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Career pathway

ILO: 7/12/19


For this task, I plan to learn about the responsibilities of a concept artist in the games industry. I will use the books that Lizzy has greatly provided for us from the school’s library, as well as exploring through the internet for job posts and other blogs. 

Through these tasks, I hope to learn about the essential responsibilities of a concept artist - as it’s a role I’ve been interested in for some years, so it will be fascinating to learn about the world of a concept artist in the games industry. 

SWOT analysis: Art

Strengths​

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  • Willing to learn more

  • Self-criticism

  • Creative

  • See the meaning and semiotics in my own and others’ art

  • Good with Photoshop, Procreate, Illustrator, Assembly

  • Better with 2D

  • Some logo designing

  • Some self-reflection

  • Mostly with orchestral and fantasy classical music, I can picture an image that I can draw if I want

Opportunities​

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  • Explore art tutorials

  • Not only tutorials but explore tools myself

  • Learn dynamic positions of the body

  • Learn positions of other animals than just wolves, dragons and humans

  • Be open to new features and new skills

  • Patience

Weaknesses​

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  • Time management

  • Comparing myself to others

  • Set in my ways – scared to explore

  • Getting distracted easily – spacing out too much

  • Hard to get into the flow of work

Threats​

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  • Other work to do and they’re a lot

  • Still in a learning curve to draw more professionally

  • Has to be perfect – even though I know that I’m still learning and it’s patience

Resposibilities

As an artist, or preferably a concept artist, as it’s a role I’m most interested in, work closely with the writers, 3D modellers and level designers to ensure that together are working along with the initial plans and designs.  
In order to enter into the field of working as a concept artist, it is essential that they know the fundamentals of drawing - mostly figure drawing and semiotics. However, in the games industry, they look for artists who have a background of 3D modelling and knowledge of games design - and not just art and drawing. This is because so they can communicate effectively with the team who are from different departments, about any professional aspects of game design. This is also because that they also know the fundamentals of the core development of games design. Otherwise having the knowledge of merely art, conveys to the employers in the industry that the artist is quite close-minded… but also how would the artist get along with the team without the background knowledge? 

Key responsibilities:

After selecting some books Lizzy helpfully gave out to us for semi-primary research, I was rather fascinated over this book by Elliot Lilly (2015) that I think defines the entirety of a concept artist, which is a job role I’m interested in. Although concept artists are usually defined as artists that create characters that already exist in the media, but also their “primary goal is to create images that flesh out ideas and designs of a particular subject matter that does not yet exist yet” and “through several rounds of iteration and elimination, he or she begins to narrow the focus of the subject matter into a singular, coherent vision”. 


Conveniently, Elliot Lilly explains how much interaction concept artists are involved in each main department:
UI/HUD department:
Even though concept artists has very little interaction with this department, they may still need some blueprints of the designs of the user interface.


Art director:
The art director is the primary point of contact for the entire art team and works very closely with the concept department. They are responsible for managing, scheduling, delegating tasks, and ensuring the overall visual integrity is maintained throughout the game. 


3D modellers:
This department is also closely interacted with, since concept artists needs to always give drafts of the concepts until approved and passed to the modellers to be built. But it also takes consistent collaboration between concept artists and modellers to ensure that the final in-game model effectively matches the expectation set by the concept. 


Quality-assurance department:
No interaction.


Programmers:
It’s usually very little interaction.


Designers:
Designers write the documents based from the concept artists’ work. But they still work closely to ensure that the best ideas are maintained with each other. 


Animators:
Animators would need to know the physical behaviour of the characters from the concept artists. Concepts are usually needed to quickly demonstrate where the moving parts on any given object and how they function. 

The processes of concept artists during a project would occur for them to be “extremely engaged during the preproduction phase”. Words from a brief plan would be transitioned into visuals, discussed and reiterated upon, then finish as art direction. This stage is usually six months to a year, unless the project suddenly jams from a change in upper management, the timeline could grow longer. 
During the production stage, efforts begin to calm from the concept artists and shift to assisting the team where necessary. 
And lastly in the postproduction, concept needs for the project begins to wind down, and most artists already begin to start working for the next upcoming project. Those who remain will likely help with such tasks as marketing, screenshot cleanup, achievement icons, user-interface elements, etc. 

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During these processes, there are aspects of what a concept truly does:
A concept artist has carte blanche to draw whatever she or he wants for the game. But the stamens is partially correct. The “carte blanche” is usually reserved for a specific period of game development called the blue-sky phase, when anything goes and acceptable at the beginning of most projects. Varieties of ideas are suggested and heard by the studio. However, at the same time, concept artists can not only flourish their ideas, but they also have to maintain themselves in other people’s ideas. 
If the artists draws something awesome or their ideas are amazing, it will be implemented into the game. However, not exactly, since, first of all, it has to be relevant to the game’s initial plan and needs. 

