Industry - Ubisoft

Ubisoft is a game creator, publisher and distributor with studios around the world. Ubisoft is a huge company that has created thousands of popular titles, such as Assassins Creed series. Far Cry series and Prince of Persia series. I have always loved the company, admired them for the games that they produce, especially the Assassins Creed series, the attention to detail, the amount of detail put into the environments alone are just breath taking as you can clearly see the amount of time that was taken into creating the game. I decided to look at this company for internships and work placements but there were none available. However I did find something interesting that caught my eye:

Narrative Designer

The role of a narrative designer sounded like a dream come true. I am passionate about storytelling, and I love writing/visually depicting the plot. The main responsibilities were supporting/collaborating with the Senior Narrative Designer, communicating to other departments and making alterations to the narrative system. I am not entirely sure about the narrative system, I assume that this means the frame of the main narrative of the game, however I believe that I have all of these skills and would be able to achieve these responsibilities to a professional standard. 

When looking closer at the responsibilities and relevant experience I discovered that there were a few aspects that I would not be able to achieve. For instance, knowledge on the basic game design rules, working experience in narrative design/script writing and screen writing rules. I believe that this is definitely something I want to learn to have these skills to develop my own practice. I want to look at this career in other companies as well as and see their specifications as I would love to take this role for a living. 

"Responsibilities

Understand the elements of gameplay and consider how they might affect the development of history and allow some adjustments;

Collaborate with the senior narrative designer, to translate the intentions and required emotions of the player, in order to create appropriate systems;

Support the senior narrative designer in the creation of systems supporting the key emotions and the game experience through the narrative proper (gameplay production, dialogue, scripted events);

Formalize, document and update the narrative systems and their implementation, according to the principles established by the narrative director;

Describe narrative situations, create documents defining their content, their role in the course of the game;

Participate in the development of specific features and assets to the narrative/scripted events, as well as in their implementation and debug;

Throughout the production, make necessary changes of the narrative system and scripted events arising from feedback, to allow for a constant support of the narrative experience in order to achieve the desired player experience;

May be required to assume the responsibilities of the writer on certain projects;

Carry out all other related tasks

Skills & knowledge

Good knowledge of video games;

Knowledge of Game Design basic rules ( learning curve, difficulty curve, curve of rhythm);

Strong analytical and structured mind with a strong capacity for abstraction.;

Listening and communication skills;

Creativity;

To spot new trends and innovations in the industry.

Substantial working experience in narrative design, script writing, or equivalent;

Experience in video games is an asset;

Knowledge of writing, screenwriting rules and filmmaking.
Salary: Competitive + Relocation Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, U.KOpening date: 5th May 2016Closing date for applications: 12th June 2016Reflections reserves the right to close this advert earlier than the closing date indicated should we feel we have received sufficient applications." - Ubisoft

Concept Artist

This role of a Concept Artist was located in Bulgaria. Even though I can't speak Bulgarian, I wanted to see the job specifications in order to inform my practice and portfolio. Reading through the main requirements, I felt that I already had these skills, with a few that needed to be developed further, the only skill that I really needed to work on was the 'ability to draw any environment sketch to photorealistic illustration'. I haven't drawn to a realistic standard since college and even then it was semi-realistic which is the main illustrative style I used to strive to achieve. I want to work on this skill set as I believe that this will immediately develop my practice; one solution could be attending more life drawing sessions and drawing whilst traveling on the train, to refine my skill set. I would also need to expand my knowledge of 3D techniques, I have experience in Maya, however I haven't modeled a character or environment. I have only animated and created a basic model of an environment for reference purposes only.

"Job Responsibilities

Generate multitude of ideas and sketch convincingly environments, props, characters and creatures;

Create expressive concept art, on par with the quality of the concept art created for the major Ubisoft titles;

Research and collect visual material to define and improve the visual style and contents of the game;

Consider the gameplay implications of the design and the overall player experience.

QUALIFICATIONS

Very good illustration and storytelling skills with an eye for perspective, color, lighting, mood and composition;

Good sense of form, shape, silhouette, scale and surface materials;

Ability to drive any environment sketch to photorealistic illustration;

Strong use of research and reference material in support of idea generation and problem solving;

Knowledge of basic 3D software packages. Extensive experience employing 3D techniques into a concept workflow is an advantage;

Very good communication skills and teamwork oriented attitude;

Excellent command of English" - Ubisoft

Senior Concept Artist

I wanted to look into the requirements for this role as a goal to reach for my own skill set. The role of a Senior indicated that the applicant needed at least a good 5 years and more within industry and are considered an expert in the field. The most important roles that I could see that would develop my practice further were:

+ Establish the style of the project and be a reference for all elements of art production (Environment, Character, UI etc.) - I know I would be able to complete this task however when it comes to the UI, I don't that much about the mechanics behind it, I feel like I need to gain an understanding behind the user interface before I could create reference for it. In order to solve this problem I believe that I need to research into game programming/design, possibly taking a short course as well if I am serious about taking a job within a Games company. I believe that I actually wouldn't need to go this far if I was to start from a lower stage in a games studio as I would learn as I went along. Subsequently I still believe that it won't hurt to have prior knowledge in the field.

+ Produce environment concept art and in-game mock ups, focusing particularly on lighting and post effects - Again I know I could create this work to a high standard, however I don't normally experiment with lighting so I tend to go for the same lighting when needed.

