How to Interview in the Game Business

Recommendations

Info

When the recruiter sees where, when and how the artist pays attention to and addresses the same problems that will come up in the studio, the recruiter takes positive note of it. The recruiter will think, “This artist has paid attention to the work and has put in the effort to polish it all the way through to a professional level.” Are You A Mouse Jockey or an Artist? (AKA Show Your Heart) The most important quality to demonstrate to a hiring team is that you have heart in what you do. You need to be able to speak about who you are, how you became the artist that you are right now, and why you do what you do. When you talk about a favorite game or one that you enjoy playing, consider it an opportunity to open up about yourself. It is your time to speak passionately about something and anything. Ultimately, the hiring manager really wants to get to know you as a person and to see what motivates you. This is your chance to speak in depth and detail about what you care about. In the example of your favorite game, you could respond by naming your favorite game. It might be Mega Man X or Dark Souls or Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. Don’t stop there, go deeper. Why did you like Mega Man X? Did you like the characters? Did the game have a cool story? Now, go even deeper than that. Maybe the character design was particularly intelligent for a number of reasons. You might detail how the design choices in the game worked to guarantee a better experience for the player. The key is to dig deep, then delve deeper, then go even deeper. This is how you show the hiring manager that you are able to dive deep into a problem, that you are able to think clearly, and that you are passionate and truly care about what you do. This is important because this is something that will be asked of you several times in the future. Be able to go into detail about things that you care about. Your response is not only a window for the recruiter to get to know you as a person, but it’s also a way to seeyou’re your passions relate to and connect with your expertise. Think of it this way: You are crafting the story to help the interviewer better understand you and why you are the best candidate for the job. 10
What Makes You Different? Highlight what makes you different from everybody else. There are many (perhaps too many!) aspiring artists who think that just doing what you’re told on paper is enough. They fulfill the minimum requirements and stop there. In truth, recruiters need more. Recruiters crave more. When you are able to demonstrate you are someone who stands out from the crowd, the lights will click on and the recruiter will think, “We’ve got to hire this person right now!” One way to accomplish this is through presentation. Your understanding of presentation and visual composition will be very clear in your pitch. As an example, you do not want to simply put your character in a T-pose and say, “Give me a job.” Instead, you want to present the character’s story. This will demonstrate that there is depth to what you can do as an artist and how you can present your work. You will not have to write or say, “I am deep.” The hiring team will simply understand it from your presentation. Art execution is also important. Josh Singh once said that when you see something good and when you are an artist yourself, you know what it takes. You understand the hardship it took to get to a specific point. If you’re able to see that in other people, that’s when you know that person is someone to look at. FORCE MULTIPLIERS In the original, military context, a Force Multiplier is a factor that increases a unit’s combat potential. An example of this might be better positioning or equipment, both of which would allow a troop to fight with greater impact. In our case, we can think of force multipliers as factors that provide us with useful skills and knowledge that will help us to achieve success in both current and later goals. Force multipliers will not only increase the speed and ease with which we can acquire further learning and skills, they may also lead to new knowledge and open pathways to future interesting possibilities. Software For game artists, some technologies are force multipliers. Knowing and being fluent in certain programs and software will magnify your chances of being hired. 11
Page 2: TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT THE JOB WHA
Page 5 and 6: Note, this is a production art job
Page 7: Salary ranges also differ for diffe
Page 10 and 11: A hiring manager is going to look a
Page 14: Being current in technology and con
Page 17 and 18: Practice, Practice, Practice Practi
Page 19 and 20: If you are an environment artist, p
Page 21 and 22: When you are yourself and you are a

How to Interview in the Game Business

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?