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Here I found three job vacancies as a concept artist:

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The skills and requirements in this job requests the artists applying for the general skills the majority of game companies ask for concept artists:

  • Established experience in game development as a 2D Artist specialising in game art/illustration.

  • Strong understanding of digital art creation tools such as Photoshop, Painter etc.

  • An excellent foundation in illustration skills and deep understanding of human/creature anatomy, colour theory, shape and form, language and silhouette.

  • Great eye for light, value, composition, colour, staging, architecture and detail in environmental design.

  • Comfortable working in a predefined art style or able to explore the undefined.

  • Self-motivated with excellent communication skills and a great team-player attitude.

 

The line “Self-motivated with excellent communication skills and a great team-player attitude” reflects what I mentioned earlier about the background skills needed from artists about 3D modelling and team communication. This is important so the team are in smooth production towards getting the game completed before or on time at the deadline. In addition to this, they also request for core knowledge about art: “An excellent foundation in illustration skills and deep understanding of human/creature anatomy, colour theory, shape and form, language and silhouette.” perhaps they are not all core knowledge - some of them can be learnt in college and university, but in this case, they transition into core skills as they would be needed for smooth production of a project. Sometimes colours are usually the most associated features to communicate with semiotics. However, shapes and form can also be communicated with semiotics. For example, a circle can represent wholeness and infinity. But when it comes to design, circular and bubbly designs would reveal to the viewer an innocent and welcoming environment. Both colour and shape semiotics would be an essential feature to hold as a skill for the game art industry because when the project is complete, and the audience plays the game, they need to naturally understand a brief of each of the characters’ personality by reflecting with the clothes they wear, the colour of their clothes, their body shape, etc. 
Even though this consists of character design, employers are also seeking for artists who hold background skills of “architecture and detail in environmental design.”. The person would be rather close-minded for being employed for only having the knowledge of merely character design. It is important to also have the knowledge about the environment and basic architecture because, just like writers, assemble the description provided by the writers, and then provide the art to the level designers to assemble. Perhaps there would be specific job roles for concept artists to produce characters/environment/assets/etc, but even so, to ensure employees can communicate effectively with the team for effective production, they must have some background knowledge of particular features for the industry. 
Another line from the list I found that interested me when I realised why they may be requesting for that particular knowledge was “An excellent foundation in illustration skills and deep understanding of human/creature anatomy”. I noticed the reason why they posted this in their skills and requirements was because the job are looking for concept artists who can use the anatomy for authenticity and uniqueness. If there is a character or creature that looks from a completely different world to ours, they can use the pieces of anatomy to fuse together to create a new creature. This can be an example of Dauntless (Phoenix Labs, 2019) and Monster Hunter: World (Capcom, 2018).
For the “Desirable characteristics”, the employers requested for:

  • Shipped at least one AAA console/PC title as a Concept Artist

  • A creative and passionate approach to problem-solving.

  • Able to take and interpret direction and criticism.

  • Understanding of 3D pipelines (ZBrush, 3D-Coat experience).

  • Able to effectively collaborate with Game Design and Art teams.

  • A love of stylised artwork/games.

 

The first line of the list has also appeared in many other job posts across sites. It means that the jobs are looking for concept artists who have some years of experience with art for games. 
To prove further about concept artists needing the framework of 3D and working in an environment with other departments of the team, the post states “Understanding of 3D pipelines (ZBrush, 3D-Coat experience).” and “Able to effectively collaborate with Game Design and Art teams.”. Except I’m rather surprised the post did ot include Maya (Autodesk Inc.,  1998), since it’s supposedly the hardest 3D modelling program to learn as well as demanding. 

Job & internship posts:

Jobs & Interns

The job does not provide voluntary experience or internships. However, as I searched for a concept art internship, I found one by the same company, Rare Ltd. 

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These were the “key responsibilities” they listed:

  • In conjunction with other artists, designers, engineers and testers; originate and implement on environment OR character art features

  • Identify and highlight risks in the areas that are being worked.

  • Solve problems through the application of sound common sense.

  • Continuously work to minimise art quality debt and rework.

  • Devote time to personal improvement in order to further their own game development and artistic knowledge.

