Concept Artist
What is a Concept Artist? -
A concept artist is someone who creates the pre-production art for video games. They often are a key role in coming up with ideas, aesthetics and designs for the game later on in production. They often are given a brief from a producer or director of the game, and they will work with 3D and/or 2D artists, programmers and publishers to create a look for the game and design concepts that could be implemented and fit the brief the producer or director had in mind. They are a vital part of the team early on, as their work will be used as examples for future game development and other design features to make sure everything is coherent.
What skills do you need to have? -
A concept artist must be a good artist, as they need to be able to illustrate and draw out character and environment concepts accurately to the brief and how the producer is imagining it. It also needs to be presentable and inspiring to interest the publishers and other executives who might not have much experience in games development. They also need to be very creative as they need to be able to come up with many variations of potentially the same idea over and over again throughout the creative process. They need to have a good knowledge on different 2D and 3D software and know the latest and most recent software available too make their job quicker, and at a higher quality level. They must also be able to communicate well, as they are a vital part of the team, and must communicate to all sections of a games development team, including the publishers, 3D modelers, and programmers too make sure the concept artist's ideas can be communicated through code and 3D modelling, and too make sure everyone is on the same page about the direction of the project. They also have to have a very good understanding of video games, as without knowledge of gameplay, the market and player experience, they will not be able to make effective art for the game.
What you need to do to get the career -
To become a concept artist, you must master as much of art and drawing as you can, as you job relies heavily on knowing the fundamentals of art back to front, as well as having a clear enough understanding to adapt your skills to the games project given. Most people who wish to become concept artists, almost never start as one, usually gaining experience in the games industry through jobs like games test, a Junior 2D artist, a 3D artist, or other such jobs which allow you to develop your skills and experience before becoming a concept artist.
A Job Hiring Now -
I found a job hiring now for a Concept Artist to use as an example of what employers are looking for upon hiring a new concept artist. Within this, it details how skills in art fundamentals such as colour, light, values, are all very important, and too thumbnail ideas quickly and simply as a key part of visual development skills. Aside from art skills, it also requires great communication skills, and problem solving too come up with new concepts and designs. They also recommend (but don't require) you to have knowledge of 3D modelling software, Unreal Engine, the industry itself, as well as materials and textures. As well as the application process involves a 45 minute interview, then an art test, then a 30 minute final interview.
Industry Professionals -
Hyoung Taek Nam
Hyoung Taek Nam is a famous and talented concept artist who has worked on many prestigious games, most notably Uncharted 4 and The Last of Us series. However, like most concept artists he did not start off as this, he studied and graduated from the Art Center College of Design in 2003, and worked his way up to being a concept designer for video games, staying in that role until his eventual promotion to Senior Concept Artist for Naughty Dog. He has also worked within the film and comic industries to help build his experience and skills within the industry. His work demonstrates a high level of understanding of the art fundamentals, whether that's with his simple pen studies or his full scale digitally painted illustrations. This understanding of art, as well as his proficiency with the hyper realism style that Naughty Dog strives for, makes him a great example as a concept artist.
Hyoung Taek Nam's work.
Steps I should take to become a concept artist.
To be able to one day be a concept artist at some point during my career, I would have to heavily improve upon my current understanding of the art fundamentals and how the masters of art manage brush economy, colours and composition. To do this, I could do 30 minutes or more of art fundamentals practise a day, and a few times a week do an art master study, and analyze how the artist made their work. Through this I will develop a better sense of art fundamentals as well as build a portfolio. I would also need more games industry experience, which can be earned through indie game development, and working for games companies under different job titles such as a 3D Modeler, or a Junior 2D artist, mostly anything games and potentially art related to get my foot in the door.
3D Modelling Artist
What is a 3D Modelling Artist?
A 3D modelling artist is someone that makes the 3D assets for a video game by using a program like blender, zbrush, Maya, or 3DS max. They will make anything from the characters, to vehicles, furniture, rocks, trees, etc. They will take the art drawn by the concept artists and 3D model designs from that, working as a cohesive team to make 3D assets which fit well together, and feel seamless. Usually 3D modelers specialize into areas of 3D modelling like environments, props, characters or architecture. But almost every one of them starts off with a jump 3D modelling something simple and boring, like rocks or trees or vegetation.
What skills do you need to have?
A 3D artist must have a good grasp at the software used for 3D modelling, especially a range of programs as different studios will use different programs, and each one will function differently. Another important skill is having an already built foundation within art and it's fundamentals; knowing how things rotate in 3D space, proportions of characters, objects and natural terrain in relation to other objects and itself, as well as already having a foundation in art means you are well acquainted with how colour works together to make a cohesive design. You also need to have a strong knowledge about gameplay, and how a player might interact with what you have with your object, whether it will just be static decoration, climbed upon, picked up, used in fighting, blown up etc. all of these will impact how a 3D model is designed and modelled. 3D modelers also need to be able too work well within a team, as they will be communicating their designs and processes with other modelers, concept artists, and other people on the design team to make sure their models work cohesively together and fit within the project.
What do you need to do to get the career?
Being a 3D modeler can be an entry level position as a junior artist. To work towards this, you can build a 3D modeling portfolio, study online 3D modelling courses, study at university with degrees such as games development and games art, or a more art related subject such as graphic design. To get a foot into the door and want more experience, its good to start small by maybe making your own small indie game as a side project, mod a pre-existing game, or make downloadable 3D assets for coders and other game designers to use. It is good experience to add into portfolios and CVs, and helps you build more experience for the industry.
