Category Archives: Ideas and Ramblings

Precision Donut!

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I’ve gone and done it. I have been trying to hold out and save like a responsible adult for Rock Band, but failed. It should be coming in the mail within the week. Gotta say that I am a sucker for a game that comes so exquisitely equipped with instant gratification and the ability to partially mask my voice while singing.

I have played it before but needed it for home. We have a copy in our conference room at work, but to be honest I feel guilty for playing it there and I want to download song packs. At GDC our band “Meteor Squid” owned parties and I feel as though I need to carry on the tradition and practice more for next year.

My band name should be “Precision Donut.” This has a long story concerning a Lexus commercial. Just go with it because it sounds like a band name.

Ending on a sad note, Gary Gygax past away this morning.

Rest in peace to a pioneer.

IGDA Board

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The IGDA board has been elected and I have to congratulate them. Especially, Brenda Brathwaite because she was a professor of mine back at SCAD.

The announcement on the IGDA site goes as follows:

Brenda Brathwaite, Mark DeLoura and Tim Train will be joining the IGDA’s Board of Directors on March 1st for the start of the next term. And, Tom Buscaglia was re-elected to the board for another term. A hearty congratulations to each of them!

A formal press release to announce the new board members and results of officer appointments (ie, chair, secretary, treasurer) will be posted later in March.

Congrats to all!

Your Website = Repulsing!

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This topic is really becoming a series on this blog, even though that was not the intent. The intent of this blog was to document art and video game related topics and in no way did I imagine it would talk about portfolios and job hunting. It just so happens that this is my life right now. Going to conferences, networking, and viewing people’s portfolios on a daily basis.

One thing that I am stumbling on a lot are bad websites. I get a potential hire and go to their link and am unable to find their demo reel…or their site is broken….or their site is non-existent….or there is no reel…..or the reel is so big that it takes me a half hour to download it. I am a pretty patient person, so I tend to go a bit further than I should to view material. But I know plenty of people that would close out and never look at the stuff again, because of any one of these. Another note: PLEASE PROOFREAD! This will also kill chances along with someone’s brain when they try to read your stuff. Have a friend read through your resume and cover letter before you send it off. Even proofread your demo reel, because I find spelling errors there too. When I see them, the applicant loses points. Especially, if it is a detail oriented job, at which point there is a magic number then they are gone.

Here is a great article that a professor recommended to me that was a great help. http://www.thejonjones.com/2005/10/07/your-portfolio-repels-jobs/

At this point it is safe to mention that this blog is starting a regular updating process of twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Once I know I can do that and have more to discuss I will ramp up to three times a week. I also apologize for already screwing up my schedule and posting this on a Wednesday. I got sick at GDC and am making a recovery at the moment.

I WILL BURN YOU WITH MY MIND!

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If you get the chance to be in the expo hall in Moscone North, make an immediate right and head towards the wall. There will be a small booth on your right for Neuro Sky.

Their whole shtick is powering virtual worlds with your mind. When I walked up to the booth it was pretty crammed with people, so I never actually got to approach them and talk with them to find out how things were really functioning. Their demo consists of a guy dressed in cardboard as Master Chief. Cameras are implanted in his glasses to read eye movement. This allows the character in game to blink and look around the screen with the player. Other functions include menu commands depending on blink sequences, though not used in demo. The test subject had to touch the keyboard to switch modes.

From what I could gather there were sensors that were part of the head unit that allowed readings of brain activity. In game, this was measured on a meditation meter, which allowed for a selected action to be performed.

  • Push
  • Pull
  • Lift
  • Burn (because you can’t have a demo without fire)

This is where he actually had to touch the keyboard so the computer would know what to do with selected object. (Object selection was done with sight and concentration.)

What I was thinking, while watching this, was if one could set up the blink sequences appropriately, so they didn’t get confused with normal blink patterns, the keyboard could be eliminated. This system could quickly become overly complex, but for simple tasks, the system could easily become accessible for people without the ability to use a keyboard or mouse. It could also allow games to be played by those same people.

I know that these guys are definitely thinking along these lines. They talked briefly about these possibilities. I would just like to see it fully implemented in this way. I don’t see it hitting the main consumer market, but it definitely has a niche somewhere. Even if it is just so we can have a Jedi mind power game.

This company is actively looking for investors so they can make a commercial level product with applications.

I have enough business cards to make a new card game….

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One thing to remember about these conferences, is that they become a complete blur unless you keep yourself organized throughout the day. My job here isn’t to go to panels, which it is actually really sad how few talks there are on art and pipeline, but to walk around and network. I am looking for potential hires amongst other things. It has only been a day and I already have a pretty good collection of cards and have very little clue who they came from.

I have been telling everyone to email me, which actually brings up a whole new topic.

The follow-up.

Most of the potentials I have talked to are students, which is rather surprising how many I attract. At one point I had a group in front of me and all they wanted was my card. They didn’t even ask anything about my company. I just told the group to email me their resumes and went on my way and they were completely happy with that. I am curious of how many will follow through.

A good rule of thumb, when at a conference such as GDC, is to write down as much as you can remember on the back of the person’s card that you were talking to. In their case it would be nothing, besides “he wears a green sport coat.” Now, don’t do this in front of them. That’s not smooth. Wait until you are away from them, then jot down your notes. That night, shoot them an email saying thank you for talking with me and hope to speak with you again in the future. The reason I said “that night” is so you don’t forget or get bogged down. Make sure you contact them. Pretty positive they have so much going on they are not going to take the time to hunt you down, unless you made one hell of an impression.

This advice is really for someone who is looking for a job or that is a networking maniac.

