuff you'll recognize. It will also give you a good idea of what they might expect. His DVD's are great and so is the…