Kalen Chock is a concept artist and illustrator working in the video game and entertainment industry.
Professional Portfolio
Check http://www.robotpencil.net/ to learn about Kalen’s mentorship opportunities
Visit http://gumroad.com/k04sk for Kalen’s affordable art tutorials
Educational background:
- Art Institute Of California, Orange County, concept design academy
- Graduated in Game Art and Design in 2009
- Bachelor’s Degree of Science
Number of years in industry: 9
Projects worked on: Pirates Treasure Hunters , Dust , various Film Pitch Projects , various TV commercials .
Kalen Chock’s current portfolio examples:
If you haven’t already, be sure to check out Part one of this interview, where we asked him specific questions about what it’s like to be a concept artist in the entertainment industry, discuss some of the one-the-job challenges, as well as his educational background. Here, in part two of this interview, we ask Kalen Chock specific questions about building his portfolio, marketing himself in the industry and more. Here’s what Kalen Chock had to say:
HOW DID YOU STRUCTURE THE PORTFOLIO THAT LANDED YOU YOUR FIRST GIG? CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE TYPE OF WORK YOU HAD IN IT? WHAT STUDIO/ CLIENT WERE YOU APPROACHING- DID YOUR PORTFOLIO CATER TO THEM SPECIFICALLY? OR WAS IT MORE GENERAL?
To be honest my portfolio was terrible and had no structure; To this day I am not sure how I got hired . It was mostly just random environment paintings that I thought would be cool. I had only been doing it for about 8-9 months when I graduated so I was barely starting out. I did have a couple of characters and props, but for the most part it was all environments. Like a noob when I created a portfolio I didn’t know anything about tailoring my portfolio towards certain studios and clients. At that time I just focusing on creating paintings that didn’t suck.
HOW DID YOU HUNT DOWN YOUR FIRST JOBS IN THE INDUSTRY? FRIEND/ WORD OF MOUTH/ APPLIED ONLINE? IF YOU WERE JUST STARTING OUT TODAY, AS AN INTERMEDIATE DIGITAL ARTIST, WHAT TACTICS WOULD YOU EMPLOY TO LAND A GIG INTO THIS INDUSTRY?
Like most fairy tale stories of people who went to art school, when you graduate you have a portfolio show – which, if you’re lucky, a few employers will come and check out the fresh talent. I was lucky enough to meet a guy named Chad Lichty who was the producer of small startup game studio at the time. He saw my work at the show and a month later offered me a part time job (which eventually turned into full time work) He was the guy who gave me my first shot in the industry. To this day I owe that guy the world for believing in me enough to give me work even though in my mind I was not ready. Same thing goes for Brian McRae who was my art director at that time.
If you are an intermediate artist starting today, then my advice is just make good work, post where people can see it, and go to industry events to meet people. Usually those 3 things will land you work in some capacity. From there you just have build on it.
HOW DO YOU CURRENTLY PROMOTE YOUR ARTWORK? (WEBSITE ONLY? ON SOCIAL MEDIA? BOTH?) DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR ASPIRING ARTISTS FIRST STARTING OUT, WHO NEED TO PROMOTE THEMSELVES.
I just create work, post it where people can see it, and be an active member in the artistic community. That last one is where I feel most people fall short. Most artist will post stuff and just wait for the applause and likes, but won’t “comment” and “like” other peoples work. I also see a lot of artists who get caught up in “status”, meaning they will only talk and be friends with an artist if they work at a big studio or can somehow help them elevate their own career. Most people can see right through it so being genuine is a big thing to me.
I think giving back is important, so make sure you’re active in the community; whether it’s connecting with artists, going to events, helping other artists, you should want to help create a better environment for the community of artists and in turn, yourself.
Don’t be afraid to let others in on your art journey, people love to see improvement. Its OK if you’re not amazing at the moment, no one is. If you constantly improve and post your work, then people will notice it and they will always look forward to your next “leveling up” moment.
WHAT QUALITIES DO YOU ASPIRE TO THAT DISTINGUISHES YOUR ARTWORK FROM OTHER ARTISTS? WHAT LED YOU TO DEVELOP THOSE QUALITIES? (FOR EXAMPLE: DO YOU PRIDE YOURSELF ON YOUR RENDERING ABILITIES? DESIGN SENSIBILITIES/ STYLE? BRUSH WORK? ETC). WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR ARTIST WHO WANT TO OBTAIN A “STYLE” TO THEIR LOOK.
Personally, I think “style” is something you develop when you’re much older and after you have lots of experience under your belt. You’re taste and mindset will change over time so I know if I do a style now, then I probably won’t like 6 months from now . Therefore, I am constantly exploring anything and everything. There isn’t much I really pride myself on at the moment, but I have been told on few occasions that people “love” my color choices, so I guess I can go with that one for now.
This concludes Part 2 of our interview with Kalen Chock. if you would like to read more, check out Kalen’s Words Of Wisom. All images used with permission by the artist. ©Kalen Chock
