Career Path (Contingency Plan)

Fortunately as an artist I have many different option open to me. Preferably I would like to become a professional concept artist. If it proves to be difficult I do not mind starting out as a runner and working up the ladder from there.

From there I hope to gain enough experience to become a concept artist or even a storyboard artist. Eventually further into my career I hope to become a Art Director or Production Designer.

From there I hope to become a Director and direct my own feature films, this will be the pinnacle of my career, to make movies.

If somewhere along the line my progression is obstructed by a recession for example I may have to adopt a temporary contingency plan, which will be to either move in to the graphics business, photography or design 3D environments for architectural visualisation projects.

Continued Learning in the Workplace

Once I get into the workplace and hopefully in my preferred career I will make sure that I must continue my learning processes. I intend to do this by maintaining my employability and flexibility by familiarizing myself with new software and evolving with the industry by keeping up to date with methods and techniques.

I can do this by either organizing the occasional meeting with fellow colleagues, following online tutorials, going to the library, reading specialized books, and perhaps attending specific courses at college/university.

Work & Payment

I have recently been paid by Ubisoft, which means that all outstanding invoices have now been paid. I am very pleased. It seems that all that pestering paid off. I have been warned that I will have to get used to unpaid jobs such as this, and the only way to get your money is by keeping in contact with your employers and not letting things slide.

I have also recently acquired a new job. It is a paid job and requires that I produce various concept illustrations and designs for a new film that is early in its development. This is great because not only will this lead to a possible job once I leave college, but I will be getting my foot in the door so to speak and I will be acquiring new contacts. Payment at this stage is a bonus however I am excited to be starting a job on a film and Im being paid for it.

Films During a Recession

I have heard recently that the film industry usually thrives regarding business particularly during a recession as people tend to watch more films and seek entertainment through watching films at the cinema. However the 3D films are so expensive at the moment that I have heard that people would rather save their money and watch a film in 2D rather than in 3D. It has been suggested that generally people would probably prefer watching a film in 2D or do not see any really definitive difference in watching a film in 2D or 3D.

Character Modeling

I have been learning to model a character in 3d using maya. So far I have been used to creating inorganic hard surface models ie buildings and vehicles etc. Character modeling is slightly more complex because I am now dealing with organic shapes which are harder to manipulate in maya. Also I have to pay attention to its topology, making sure that all the polygons have four sides each. This is essential because eventually this character has to be rigged and ultimately animated so the character model itself has to be correctly modeled for everything to work smoothly. I have never attempted character modeling and this is entirely new to me. I have had to work from scratch using online tutorials and advice from fellow students. There have been times where I have gotten stuck but I have managed to overcome these obstacles through perseverance and trial and error. Overall I am pleased with the results.

The hands and the head were probably the most complicated features to model, but now that I have don't them I think I know the techniques and principles well enough to repeat the process and model more characters in the future.

Interview Tips

The main pointers that were most important regarding interviews is preparation, being yourself, kind, polite and enthusiastic while ensuring that everything is in moderation. You do not want to appear too cocky, too overbearing etc. The interview session was very helpful and did help me understand that a job is not always earned by your skills but can be won by personality and compatibility.

Learning Progress

During this last project I hope to obtain new skills and techniques, which shall improve my employability when I leave university. Once I leave Ravensbourne I hope to become a conceptual artist or 3D artist in the gaming or film industry. These skills include being able to work as part of a team in a professional way, communicating ideas, and time management. In order to succeed and progress in the career I wish to pursue I must be prepared to work my way up the ladder and learn from others around me. I must also be able to design something that can be understood by my employers whether it is 2D conceptual illustration or 3D modelling. I must learn to design things using my imagination, but also transferring those ideas into a physical medium, which is both clear and informative. I must always remember that when designing, both function and practicality is key. I must be prepared to be flexibly as ideas can change during a project and deadlines are short.

Ravensbourne was appealing because it would be an invaluable opportunity to expose myself to new technology and software and time to experiment with different ideas and techniques. Ravensbourne boasted of using industry standard software. This course enabled me to not only improve my drawing skills but to also learn a new medium of using a 3D programme such as Maya. I realised that 3D was becoming more and more popular, and I knew that it would be wise to familiarise myself with this new skill so that my work would not only be enhanced but I would also increase my chances of getting a job. I also regarded Ravensbourne as a good opportunity to make new friends and potential contacts, which would help me in the future. The fact that Ravensbourne was so closely linked to the creative industry, led me to believe that I would be at an immediate advantage in as far as acquiring a job. The time spent at Ravensbourne has given me the opportunity to build and improve my portfolio of work.

During my time at Ravensbourne I have learnt new skills, which have opened up new job opportunities. I have learnt how to carry our basic animation, which means I could create animated fly throughs for environments or moving graphics. I have also worked on an architectural visualization project, which means I could design building exteriors for architectural agencies or create interior layouts for interior designers. In my opinion having multiple transferable skills can improve your employability and can make it easier for you to make a living. However Ravensbourne have had certain individuals come in to talk about the industry, what to expect and what is expected of us. It is interesting that most of these guest lecturers recommend that we specialise in a field, which we enjoy. Although this is appealing I do understand why the college stresses that we have several transferable skills. By having multiple skills I give myself more options which can be useful, particularly in unpredictable economic situations such as this.

I have now been focusing on acquiring some work experience and obtaining more contacts for potential jobs for the future. I aim to make an impression so that I increase my chances of getting a job in the industry. Over the summer holiday in 2010 I was fortunate to acquire a job working for Ubisoft. This was invaluable experience and it was paid work. They seemed very pleased with what I had produced. This was all thanks to my time at Ravensbourne.

I am fortunate to have a father who has worked in the film industry for many years. He has indicated to me that the film industry in this country is currently looking promising. At the moment it is too expensive to make films in America, which means there is now an influx of big budget movies coming to the UK. Such films include John Carter of Mars, Prometheus and Gravity. Although the industry is still competitive, this does mean that conceptual and 3D artists are higher in demand particularly within the Visual Effects houses in London. I have discovered that Framestore, a well-known visual effects house in Soho is planning to expand due to its success. I have also heard that Warner Brothers has recently bought Leavesden Studios, which is where the Harry Potter films were made. This is good news for the film industry in the UK as it means that there will be new job placements and this could lead to the resurgence of the film industry in this country as it used to be. Over the next few years we could see significant increase in film production.

In the light of this news it would be wise to prepare my show-reel/ portfolio. I have been working on developing an online presence whilst expanding on my portfolio. I have set up an online blog, which showcases my best work that demonstrates a variety of styles and techniques. I have also created an account on DeviantArt, which is a good place to show your work. It is a good online website which thousands of artists use to upload their work. Even professional artists who work in the industry upload their work here. This website is also a good way for other artists to comment on and critique your work. This is a great way of getting feedback and potentially learning from other artists in order to improve your work and thus make you a better artist. Guest lecturers have stated that having a portfolio is critical and should be used to show only your best work and in some cases should demonstrate a thought process, indicating how an idea has developed and evolved. Usually however a portfolio should be concise and refined. These guest lecturers seemed to indicate that it was the portfolio, which would get you a job, not necessarily your grade. They said that an individual’s work should show enthusiasm, passion and ambition. The work should be top quality and depict your personality.

If I eventually do manage to get into the film industry I hope to continue to learn new things. As I work with new people on new projects I will be learning throughout my career. This is the only way you become a better artist. I hope to that I will get into the film industry, as I have always loved film, and I have always been fascinated by design. To become a professional conceptual illustrator on a film I am proud of, this is something I aspire to.