 

This is rather similar to the lists I found from the job post looking for professional artists, except this post requests for more basic knowledge and skills for working in a team and being supported by a professional team. For experience, the people applying for this must “originate and implement on environment OR character art features.” and “Solve problems through the application of sound common sense.” This implied that the company ensures that the artists who have applied and were accepted are provided proficient and effective skills and knowledge for the artist to sufficiently gather ideal experience for their next progression. 
For qualifications, the job requested:

  • A solid grounding in core art foundation and genuine enthusiasm for environment/props art OR character art and current as well as future 3D art techniques.​

  • For character art: A portfolio demonstrating your abilities in 3D Character art- from initial explorations through to finished re-topologised, textured and posed character renders.

OR

  • For environment art: A portfolio demonstrating your abilities in 3D art- from Model block outs to finished game res, textured assets with PBR material setup.

Please make clear which area you are applying for via your application and/or portfolio

 

For both character and environment, the job asked for a 3D model. This implies that the job wants the applicants to prove themselves that they have a background knowledge of 3D to be able to suit themselves for the team. Which is further proven in the list of “Desirable Experience”:
   

      None of these are essential but the more the better:

  • Experience with 3D graphics content generation tools (e.g. Maya, ZBrush)

  • Experience with 2D graphics content generation tools (e.g. Photoshop, Illustrator)

  • Experience in off the shelf Engine/Editors (e.g. Unreal 4, Unity)

  • Strong traditional art skills.

  • A love for stylised visuals.

  • Contribution to the art community.

  • Artwork interests outside of those prescribed by a university course (e.g. Personal Portfolio, Life Drawing, Online Competitions).

  • (Obviously) Experience of any of the areas of game development mentioned in the activities section of this document.

  • Creative activities (e.g. interest in art principles, photography, creative writing, game art

 

Somehow the job requests artists to have knowledge of Maya - the hardest 3D modelling program so perhaps artists who are applying for more experience to progress to the next stage of their career. Supposedly, understandably, it’s a connotation of being thrown at the deep end to be able to fully familiarise the environment around you, as well as the method of learning faster. In addition to this, applicants preferably must have an “experience in off the shelf Engine/Editors (e.g. Unreal 4, Unity)”, to enable the ability to communicate to show that applicants can be relied when needed for assistance for other parts of the department - as well as efficient and effective communication.

Through ArtStation (Leonard Teo, Kevin Strike and Clarence Martens, 2014), I found another concept artist job by Capcom, and the skills and requirements are rather similar to the job by Rare Ltd.

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  • Minimum 3+ years of experience creating high quality concept art for games/film

  • Excellent painting and rendering skill

  • In depth knowledge of art and design principles

  • One or both of the following:

  • -  Strong understanding of anatomy based, functional character/creature design       

  • -  Strong understanding of architecture and product design

  • Expert understanding of composition, color theory, light and form

  • Strong concept art portfolio demonstrating creativity and expertise in creating inspiring concept art images

  • Ability to create concept art in a range of styles and genres

  • Expert skill with 2D painting programs (Photoshop / Painter)

  • Self-motivated with good communication skills

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The list appears similar to Rare Ltd.’s, however, Capcom seems stern with what they want from applying artists: “Minimum 3+ years of experience creating high quality concept art for games/film”. This requirement was not included in Rare’s so perhaps they were more lenient, but they still expected excellent and established knowledge from the applicants. 
But by the overall skills and requirements, they expect the same knowledge from the applicants as well as many other job posts from other companies advertising concept art. 
However, Capcom added an additional list of “Pluses”:

  • 5+ years of experience creating high quality concept art for games/film

  • Knowledge of 3D concept art/sculpting techniques

  • Japanese language proficiency or willingness to learn

  • Knowledge of Capcom franchises

 

For applicants who hold these pluses would be more likely to be hired because since Capcom appeared to be quite tight with standards with their expectations from artists, this list of pluses implies that artists shows to the company that they can prove themselves to the employers. However, this list is not required and is merely a “plus”. But nevertheless, applicants with these skills would efficiently be able to communicate with the team - as the team speaks Japanese. 

There was no other list from Capcom like Rare Ltd. But at the beginning, the job post informed a “job description”:

  • Partner with the Creative and Art Directors to create compelling and inspiring key art, illustrations and other assets to communicate the artistic vision of the game

  • Create high quality concept art for character and/or environment assets

  • Create key visuals, mood explorations and model sheets

 

It’s rather a small list, but behind this job description, are large responsibilities to keep the artists busy - which is the job of a concept artist: constantly create designs, pitches and ideas for characters, assets, environments and other visuals to represent the game.

Educational courses

An educational course that’s always advertised before I watch a YouTube video is Udemy (Gagan Biyani, Eren Bali, Oktay Caglar, 2009), a course taught by Scott Harris, a high-end artist and instructor who’s taught over 159,000 students with his art course in Udemy.

