2 answers
Kayley
Student
Grafton, Ohio
6
Questions
Asked
4262 views
What are the drawbacks of being a concept artist/illustrator? What about being an art director?
Are you always working? Do you have free time? How strict are deadlines and is the industry as competitive as they say? Although I would be doing what I love, I need free time where I'm not constantly working. #art
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2 answers
Steve A.
Project Manager
4
Answers
Burbank, California
Updated
Steve’s Answer
Hi Kayley,
I have worked for the past 20 years at 3 major film studios (20th Century Fox, Warner Bros and Disney) and have worked at a large Los Angeles Ad agency in the creative service/art department. Your question is a good one. One of the drawbacks of being a concept artist is the obvious one... do you have talent? I mean exceptional talent, to be able to make a living on your ability to draw. There is no true way of knowing this except to make a portfolio of projects you've created and get feedback from people in the business. The good thing is you can do this at any age and there are many website that can help you create a portfolio. As for the always working part of your question, you will find if you are always working that is a good thing. If you are talented enough to have work all the time then you can simply pick and choose the jobs you want. As for deadlines, they are very strict and sometime have insane turnaround times. If you miss deadlines you won't be working in the business very long.
So the difference from being a designer vs. an art direct is big. The designer usually creates the artwork, the art director usually manages the designer and oversees and directs the designers work. There may be some collaboration but the art director usually has the final say. And be prepared for the dump and run. Designers might get projects at 6 pm on a Friday from the art director (as he or she walks out the door) only to have it due at 9am Monday morning. So you might be working on this project all weekend. The good thing is, as long as you get the work done you can work when you want to work. Late night or early morning, whenever as long as it gets done. Most art directors start out as designers and aspire, with years of experience, to become art directors. But designers usually keep unconventional work hours. (Not usually 9-5)
The industry is very competitive. Kids coming out of high school have very polished portfolios. When I started, if you knew Photoshop and can do the basics you had a job. Now, the design work is on another level. And the pay is now a lot less as it seems everyone with a graphic arts degree knows how use Photoshop well. The plus side of it all is... you can, if you are lucky, work on some amazing campaigns that hardly feel like work and allow you to use all of your creative talents and that makes it all worth it. But those jobs are few and far between. I hope this information helps.
Good Luck!
Steve
I have worked for the past 20 years at 3 major film studios (20th Century Fox, Warner Bros and Disney) and have worked at a large Los Angeles Ad agency in the creative service/art department. Your question is a good one. One of the drawbacks of being a concept artist is the obvious one... do you have talent? I mean exceptional talent, to be able to make a living on your ability to draw. There is no true way of knowing this except to make a portfolio of projects you've created and get feedback from people in the business. The good thing is you can do this at any age and there are many website that can help you create a portfolio. As for the always working part of your question, you will find if you are always working that is a good thing. If you are talented enough to have work all the time then you can simply pick and choose the jobs you want. As for deadlines, they are very strict and sometime have insane turnaround times. If you miss deadlines you won't be working in the business very long.
So the difference from being a designer vs. an art direct is big. The designer usually creates the artwork, the art director usually manages the designer and oversees and directs the designers work. There may be some collaboration but the art director usually has the final say. And be prepared for the dump and run. Designers might get projects at 6 pm on a Friday from the art director (as he or she walks out the door) only to have it due at 9am Monday morning. So you might be working on this project all weekend. The good thing is, as long as you get the work done you can work when you want to work. Late night or early morning, whenever as long as it gets done. Most art directors start out as designers and aspire, with years of experience, to become art directors. But designers usually keep unconventional work hours. (Not usually 9-5)
The industry is very competitive. Kids coming out of high school have very polished portfolios. When I started, if you knew Photoshop and can do the basics you had a job. Now, the design work is on another level. And the pay is now a lot less as it seems everyone with a graphic arts degree knows how use Photoshop well. The plus side of it all is... you can, if you are lucky, work on some amazing campaigns that hardly feel like work and allow you to use all of your creative talents and that makes it all worth it. But those jobs are few and far between. I hope this information helps.
Good Luck!
Steve
Andy Wang
Senior Storyboard Artist
110
Answers
Albany, California
Updated
Andy’s Answer
Hello Kayley,
Work-life balance is definitely a concern across all industries and no less so in the arts and creative fields. It is nice to see that you're already thinking about these types of issues. I think that you'll find that when you're passionate about something you'll be excited to work on it and have ideas that come up at all hours of the day.
Having said that, many companies, especially in the tech industry are really taking the negative press about over-working employees to heart. While I can't speak for television or movies, the video game companies that I've been fortunate enough to work at have really looked after their employees. Deadlines will come up and there may be some emergencies but for the most part my encounters with "crunch culture" have been very limited.