+ Experience working within a photo realistic environment - much like the previous job role I needed to refine my skills further in order to obtain a photo realistic technique and adaptation to my own styles of illustration.

"Responsibilities

Establish the style of the project and be a reference for all elements of art production (Environment, Character, UI etc.);

Maintain consistent style under the direction of the Art Director and carry out revisions as required;

Set and share best practices, production pipelines and workflows within the group;

Share knowledge and motivate artists within the team;

Be a reference for the art team in relation to various artistic elements and find solutions to complex issues that arise;

Efficiently communicate and support messages and decisions from management;

Actively participate in the implementation of more efficient work methods;

Plan, estimate and prioritise time frames for the completion of tasks and track progress using the designated tracking tools;

Communicate and collaborate with key stakeholders to confirm task direction and ensure consistency of work within the team;

Produce environment concept art and in-game mock ups, focusing particularly on lighting and post effects;

Support the Lead to ensure a successful sign off process for own and others work by conducting reviews, critiquing work and providing suitable feedback;

Effectively communicate complex visual intentions to the wider art team;

Support the Lead Artist and/or Art Director in any related ad hoc tasks.

QUALIFICATIONS

Skills and Knowledge

Excellent interpersonal and communications skills;

Excellent drawing and conceptualisation skills with an ability to adapt to established styles;

In-depth Anatomical and architectural knowledge;

Solid knowledge of fundamental illustration skills including composition, perspective and colour theory;

Strong observation and research skills;

Strong knowledge of form, composition, use of detail and visual story telling;

Solid digital illustration skills;

Strong working knowledge of Photoshop;

Good working knowledge of relevant 2D and 3D software;

Knowledge of data management software (such as Perforce);

Good knowledge of the video game industry and awareness of typical video game development processes.

Relevant Experience

Substantial working experience in concept art or other relevant experience;

Bachelors’ degree in Graphics Design, Art or other relevant training;

Has shipped at least 1 game as a concept artist; preferably on a ‘AAA’ console title;

Experience working within a photo realistic environment."

Junior Environment Artist (Art)

I was quite intrigued with the role of a Junior Environment Artist. I believe this is due to the backgrounds that I drew for my Final Major Project. I thoroughly enjoyed making them and I wanted to draw even more different backgrounds in different styles for the art book that I want to produce for the Exhibit. I think, considering time management and what I can realistically complete, I would have time to re draw or draw a few images to add towards the body of work that I have already completed.

The role of a Junior Environment Artist is to ultimately create environments for the narrative to take place. I would definitely need more development on my work, mainly with perspective and ensuring that the amount of space takes into consideration of Off Screen Space to aid the narrative. Additionally I need to broaden my knowledge of 3D packages and refine my skills with Maya. With industry today I believe that having this knowledge of 3D techniques and software, just the basics. is somewhat of an essential. I still want to be predominantly 2D orientated with my practice but there is a need to learn the basics of 3D techniques, even if it is only gaining more knowledge in Maya. I believe that this could be a decision maker with applying with jobs. 

"Job Purpose

Responsibilities

With guidance, assist in planning out the space, with consideration of narrative and visual storytelling, while documenting intentions;

Create functional assets which can be shared across the project in respect of the technical and artistic constraints;

Track and update the progress of day to day tasks using the designated tracking tools;

Communicate and collaborate with key stakeholders to confirm task direction and consistency of own work;

Ensure the technical and artistic quality of the project by collaborating with technical artists and senior artists and make changes when necessary;

Implement and incorporate feedback from Art Director and Leads into work;

Assist with optimisation and debugging to fix the issues raised by testers;

Fully realise a space with the assets available to tell an interesting and varied story;

Reference game design documents to develop an understanding of the environments, objectives, atmospheres, story and style of the project;

Develop an understanding of project tools and their functions, the project file classification system and the process of updating engine data;

Develop an understanding of best practices, production pipelines and workflows;

Support the Lead Environment Artist in any ad hoc tasks and duties.

QUALIFICATIONS

Skills and Knowledge

Good interpersonal and communication skills;

Ability to create interesting, detailed and visually appealing environments;

Ability to adapt to new processes and pipelines;

Working knowledge of industry leading 3D modelling packages and techniques;

Understanding of composition visual story telling;

Knowledge of level editors;

Understanding of Physically Based Rendering systems;

Familiarity with data management software (such as Perforce) is desirable;

Basic gameplay and level design knowledge is desirable;

Knowledge of optimisation techniques (e.g. 3D Studio Max);

Knowledge of the video game industry and awareness of typical video game development processes is desirable;

Exposure to industry game engines and production pipelines is desirable.

Relevant Experience

Significant experience in an internship or placement year in a professional game studio environment or other relevant experience;

Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Art or other relevant training;

Experience in both hard surface and organic modelling;

Experience working in Adobe Photoshop."

Sources:
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/search.aspx#sr-post-id=91997352&is-redirect=true
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/search.aspx#sr-post-id=91977978&is-redirect=true
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/search.aspx#sr-post-id=91717178&is-redirect=true
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/search.aspx#sr-post-id=91464056
https://sjobs.brassring.com/TGWebHost/searchresults.aspx?PartnerId=25314&SiteId=5290&Function=LinkQuery&LinkId=18803
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/studio/reflections.aspx
https://www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/gcdetail.aspx?id=174711