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The requirements for this course includes:

  • Paper and Pencils or Digital Tools

  • Motivation to Learn!

  • A Desire to Draw Professionally

The list is rather small, but that essentially means that Scott Harris’ course can teach anyone is cannot draw and wants to begin with art. 
In addition to this, the course offers:

  • How to Draw Characters Well

  • How to Draw Out of Your Head Fast

  • How to Draw in 3D

  • How to Draw Faces, Bodies and Hands

  • How to Draw like a Professional Artist

  • How to Draw Characters for Games, Films, Animation, Manga, Comics and More

  • Draw with Pencils and Paper or Digital Art Tools

  • Utilize the included 7GB of Free Art Resources

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Personally, the list appears quite small, but within the videos and lessons, they go into specific topics about characters, such as muscle anatomy, bone anatomy, line of dynamics, gesture drawing, how to paint on Photoshop (Adobe Inc., 1990), Procreate (Savage Interactive, 2010) and other artistic programs, perspective drawing, and so much more. 
Scott Harris then extends the list into detailed explanations about the course of what the students will specifically be learning. 
This was personally convincing to buy… as this course will allow me to draw professionally. However, this artistic course allows artists to boost their skills and be able to create themselves a portfolio to present for their concept artist jobs in large game industry companies by teaching students the advanced fundamentals of drawing characters.

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Educational courses:

Another educational course, at Norwich University of Arts, they provide Games Art and Design - which is the course I applied for and looking forward to. 
The page didn’t include an overview since the course content by each year were engaging and user-friendly in terms of reading and understanding. 
So in the students’ first year, they begin learning the features and aspects of industry-standard software to design art and game prototypes. Then they begin learning traditional art through life and observational drawing as they develop research skills to support idea generation and development. And as they generate concept art, they participate in each of the three areas (concept art, asset production and indie development) to identify aspirations and future career goals.

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Then in their second year, students begin to specialise in one of the three areas and attend lectures and workshops on anatomy to better understand game characters. Students are also introduced to create game prototypes by collaborating and present the outcomes to a range of audiences at the Norwich Gaming Festival.

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And finally in their third year, students can either work individually or in groups on a number of projects that develop work to a professional standard to be pitched then presented to a professional audience. Students are also required to refine research skills and continue games studies toward a complete understanding of the production pipelines and industry techniques. 
Then during their last stage of their final year, they will start to consider aspirations and goals to develop a body of work and create a professional online portfolio progressing the students towards their ‘dream job’.

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Personally, this is the reason why I am rather excited to be accepted to this university in this particular course, because the course content they teach to students was and is my ideal way of learning art for games and the media, since I have always been interested in creative art of a fantasy and epic background. However, in other words, the course teaches the students very effectively and proficiently to enable students become advanced and ready for the industry. 

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In comparison to my SWOT analysis, I think I would be suitable for an internship for concept art, if I keep working with drawing and art to create myself some portfolios to progress into a career.

Reference:

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Blender Guru (2018) ‘Breaking into the Concept Art Industry - Interview with Finnian Macmanus’ YouTube. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEvMJYzLTuE [Accessed 8 December 2019]. 


Marco Bucci (2017) ‘Art Industry Talk - Studying and Breaking into the Industry’ YouTube. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=405NGYVbBno&t=386s [Accessed 9 December 2019]. 

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Jim Thacker (2015) 10 things to do before you apply for a concept art job [Online]. Available from: https://magazine.artstation.com/2015/07/10-applying-concept-art-job/ [Accessed 8 December 2019].

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 Jason W. Bay (date unknown) About [Online]. Available from: https://www.gameindustrycareerguide.com/how-to-become-a-video-game-concept-artist/ [Accessed 8 December 2019].

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BBC Bitesize (1998) How to become a concept artist: Thomas' story [Online]. Available from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zvwx92p [Accessed 9 December 2019].

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Nick Fredin (2018) What It's Like To Be A Concept Artist: Interview With Jake Collinge [Online]. Available from: https://www.cgspectrum.com/blog/what-it-is-like-to-be-a-professional-concept-artist [Accessed 9 December 2019].

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NUA (1845) BA (Hons) Games Art and Design [Online]. Available from: https://www.nua.ac.uk/study-at-nua/courses/ba-hons-games-art-design/ [Accessed 9 December 2019].

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Eliott Lilly (2015) THE BIG BAD WORLD OF CONCEPT ART FOR VIDEO GAMES, Unknown location: Design Studio Press.

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