by Eliott Lilly | Jun 15, 2015 | Interviews
DAN LUVISI IS A DIGITAL CONCEPT ARTIST WORKING IN THE FILM, VIDEO GAME AND COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY.
With 12 years of industry experience, LuVisi has created a name for himself and is known for having an extremely versatile artistic style. Besides concept illustrations, LuVisi has become an expert in character and costume design, matte painting, storyboards, posters & packaging design and more.
Website: www.danluvisiart.com
Check out his book: Last Man Standing: Killbook of a Bounty hunter. It’s LEGENDARY!
Follow him on social media: Instagram: DanLuvisiArt – Facebook: DanLuVisiArt
Portfolio examples
If you haven’t already, be sure to check out Part 1 of this interview, where we asked him specific questions about what its like to be a concept artist in the entertainment industry, dispel a few common misconceptions that aspiring artists tend to have about the field, and discuss his educational background. Here, in part two of this interview, we asked him specific questions about, building his portfolio, marketing himself in the industry and more. Here what he had to say:
WHAT ARE YOUR LIST OF DOS AND DON’TS TO BUILDING A STRONG PORTFOLIO?
Don’t show a portfolio full of fan art!
Keep a consistent style or focus on your art.
Are you a character artist? Environment artist? Your portfolio not only showcases your skill but what you’re best at.
HOW DID YOU HUNT DOWN YOUR FIRST JOBS IN THE INDUSTRY?
I was approached a week after I graduated high school to work on a video game for Acony. From there, I worked my way up the food-chain, ranging from being paid with Best Buy coupons to actual checks.
HOW DID YOU MARKET YOURSELF WHEN FIRST STARTING OUT? WHAT DIFFICULTIES DID YOU HAVE TO OVERCOME?
Building a crowd. I’ve been on Deviantart for nearly fifteen years now. Started in high school and just posted, and posted, and posted, and posted. Eventually I began doing some fanart (cheap and easy way) and built out a small gathering. But it began growing when I started on my book LMS, and shared the process of the creation with the fans. Ever since, I never stopped.
WHERE DO YOU CURRENTLY MARKET YOURSELF?
Instagram is great for quick hits. Getting people pumped up and sharing your image. It’s fast, easy, and a little more personal. Facebook’s algorithm for sharing posts is kinda garbage. But it’s nice to stay connected with your fans and also, keep it personal. Deviantart and Artstation come next for me. Those are just fun to post, get off, and let it build.
DO YOU THINK THE INDUSTRY IS VEERING TOWARDS A MORE CONTRACT AND OUTSOURCING MODEL FOR ARTISTS?
Who knows. Every day we come up with a new way to try something. Everything appears to be headed towards a more creator-owned world, and I’m all for that. I can respect and appreciate the studio mentality, as I love to work with friends. But I can’t appreciate the corporate feel of an office, which is why contract work was always more appealing to me.
To read more from Dan Luvisi be sure to check out his WORDS OF WISDOM
All images used with permission by the artist. ©Dan LuVisi
by Eliott Lilly | Jun 3, 2015 | Words of Wisdom
DAN LUVISI IS A DIGITAL CONCEPT ARTIST WORKING IN THE FILM, VIDEO GAME AND COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY.
While still in high school, LuVisi was hired by German Acony Games, prompting him to decide against college and instead, immediately follow his obvious calling. He has since created a name for himself and is known for his extremely versatile style. Besides concept illustrations, LuVisi has become an expert in character and costume design, matte painting, storyboards, posters & packaging design and generally welcomes new challenges within his field.
Website: www.danluvisiart.com
Number of years in industry: 12. Currently freelancing and developing his own Intellectual Property.
Shipped titles/ Projects: LMS: Killbook of a Bounty Hunter, Your Highness, They Came From Upstairs,
DC Comics - Secret Six, Nemesis
Clients list also includes: Hasbro, Ignition Interactive, and Microsoft
Educational background: Self taught (never attended college).