One of the benefits of concept art in video games is that we are usually front-loaded. There won't often be the need for new things to be concepted right at the last minute. We'll still have deadlines and a lot to do at the beginning of a project but for the most part nothing we do will break a game and need to be addressed last minute. The downside to that is that once your role in a project is done, you might not see the finished project for a while and you'll need to be on another production if you want to keep getting paid.
If you work in-house for a game developer then hopefully that just means ramping up with a new team. If you're freelance you'll need to be searching for a new client/project/etc. probably before you've completed your current job. There are also outsourcing firms and art houses that do work for bigger companies and if you work for one of them they will have business development staffers finding those next clients and projects.
From a creative perspective, one of the biggest downsides to being a concept artist is that you don't have final say. If you really love a design that you created but the art director doesn't then you'll have to change it. One of the most important things to being a successful artist is having a thick skin; being able to take criticism, process directions, and work with others who may not share your exact vision. Even when you rise through the ranks to become lead or senior concept you may have more say and influence but ultimately the final decision is not yours.
Art directors will often have crazier hours and have much more hectic days. Art directors need to be aware of everything from what font is used where to making sure all of the characters have the right number of fingers. Some art directors still find time to do art for their projects but their main role is to make sure the artists working for them have clear direction and are coordinating well with all of the other visual departments.
In this case they may still be on the project until it ships. Things that break may fall under their purview and they will need to respond promptly.
And to address your other point, yes, this industry is very competitive. As you noted it's something that you love doing and many love creating art as well. Getting paid to do it is even better. And with the global economies you will find competition with other artists locally, around your state, across the country, and even from other nations. Art outsourcing firms in China and India are huge and they have cheaper talent. Even living in California I've been hit with a layoff when production shifted away from the San Francisco Bay Area to other states.
So yes, you'll be doing what you love but you'll need to keep practicing and working on your skills. Moving up may help with job security but it will also move you a bit further away from the actual production of art.
I hope this information was helpful. Make sure to keep drawing and painting and creating art. Bring your unique voice to your work but also be prepared to work as a team and be flexible.
Sincerely,
Andy
Work-life balance is definitely a concern across all industries and no less so in the arts and creative fields. It is nice to see that you're already thinking about these types of issues. I think that you'll find that when you're passionate about something you'll be excited to work on it and have ideas that come up at all hours of the day.
Having said that, many companies, especially in the tech industry are really taking the negative press about over-working employees to heart. While I can't speak for television or movies, the video game companies that I've been fortunate enough to work at have really looked after their employees. Deadlines will come up and there may be some emergencies but for the most part my encounters with "crunch culture" have been very limited.
One of the benefits of concept art in video games is that we are usually front-loaded. There won't often be the need for new things to be concepted right at the last minute. We'll still have deadlines and a lot to do at the beginning of a project but for the most part nothing we do will break a game and need to be addressed last minute. The downside to that is that once your role in a project is done, you might not see the finished project for a while and you'll need to be on another production if you want to keep getting paid.
If you work in-house for a game developer then hopefully that just means ramping up with a new team. If you're freelance you'll need to be searching for a new client/project/etc. probably before you've completed your current job. There are also outsourcing firms and art houses that do work for bigger companies and if you work for one of them they will have business development staffers finding those next clients and projects.
From a creative perspective, one of the biggest downsides to being a concept artist is that you don't have final say. If you really love a design that you created but the art director doesn't then you'll have to change it. One of the most important things to being a successful artist is having a thick skin; being able to take criticism, process directions, and work with others who may not share your exact vision. Even when you rise through the ranks to become lead or senior concept you may have more say and influence but ultimately the final decision is not yours.
Art directors will often have crazier hours and have much more hectic days. Art directors need to be aware of everything from what font is used where to making sure all of the characters have the right number of fingers. Some art directors still find time to do art for their projects but their main role is to make sure the artists working for them have clear direction and are coordinating well with all of the other visual departments.
In this case they may still be on the project until it ships. Things that break may fall under their purview and they will need to respond promptly.
And to address your other point, yes, this industry is very competitive. As you noted it's something that you love doing and many love creating art as well. Getting paid to do it is even better. And with the global economies you will find competition with other artists locally, around your state, across the country, and even from other nations. Art outsourcing firms in China and India are huge and they have cheaper talent. Even living in California I've been hit with a layoff when production shifted away from the San Francisco Bay Area to other states.
So yes, you'll be doing what you love but you'll need to keep practicing and working on your skills. Moving up may help with job security but it will also move you a bit further away from the actual production of art.
I hope this information was helpful. Make sure to keep drawing and painting and creating art. Bring your unique voice to your work but also be prepared to work as a team and be flexible.
Sincerely,
Andy