A Job Hiring Now -
To show what a hiring company would be looking for now for a job like this in the industry, I looked at job openings. I found one where it details that you should be able to show a strong understanding of low poly 3D modeling, the restrictions and capabilities of game engines, and be able to use real time OpenGL techniques to be used for lighting, rigging and FX. As well as that, it recommends the candidate be adaptable and able to change ideas and processes quickly, as well as being able to work well within a team and listen to a supervisor well.
Industry Professionals -
Jared Chavez
Jared Chavez is a talented 3D artist who mostly specializes in 3D realistic sculpted models, while also dabbling into a more cartoon-y and 2D looking 3D models. He works as a Senior Character Artist at Firewalk studios at current, however, he started off taking a Bachelor of Fine Arts in the University of New Mexico, then later studying at the CG Masters Academy, then mentoring under a Lead artist called Glauco Longhi. He originally started working as an IT Assistant, only too move to the games industry as a Modeling Intern, working up the industry pipeline to get to the position he is in now.
Steps I should take to become a 3D Modeler.
To become a 3D Modeler its important to fully understand and have good comprehension on 3D modeling software and the basics of sculpting digitally. I can make basic 3D models of man made objects, however I only have experience with 3DS Max, and to expand, I just try my hand at other software like Blender. As well as that, I should learn how to sculpt and texture my 3D models. I already have a background in art which should help streamline my process in learning this, however, it will still take some time to learn. To learn this process, I could mod a pre-existing game, or make 3D assets for an indie game project to work on, which would give me plenty of objects to 3D model, of both man made and natural to learn the basics of both.
Animator
What is an animator?
An animator is someone who animates the movements of props, environments and characters for a video game in order to bring them too life. They could do anything from animate attack animations, run cycles, character expressions, the way a prop moves in game, to even how the UI animates as it opens and closes if it requires animations.
What skills do you need to have?
An animator must have good art skills and animation skills, as they need to be able to accurately draw and depict the animations in a life like manor, in the case of 2D animations, keeping the character on model and solid, while for 3D, keeping the character movements looking fluid and life like, while not breaking the 3D model. You also need to have a good sense of knowledge on gameplay aspects, the more you know about games, the more you would be able to make animations feel comfortable and nice to play within games. You also need to have good communication skills to talk to the rest of the team about how the envision the animations, what ideas they might have, and what works well within the game and their work. You also need to have a good knowledge on games engines, as without that, you don't know what can and can't work within the engine's restraints, as you don't want to spend lots of time making an animation, only for it too not work in the engine.
What do you need to do to get the career?
The best way to get a job is too build a good animation portfolio, and start looking for experience. If you can't find any work, you should try and gain some experience, usually through your own small animation projects to develop your skills more. The TV and Film industry, as well as advertising also usually need animators, so looking there for experience while you wait for a games company too hire you is always a good shout to develop the skills you need to work in an industry environment apart of a professional team. It is also recommended to either get an apprenticeship or a degree. Most animators now often go down the degree route, as apprenticeships can be hard to come, so a degree can come in very useful in teaching you the necessary skills to succeed, and network with likeminded individuals.
A Job Hiring Now -
To see how these skills play into the job market now, as well as what skills current employers are looking for, I found a job that's now hiring for a Junior Gameplay Animator. For requirements for the job, you must have a demo reel and portfolio too show them so they can have a good look at your skill level. It also requires a good understanding of Games Development, such as real time engines, and how animation might change from cinematics too gameplay. It also requires a good set of communication skills, so you can effectively talk to the others on the team, as well as get on with a multitude of different people.
Industry Professionals
Keith Paciello
Keith Paciello most notably worked on the Last of us Part 2 for character facial animator who worked on many of the cinematic shots for the last of us. He started off studying a BA in Computer Animation at the Academy of Art University, later moving onto Syracuse University to get a Bachelor's in Illustration. From that point he started as an animator for Sony in 2003 for Gameplay and Cinematics. Later he worked on film productions, such as Polar Express, Open Season, Monster House and Bolt from Disney. After a long period of time working in film animation, he returned to game animations for the Last of Us and Uncharted: Lost Legacy.
Steps I should take to become an Animator.
To become an animator, I should dedicate my time to learning the animation fundamentals, like squash and stretch. I should also practice animation exercises for both 2D and 3D to improve my animation skills. Alongside this I should also work on my art fundamentals to ensure I have a good understanding of basic drawing techniques. After this, I should build a good animation demo reel and start applying too jobs, if I can't get a games animation job, I should look at film and advertising positions to build up industry experience.
My own work
This is some concept art I made for a monster design for a video game concept. I done this digital painting on procreate. I wanted to make a distorted creature that could be found roaming around the woodlands, so I made this forested mask exo-skeleton growing from it's face, and created elongated limbs almost like a spider. This was to give it an uncanny appearance as most people are unsettled by arachnids and creatures with oddly shaped or moving limbs as it feels almost alien to us. I also used lighting and shading with rendering techniques to show the textures of the creature, and too make the drawing look more detailed and put together to make it look more interesting to viewers. I like how this turned out, I feel like it clearly shows the monster and what it's supposed to be while hyping it up. However, next time I would add extra sketches and anatomy studies of the anatomical structure of this creature, how it would move, eat, attack etc.
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