Check out his book: Last Man Standing: Killbook of a Bounty hunter. It's LEGENDARY!
Follow him on social media: Instagram: DanLuvisiArt - Facebook: DanLuVisiArt
Current portfolio examples
WHAT’S THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE(S) OF ADVICE YOU CAN OFFER STUDENTS THAT YOU WISH THEY HAD TOLD YOU IN ART SCHOOL?
As someone who didn’t go, the best advice I ever received was from my father, and this can be applied to any artist:
Every day you’re not working on your craft, someone else that wants it more is catching up with you. And it’s true. I see a lot of talk, and no shop.
ASSUMING THAT THERE ARE NO SPACE-TIME PARADOX’S INVOLVED… IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME 10 YEARS (KNOWING WHAT YOU KNOW NOW), WHAT WOULD YOU TELL YOUR YOUNGER SELF TO DO DIFFERENTLY?
Don’t be scared. Be brave, be yourself, don’t ever succumb to weak people.
WHAT DOES “SUCCESS” MEAN TO YOU AND, WHAT ARE AT LEAST THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO DO IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE IT?
Working alongside with my friends, and knowing they’re all fed and happy. To achieve it:
1. Keep my mind on the game, stay focused and on target.
2. Don’t allow negativity to separate or destroy ones hope.
3. Get back to work.
All images used with permission by the artist. ©Dan LuVisi
by Eliott Lilly | Jun 3, 2015 | Words of Wisdom
Alex Brady is a freelance concept artist working in games, film and product design living in Cambridge, England.
Website: http://aj-brady.squarespace.com/home
Number of years in industry: 10. Currently Freelancing.
Shipped titles/ Projects worked on: Luc Besson’s Valarian (2017), Battlefield Hardline (cars), Guardians of the Galaxy, Motorstorm,
Educational background: Studied car design at Coventry University in the UK. Majored in transport design and minored in product design. Held a BA 2.1 hons
Recommends you check out: Industry Workshops 2015 in London, its a really fun concept art workshop.
Current portfolio examples:
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PROFESSIONAL WORK 2015
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Battlefield Hardline cars_2015
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Battlefield Hardline cars_2015
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Battlefield Hardline cars_2015
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Battlefield Hardline cars_2015
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Battlefield Hardline cars_2015
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WHAT’S THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE(S) OF ADVICE YOU CAN OFFER STUDENTS THAT YOU WISH THEY HAD TOLD YOU IN ART SCHOOL?
1. Respect the ancients, they figured it out a long time ago. They’re not called the Old Masters for nothing.
2. Read loads of books! If the author was intelligent and insightful it can rub off on you a little and drawing pictures of the things you see in your head when reading is easy and fun.
3 .Master studies and targeted portfolio pieces are one thing, (and useful at that) but if you copy whatever is trending right now, there will be thousands of people who are better than you and your work will be lost. You are unique – meaning if you use your imagination you can come up with things that are unique.
4. Try to surprise yourself and feel bold in expressing your unique combinations of feelings and ideas in your work.
ASSUMING THAT THERE ARE NO SPACE-TIME PARADOX’S INVOLVED… IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME 10 YEARS (KNOWING WHAT YOU KNOW NOW), WHAT WOULD YOU TELL YOUR YOUNGER SELF TO DO DIFFERENTLY?
Relax, and take it easy. Its not all or nothing – just keep working away on stuff you enjoy and you’ll get more work like that. Oh also: you’ll be broke for years, deal with it!… AND Don’t smoke so much.
Oh also: I’m currently transitioning male to female which I pussed out of doing for years; I’d say go for it and the Hell with anyone else. Luckily I live somewhere liberal where this isn’t a social outrage and my life is vastly improved as a result of my decision. I love it!
Some of Alex’s early work (~2011)
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Early work
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Early work
WHAT DOES “SUCCESS” MEAN TO YOU AND, WHAT ARE AT LEAST THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO DO IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE IT?