The Critique: Friend or Foe?

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This GDC is going to be interesting. I have been to GDC in 2005 and 2007 and both times I was on the opposite side of the wall that I have now stepped over. The first time, I was an observer at a carnival. A sophomore in college with no clue what I was getting myself into. I threw myself into the fire and hoped for the best. To say the least, it was mind blowing and walked away severely giddy.I knew I had chosen the right profession, but I still had no clue what I was doing.

Last year I chose to go back, but for a job which I didn’t get. It instead was a huge learning experience as to what employers were looking for and how I was viewed by companies with me coming straight out of college. Or, in my case, almost out of college but still having a graduation date to hurdle. My portfolio got kudos and was ripped apart and spit on, but that is all part of the experience.

Up until the point where you graduate and find a job (and really even after you are employed), GDC is an invaluable experience to get your work reviewed by industry professionals. These are the people that know what it takes to get into the industry. This is their lives.

Now here are some pointers on how to handle a critique. This is coming from classroom experience and my minimal conference experience (only 3 under my belt), but most of these have been told to me. I like to share, and if you have any more feel free to add.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when you approach a job booth or are asking for a portfolio critique. (Note: These aren’t points on what to say or how to make small talk, but just how to take a review graciously.)

  • Listen – This really should be the main focus. Sometimes the best advice can be received if you just take the time to listen. Brenda Brathwaite had a great post on her blog about how to react when you meet someone famous, or whos work you deeply respect.
  • Ask Questions – You want to improve and the best way is to ask how to do something better. It is pretty flattering when someone asks for your opinion, and usually the advice is worth while, but of course wait until they are done talking and keep it to clarification until the end. You don’t want them to lose their thought process.
  • Say Thank You! – This one comes in close second to listen. Keep in mind that the person you are talking to is very busy and is taking time to talk to you. Thank them up and down, but don’t start worshiping them. You might scare them and gain a restraining order. Even if they don’t think highly of your work you will still come across as a professional. It is surprising where good manners can get you. They might like you later.
  • Bad Review? – It hurts, and by hurts I mean it is like getting punched in the stomach and stomped on. Most of the time you won’t get a private review – it’s pretty rare that there are separate rooms in the booth for this. Most likely you will be standing next to someone who is trying to listen in and use the feedback you’re receiving to their benefit. Last year I experienced a negative review with others watching. I walked up to a company I wanted to work for and tried my best to get a portfolio review on the spot but was unable due to technical difficulties on their end. So, I was gracious for the try and handed them a copy of my reel and resume and walked away. My laptop was in my hotel room so I brought it the next day and asked for feedback and… I got feedback.I was ripped up one side and down the other. My ego was shattered and I did not want to approach anyone else to tell me what a crummy job I did. Now this was something I was trained to be able to handle, because I went to art school and this happens pretty often. It is one thing to receive this from your peers and another to receive it from someone you want a job from. Either way it hurts and most likely I deserved it to some extent.
    • Keep in mind that this is one of the great perks of being an artist and a bane. You have to deal with it.
    • Don’t break into tears. This should go without saying. It just makes things awkward.
    • Take what they are saying with a grain of salt. What they are saying isn’t fact. It is their opinion and everyone is going to say something different. Also, what employers are looking for is constantly changing. Technology is always changing. It happens. But this is the industry you chose and you must keep up.
    • Don’t argue. Listen. In the future you may run into this person again with a better portfolio. You don’t want them to remember you as the person who argued with them for an hour at GDC last year.
    • One of the best pieces of advice I got from an industry professional (about portfolios) is to remember that this is your portfolio, not theirs. This is something that you have put your sweat and blood into and it shows a lot about who you are. Ideally, you will make a different reel for every company you submit to, but at GDC that is crazy. Maybe for your top picks have some personalized ones ready but for the majority you are going to show what you find to be your best work. Though if you are getting recurring comments on your reel, you may want to rethink the topic in question.

Portfolio critiques can be painful, but are a necessity if you wish to improve your work. You have to take the plunge and they do get easier with time. I promise.

If you are looking for information on networking at a conference, read Darius Kazemi’s series on networking on his blog Tiny Subversions. He says it way better than I could and he has the experience to boot.

I am in the Newspaper!

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Since graduation I have been very busy. As some can see I have deleted all my previous posts on this blog. It is time to start new. Over the past six weeks I have been working as a specialized lecturer at Arizona State University teaching 3D Studio Max and Photoshop Elements. The experience has been tremendous, and I am very happy to have taken this position, though temporary. I feel as though I have learned a lot over the past weeks, and I have come to the conclusion that I still have lots to learn. To be honest, the idea of learning more isn’t new to me. I figure, I won’t ever stop learning in my field and I plan never to stop. I like learning.

I did have a pleasant surprise today. While I was sitting off to the side letting the students work on their projects (Projects due tomorrow), a gentleman from the Arizona Republic newspaper came in to interview students and take pictures. I am now in the paper and you can read the exerpt here (http://www.azcentral.com/commphotos/azcentral/1124/8/53/). It really is weird reading about yourself in the paper. My favorite part is that I said something along those lines but not those exact words, but they work for me.

In other news, I am heading to Siggraph in San Diego in a couple weeks and will be frequenting the job booths. If you are going, leave a comment. I feel very positive about my whole job hunting situation and I don’t know why. Just cross your fingers.

I still have plenty more to do in order to plan for everything, and I have personal projects set up for myself including the CGTalk Strange Behavior Challenge.

Hope to update more soon once I get my projects rolling and set up for Siggraph.

I really should blog more often so my updates can carry only one topic.