'A Memorable Day'
"TAKE THAT RECESSION!"
They say when you want something so bad in life, you will have to climb over brick walls to get what you want, even though everyone you know around you thinks its pointless.
I "finished" college to pursue my dream. Ever since high school, I always wanted to break into the games industry. On February 4th, 2010 at 5:16pm PST, the dream I've fought and long sought for has finally become a reality as I received the words "Welcome Aboard" on my email inbox.
It took me close to 5 years after my decision to leave formal education behind, and a lot of trial and error to get where I'm at right now. I've failed multiple times in my life, and the good thing I've learned about failure is that you can always start over things more intelligently.
I'm now a junior artist at Playdom, and I'll be moving down to Cali in the next couple of days. Work starts next week and I can't wait to meet the whole art team. This company is still very young and has a lot of potential for growth.
Things I've learned that I hope will inspire others:
1. Start Small - you cannot be picky when you're entry level. When you break in, expect all the work to be dumped on your lap.
2. Experience vs Education - from my experience, and the advice I've collected from industry vets, you don't need that shiny piece of paper to get in. You just need to do the work and improve your skills to make a presentable and impressive portfolio that matches the company's needs (and do the work once you're hired). You're very lucky if you find an industry pro who take the time to coach you.
3. Diversify - try EVERYTHING. Do not ever limit yourself to one skill. A team/company will favor a person with a several good skillsets than someone who only has one good skill. This may be the hardest thing you'll ever do, but its worth the effort. I wear a lot of hats and produce different art styles when I work on SkullgirlS.
4. Get comfortable being uncomfortable - always follow this mantra. You have to get out of your comfort zone to achieve something greater not just in the industry, but in life too. Artists and introversion go hand in hand, and it took me a very, very, very long time to break away and find my cheery, extroverted muse.
5. Never stop learning - the day you think you've reached your fullest potential, is the day you have not. The industry constantly changes, the trend keeps shifting, and new tools keep popping out. An industry vet told me that the industry constantly evolves every 5 years, and its volatility weeds out a lot of people pretty quick if they fail to learn something new.
6. Set goals, write them down, read them daily - at first I thought this was a stupid idea. But I've learned that what separates successful people from the pack is that they know exactly what they want to do in life and set higher goals to achieve once they've completed their current ones. A goal is basically a dream with a deadline.
7. Manage your time - I talked to a guy who worked at Zipper Interactive at the FuturePoly event. He's only 27 and he has a wife and 2 kids. When he applied to a game design school, only 25 out of 60 in his class graduated, and only 5 got jobs. He said the reason why a lot of them failed is that they didn't know how to manage their time effectively. When he's at Zipper, he works and does nothing else. When he's at home, he takes care of his kids while his wife took night classes. Having spouses and/or kids will open your mind on how valuable time is.
8. Network with industry pros - As I've found out, the industry is very close-knit. Find people with experience, ask them questions and be patient. The world is a small place now with social media and networking sites running rampant across the web, yet a lot of people still fail to send that nice email to a vet that will bring that tiny, golden nugget of knowledge that'll help them get their foot in the door.
9. Serve others and be polite - Always help people when you're able. You'd be surprised how many gifts you'll receive from others when you've helped them out. I receive a lot of good advice from people when I make their day better, and it adds a lot of good karma to your karma bank too.
10. Never promote doom-and-gloom - The last thing creatives want to experience is someone or something that toxifies their creativity. People pick up negativity pretty quick, and if affects everyone when you come in with a raincloud over your head (I visualize that a lot when I see depressed people.)
11. Don't take it personally - this goes especially when dealing with rejection from companies. Its a tough deal but you just have to persevere and move on if a deal doesn't fly. Anger solves nothing, and it just spoils your day. Do not burn your bridges too, you never know if a company opens up a position that fits your skillset.
12. Do your homework - I was surprised to find out how many entry level people lack the initiative to prepare for an interview. During my interview with the art director, he pointed out this one guy who they had to fly in from Arizona, and he brought NOTHING to the interview. No folders, resume, laptop, NOTHING. That's like the equivalent of a man failing to bring his testicles to a doctor's appointment. Embarassing, unprofessional, and downright costly to both parties. Now I know why they interviewed me on Skype :) Research the company's background, people's profiles (memorize them if you're that much of a kamikaze) and prepare your online portfolio, resume, reference sites for people to view your work, etc. If you fail to plan, then plan to fail.
13. HR are people too - I grabbed a lot of gossip during the FuturePoly event, a couple of artists were talking how they despised Human Relations with a passion. Its unfortunate since HR are people too, they make mistakes like everybody else and they're just doing their job sifting for the right candidates. Its also ironic that new hires develop angelic personalities once they learned that they got the job offer, and will treat recruiters like deities and send them flowers, treats or thank you notes.
14. Find your purpose - Passion, persistence and perseverance will get you far. Experiment, try stuff, and fail forward to find your purpose. Find something that makes your heart sing and dance, and you'll never 'work' a day in your life ever again.
15. Be humble - It doesn't matter if you're an art director or an entry level person, one's arrogance dies when illness or death strikes. Both don't care if your rich, famous or powerful. You can't input the IDDQD code in real life. And even if you find a way to input it, you can still die via drowning, falling into a pit, or run out of time. I've met some of the nicest industry veterans out there, and their modest demeanor has gotten them pretty far in the industry.
16. Never (gonna) give (you) up - Never gonna give you up, Never gonna let you down, Never gonna run around and desert you. Never gonna make you cry, Never gonna say goodbye, Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you.
I hope these little lessons that I've learned help people out. If you think it hasn't, then disregard it completely. Either way, I just rickroll'd you :D
I've also compiled a list of all the jobs I've applied in the last couple of years, along with some interesting quotes/gestures from people and myself that I've collected through my endeavors.