In professional work, a successful piece is one which gets Art Director approval, simple as that.
I think what makes a successful piece of personal work is more complex, Id say it should be honest, original, visually engaging, required hard work to do and inspires interesting thoughts in the viewer, perhaps comic or serious depending on the piece, and in which the artist has artfully selected each componant and technique in order to best help seed those thoughts. That’s why I think someone of any level can make stuff that’s good. If its honest and real, then its good.
Throw in some technical virtuosity derived from years of practice; a rich suggested narrative, or a novel take on an old trope, and clever or skillful use of tools, bold or subtle composition, effective color theory, elegance, the painterly stuff, and that’s a recipe for work I like. Mathias Verhasselt, Aaron Beck, Craig Mullins, Syd Mead, John Sargent, John William Waterhouse, Jerome, Levitan, Velasquez those guys are some of my faves in this kind of game.
Good pieces come in different shapes; sometimes a quick sketch can be good. Sometimes the 24th quick sketch of the day is the good one, the first 23 being garbage.
Sometimes you see an idea clearly in a flash, and using your whole arsenal of skills bring it into existence in a few happy hours; sometimes you have crushing artist’s block and have to work through it over painful days, researching and sketching till you find the threads of a viable idea.
Finally, challenge provokes good work. One aspect I enjoy about freelance is that often you will be instructed to design things you’ve never done before, say, your AD requests 5 forklift trucks, or 10 medieval swords, STAT, and you have to go away and learn as much as you can about hydraulics or medieval steel making techniques or… in order to be able to design them. I think sometimes you do your best work when you’re outside your comfort zone and have to think on your feet. You surprise yourself. Sometimes you screw up or burn a day trying something that doesnt work too, but sometimes you dont. Sometimes practice, preparation, intuition and inspiration converge and you nail it. Those are good days.
All images used with permission by the artist. © Alex Brady
by Eliott Lilly | May 28, 2015 | Portfolio Advice, Questions
Question and Art Submitted by: Evan Fein
HOW CAN SOMEONE WHO LOVES DRAWING, BUT WHO DOESN’T HAVE ANY VIDEO GAME DESIGN PROJECTS IN THEIR PORTFOLIO, CONVINCINGLY SHOW THEY HAVE THE SKILLS TO WORK IN THE FIELD? CURRENTLY, I HAVE HUNDREDS OF PAGES OF CAR AND VEHICLE DESIGNS IN MY SKETCHBOOKS, BUT 95% OF THEM DON’T MAKE IT PAST THE DRAWING PHASE. DO I NEED TO WORK ON A PERSONAL PROJECT, DESIGNING A COHESIVE WORLD WITH CHARACTERS, ENVIRONMENTS, AND VEHICLES IN GREAT DETAIL? OR WOULD MY TIME BE BETTER SPENT DESIGNING A WIDE RANGE OF DIFFERENT CONCEPTS, BUT NOT GOING INTO MUCH DETAIL WITH EACH ONE?
The good news is that you don’t have to have “concept art work” to get a job in the concept art industry. You only need to have a passion for drawing, and an ability to problem solve and communicate. To show that you have the skills to deliver the work studios will demand, you simply need a portfolio. And in your case, its sounds like you should build your portfolio around vehicles. When building your portfolio it doesn’t matter whether you make a series of images in a personal project that are strung together in a loose narrative, or a bunch of random images. What DOES matter is that whatever you draw, you knock it out of the park.
You can “knock it out of the park” in 2 ways: with quality of your designs (how “cool” it is, how believable, creditable, etc) and how well you execute your idea (how well you can convey that idea, the attention to details, etc). So. Here’s what your portfolio should do to demonstrate the quality of your designs.
