Guild Wars’ winning art director talks about making it big in the games industry

 

ArenaNet is having a ball right about now as their very own art director, Daniel Dociu, recently became a Gold Award winner in the 14th Annual Spectrum Competition. He won the award in the concept art category for his piece called “Crescent City” – a concept design behind Gandara, the Moon Fortress – which happens to be a huge mission locale in Guild Wars Nightfall.

With that, the folks behind Guild Wars decided to feature an interview with him, here are the snippets of the sit-down session. His background:

I moved to the U.S. in 1990 after having spent two years in Athens, Greece. I have lived in the Seattle area since Â’91. After two years as a toy designer for a less-than-glamorous manufacturer, I jumped ship to interactive entertainment. IÂ’ve been working as an art director in the games industry ever since, for companies like Squaresoft, Electronic Arts (twice!), and Zipper Interactive. I have done consulting for Microsoft and freelance work for Wizards of the Coast, Digital Anvil, and a fair share of small developers who have come and gone. For the past three and a half years, I have been with ArenaNet, working on the Guild Wars series.

And since he already etched his mark as a competent and creative art director, this is what he has to say to thriving artists who wants to penetrate the games industry:

Getting your first job in the industry can be difficult, since many studios look for artists with previous industry experience…Networking is extremely important in the games industry, so get your name out there, attend conferences, and meet as many people in the industry as you can. Work with a lot of focus on preparing a strong portfolio….Do your research and make sure you have a firm understanding of the state of the industry. And before you submit your portfolio for review, make sure you have researched the studio and fully understand their artistic style. Perhaps most importantly, don’t give up after your first rejection (or second or third, for that matter).

Listen to this guy, judging from his work, he is an ace in our books. To check out the full interview, click on the read link we have below.

 

ArenaNet is having a ball right about now as their very own art director, Daniel Dociu, recently became a Gold Award winner in the 14th Annual Spectrum Competition. He won the award in the concept art category for his piece called “Crescent City” – a concept design behind Gandara, the Moon Fortress – which happens to be a huge mission locale in Guild Wars Nightfall.

With that, the folks behind Guild Wars decided to feature an interview with him, here are the snippets of the sit-down session. His background:

I moved to the U.S. in 1990 after having spent two years in Athens, Greece. I have lived in the Seattle area since Â’91. After two years as a toy designer for a less-than-glamorous manufacturer, I jumped ship to interactive entertainment. IÂ’ve been working as an art director in the games industry ever since, for companies like Squaresoft, Electronic Arts (twice!), and Zipper Interactive. I have done consulting for Microsoft and freelance work for Wizards of the Coast, Digital Anvil, and a fair share of small developers who have come and gone. For the past three and a half years, I have been with ArenaNet, working on the Guild Wars series.

And since he already etched his mark as a competent and creative art director, this is what he has to say to thriving artists who wants to penetrate the games industry:

Getting your first job in the industry can be difficult, since many studios look for artists with previous industry experience…Networking is extremely important in the games industry, so get your name out there, attend conferences, and meet as many people in the industry as you can. Work with a lot of focus on preparing a strong portfolio….Do your research and make sure you have a firm understanding of the state of the industry. And before you submit your portfolio for review, make sure you have researched the studio and fully understand their artistic style. Perhaps most importantly, don’t give up after your first rejection (or second or third, for that matter).

Listen to this guy, judging from his work, he is an ace in our books. To check out the full interview, click on the read link we have below.