1. Neil Boyd Senior Teacher AIE Canberra 10 essential skills for budding game artists Eve Penford-Dennis Senior Teacher AIE Melbourne

2. You are an artist, not a “software technician” Don’t decide that you prefer only one type of software Should be aware of the basics in at least one other package (ideally 3dsmax, Maya or XSI) Don’t be a tool

3. Network Mailing lists (dlf, etc) Forums (sumea, polycount, etc) Most programmers are human Keep IT people on your good side Keep in touch with classmates and teachers Games industry is very close knit and you never know when you might need a foot in the door 50% of jobs never advertised

4. Communicate Effectively Find out exactly what you have to do and by when (clarification) Save yourself time and effort Good communicators get the good jobs faster Communicate well visually- doing the best concept art means everyone builds your stuff- not vice versa Be concise and specific

5. I can do it! Be versatile You’re being paid to do what someone else wants, not what YOU want Murphy’s law says you will be working on the game you didn’t find interesting Challenge yourself to design / model / animate texture things that are not your particular style or out of your comfort zone

6. Ideas Be original Keep up the traditional art skills Concept art is important So many studios have seen lots and lots of clichéd artwork- IT’S BEEN DONE!

7. Keep your reel current Keep updating your reel Get copies of your work Render off work- don’t rely on having all the files later You could find out about a great job elsewhere Company could go bust

8. Texturing is tops If you can’t find a texture that suits a model- make it from scratch! Texture budgets- they are called budgets for a reason Get a digital camera and take it with you everywhere Unique reference and textures walls, grass, roads, concrete, rust, signs, faces, skies, graffiti, vehicles

9. Save W.I.P. Show the process you went through to create that fantastic model. Understand the process you went through to create the model Prove that the work is yours Find the arm before you made it an amputee

10. Make It Better Make it better if not as good than other games Ask others advice, take criticism, practice and improve. Keep up to date with new developments keep honing the skills on stuff you already know

11. Play games What is the “fun stuff” in every genre? Why do some games work better than others Play the best games of all time What game has the best: –Characters design –Character animation –Level design

12. Other Tips Don’t use tutorials in your reels No excuse for poor file management (telling people you’ve lost work) Once you’ve got the job – keep impressing people – that’s when you’ve really got to prove yourself Nothing offensive in your reel

13. Questions What was that young grasshopper?