- Each image should vary from the next, with each vehicle varying in shape, form and design. (Don’t draw the same vehicle over and over)
- Have a few examples of real world, modern, retro cars/ vehicles (to show you know your stuff)
- Showcase your own vehicle creation abilities, futuristic vehicles, etc. (To establish that you can apply common design principles to any vehicle)
- Demonstrate your ability to design vehicles with an intended purpose ie: civilian transport, race car, etc. (To show that you can adapt your thinking to whatever a studio may need)
Here’s what your portfolio should do to demonstrate that you can execute on your ideas.
- Display cars by themselves against a neutral or simple background
- Display motion action shots (driving, jumping cliffs, crashing, etc– Basically, anything you see cars do in video games).
- Have a variety of images that showcase your process. (It’s good to include a few sketches, but with the bar on visuals so high, you really want to show that you can finish a design and take it to the polish level.
Because it’s very expensive for game studios to acquire the licensing rights to use real world cars, a person who can concept these vehicles will be in high demand for studios that need that sort of thing. If you can find those studios, you will be set. (Checkout EA or Rock star – they always need cars)
Here are some vehicle artists who do it really (really) well. I hope their artwork inspires you and gives you an idea of where the “bar” is at.
- Daniel simon has masterful sleek and sexy vehicle designs. http://danielsimon.com/cosmic-motors-vehicles/
- Khyzyl Saleem takes car customization to the extreme. http://www.artstation.com/artist/khyzylsaleem
- Alexey Pyatov focuses heavily on military vehicle design. http://www.artstation.com/artist/karanak
IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS YOU WOULD LIKE ANSWERED, SEND AN EMAIL TO ME@ELIOTTLILLYART.COM
by Eliott Lilly | May 27, 2015 | Portfolio Advice, Questions
HOW DO I GET MY HARD SURFACE AND WEAPON DESIGNS TO BE NOTICED BY COMPANIES LIKE SLEDGEHAMMER OR TREYARCH?
To get noticed and land a gig at Treyarch (or any AAA company like it) first and foremost your weapon designs have to be cool! (And not just what YOU think is cool, but what others think as well). On top of that, their design aesthetic should unique to your style/ and thought process. (Don’t copy other artists here) Lastly and perhaps most importantly, it has to be believable (grounded in reality) and build-able; Think about their construction then create images like this which demonstrate a thorough understanding of weapon design, inside and out:
You should also think about their operation/ animation, and moving parts, etc. Studios want to see all of this as well. NOTE: not only do I draw the various stages of the weapon firing, but I add notes as well so there is no confusion.
I’VE BEEN TOLD THAT A LOT OF MY WORK IS VERY “HIGH CONCEPT” WHILE COMPANIES ARE MOSTLY LOOKING FOR PRODUCTION LEVEL DESIGNS SUCH AS PROPS. WOULD YOU THEREFORE RECOMMEND CREATING EVEN MORE PROP DESIGNS FOR MY PORTFOLIO?
Yes. To be attractive to studios you will need to show versatility in multiple areas. In addition to your mood paintings, I would suggest that you add specific call-outs to the assets in your image. Simple line work can demonstrate a solid understanding of perspective, form, and volume. (You can’t cheat those things in a line drawing) Try creating a few prop call-out sheets like this:
IT SEEMS VERY DIFFICULT TO BREAK INTO A AAA STUDIO AS AN IN-HOUSE ARTIST AND I’M BEGINNING TO WONDER IF THE INDUSTRY IS VEERING TOWARDS A MORE CONTRACT AND OUTSOURCING MODEL FOR ARTISTS. I’M WONDERING HOW MUCH OF HIRING IS BASED ON A NEED-TO-KNOW BASIS OR IF I SHOULD FOCUS MOST OF MY ENERGY ON GETTING INSANELY GOOD?
I would agree that the industry seems to be moving towards a more contract/ outsourcing mindset. In response, I’ve noticed that more pros are going freelance than ever before. To stand out from the crowd, I think your best bet is to build the strongest portfolio possible, get insanely good, and people will take notice of you.
IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS YOU WOULD LIKE ANSWERED, SEND AN EMAIL TO ME@ELIOTTLILLYART.COM