Jobs I've applied to:
ARENANET
Character Artist
Concept Artist
EA
Several Concept Artist positions
Several 2D Artist jobs
Assitant Artist
Production Artist
Several QA positions
FOUNDATION9
Concept Artist (Pipeworks)
General Application
UBISOFT
Illustrator/Concept Artist
Illustrator
SCEA
Staff Concept Artist
SONY BEND
Concept Artist
Environment Artist
MONOLITH
Several QA positions
POPCAP
2D Artist
UI Artist
GAIA ONLINE
Sprite Artist
Illustrator/Flash/Vector Artist
GARAGE GAMES
General Application
ONI PRESS
General Application
PLAYFISH
CG Artist
Game Artist
VALVE
General Application
VALKYRIE ENTERTAINMENT
General Application
LAIKA INC
General Application
MIDWAY
2D Artist
Concept Artist
POLYTRON CORP
Animator
MICROSOFT
General Application
QA Tester
ZYNGA
General Artist
This list is pretty modest list I think. I know somewhere out there, someone applied to more jobs than I did before they got in.
A few letters from companies (names taken out for privacy reasons):
"Thank you for contacting XXX regarding employment opportunities. This is to inform you that your e-mail has been received and forwarded to the appropriate person for review. Due to the volume of e-mails we receive, we are only able to contact those candidates who best fit our current needs. We will keep your information on file and if we don't contact you now, we may contact you later if our needs change. We appreciate your interest in XXX."
"Dear Alpha,
We appreciate your interest in XXX!
Unfortunately we do not have an available position that matches your goals
and experience.
We wish you the best of luck in your search,
XXX"
Hi Alpha,
Thank you for your submission, and continued interest in XXX. At this time, unfortunately, we are unable to offer you a position as we pursue a candidate that more closely suits our opening. We will continue to maintain your information in our database should a more suitable position present itself. Again, we thank you for your consideration, and best wishes from the entire XXX team!
Sincerely,
XXX"
"Your resume has been received, thank you!
Due to an overwhelming number of submissions, we may not be able to contact you in person, but your resume will be reviewed.
Thanks again, and best of luck to you!
XXX"
"Thank you for your interest in working with us at XXX. Regrettably, we don't feel that we have a good fit for you here at this time. If you'd like to check back with us at some time in the future, we'd be happy to hear from you and review any new work that you'd care to share. We appreciate your submission and wish you luck in the future.
Cheers,
XXX"
"Dear Alpha Gamboa,
Thank you for submitting your resume to for consideration for our XXX opportunity in XXX.
We are fortunate to have many qualified candidates apply to each of our positions. We have reviewed the qualifications of each candidate and after careful consideration, we have determined that the credentials of other candidates may better fit our needs at this time.
Please accept our best wishes and thank your for your interest in XXX.
Best Regards,
XXX Recruiting"
"hey there, thanks for getting in touch, but i think we've found what we are looking for
elsewhere.
XXX"
A few quotes from people:
"There's always the army."
"Why don't you just get a normal job?"
"I don't know why you're not following these people who are joining the Army or Navy, they'll fund your education."
"You should go back to school and get your AA."
"Why didn't you finish school?"
"You're crazy."
"Why don't you go apply to those game design schools?"
"Have you tried applying to those Art Institutes?"
A few gestures from people after telling them my decision:
*rolling eyes*
*a heavy sigh*
*a grunt*
*fidgetting*
*a short pause followed by a compliment*
*an uncomfortable smile*
A few quotes from my negative self (whom I never listened):
"You can't make it Alpha, you don't have the skills."
"You don't have a formal college education, what makes you think you can get into this industry?"
"I wish you've taken that opportunity with ITT Tech."
"You should give it up, its pointless."
"Go back and apply to Art Institute of Seattle."
"Go back to college and get your degree."
"You should listen to that lady and join the Navy."
"You know the Army will pay for your tuition."
"You're an idiot Alpha."
"You're stupid."
"You're a failure."
"Why are you so hard-headed?"
"STOP, GIVE UP!"
"You will never succeed..."
"Why don't you tell your mom that you just want to live a simple life back in the Philippines?"
"You should consider medical school back home."
"You should follow your parents and just become a doctor."
"QUIT!"
The few videos that inspire me:
Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY
Nick Vujicic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4uG2kSdd-4
Les Brown - Who Are You Associating With
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpObDplMYt0
Dr. Randy Pausch - The Last Lecture
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo
Pursuit of Happyness - Final Scene (spoilers)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsYl63dAZHA
Last but not least,
The people I'm grateful for:
My family
My brothers and stepbros
My relatives
My friends
My friends online
My friendly neighbors
My not-so-friendly neigbors
My new co-workers
My new boss
The friendly HR team (I was lucky)
The artists who inspire me
The people who like my art
The SkullgirlS team
The mentors I've met/watched
The industry pros
The developers
The animators
The musicians
The cartoonists
The writers
The philanthropists
The creatives
The indie devs
The players
The people I've talked to on busses
The people I've talked to on trains
The people I've talked to on planes
The people I've talked to in restrooms (I did this with ArenaNet's Jaime Jones :D Awkward moment.)
The Behemoth crew
The Mechafetus crew (How's Canada dudes?)
The FuturePoly crew
Penny Arcade
and to everyone reading this right now and the people who will read this when I'm long gone.
Alright folks, the road only gets more challenging from here on out. Many have traveled this informal road before, and now I've joined their ranks. I wish everyone success and hope this will save aspiring creatives a lot of grief.
Cheers!
EDIT: Changed the date. I got the mail on the 4th, not the 3rd @w@