Five Lessons I've Learned After My Five Years in the VFX Industry
Introduction
Last month I completed five years working in the visual effects industry as a Generalist/Texture Artist. It has been a fascinating ride, and in this article I would like to share with you some of the lessons and five takeaways from all these years.
Most of the lessons I highlight in this article may not seem directly related to VFX, but I can tell you right away that they had a huge impact on my career. I hope my insights can help your own journey. I also added a book suggestion for each topic, so you can read more about the subject.
As you may recall, I wrote a similar article in 2016, sharing seven things I’ve learned from my first year as a junior artist. What has changed since then? Do I feel jaded or am I more excited than ever? Well, I can tell you that I had both experiences in these last five years.
I had a few occasions in which I thought about leaving everything behind and opening an artisan bakery somewhere. But most of the time I felt great joy and gratitude to be part of a creative industry. Let’s get started!
1 - Artistic and Technical
I was lucky enough to meet a great range of artists in this industry and the ones who inspired me the most were those who had mastered both artistic and technical skills. By observing their work, it became clear to me that these two types of skill are essential if you want to succeed in this industry.
When I say that someone is “artistic”, I don’t mean that the person is a traditional painter or has a sculpture workshop at home. I’m talking about having a developed eye for quality and detail, which takes years and years of practice. And when I say “technical” I’m mostly referring to the ability to troubleshoot and adapt quickly to new techniques, not necessarily knowing how to code.
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
After working alongside these exceptional artists, I noticed a common trait among them: they have an unstoppable curiosity. They experiment with various techniques and tools and are always looking forward to the next challenge.
One book that really motivated me to assess my own outlook was the biography of Leonardo da Vinci, written by Walter Isaacson.
“Leonardo’s relentless curiosity and experimentation should remind us of the importance of instilling, in both ourselves and our children, not just received knowledge but a willingness to question it—to be imaginative and, like talented misfits and rebels in any era, to think different.” ― Leonardo da Vinci, Walter Isaacson
Inspired by quotes such as the one above, I began by questioning my own creative habits and trying to find areas in which I could explore my curiosity and experimentation. Since then I started to play around with oil painting, drawing and even Python!
Book Recommendation
Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
2 - Communication is often overlooked
Communicating clearly and objectively with your team/leads/coordinators/supervisors is a skill that many artists often overlook. Ultimately, working in a creative industry is about working collaboratively as a team to achieve the best results.
I’ve made this mistake on multiple occasions. Sometimes I would have a task assigned to me, in which I had to texture a certain asset and then pass it along to a shader artist.
Instead of checking with the person what kind of textures they would need for the task I would just work away and create whatever I thought was going to be useful. Later I would find that the shader artist was using a completely different approach and most of my work was useless.
If you work as a specialized Texture Artist, communicating with the model and the shader department is crucial to make sure that things run smoothly.
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
After many issues stemming from the lack of clear communication, I’ve learned to ask as many questions as I could as soon as I started working on the task that was assigned to me.
This lesson was especially relevant if I was working on a hero asset such as a “Digital Double” or a creature since tasks like these can last for weeks or even months.
Book Recommendation
The Making Of A Manager by Julie Zhuo
3 - Hit the notes first, experiment later
When I started in this industry, I was so eager to prove that I was a good artist that when I received notes from my lead/supervisor, instead of hitting them right away, I spent a long time thinking about creative ways to get the same task done. I was craving the validation that I was going to get if I presented a “smart way” to hit the notes, instead of objectively doing so.
In the next review session, I ended up having something cool, but most of the time I didn’t complete what was asked of me. So they had to kick the asset back for further fixes.
There’s nothing wrong with being proactive and willing to try new workflows, but not every task needs that kind of approach, especially if you are working with a tight budget/schedule. Your intentions might be good, but you might eventually hurt your team instead.
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
After gaining more experience, I’ve learned that being a professional in a creative industry is more than just making cool pixels by yourself, it’s about working collaboratively as a team to achieve the best results.
After many mistakes, I realized that the best way to move forward was to hit the notes that were given to me, and then if I had enough time, I would try and develop a new workflow or look that I could present after they had seen what they have asked for.
This new approach worked well for me. Aside from hitting the notes as requested, they also acknowledged my effort to try new things and bring ideas to the table, without compromising the work down the pipeline.
4 - Learning how to learn
Digital industries have always been relentless when it comes to the speed in which new technologies appear. But today living in the age of information overload and AI, it is almost unbearable to follow up and stay up-to-date with all the new trends.
On top of that, most companies use their modified tools, making it impossible for new artists to know in advance what they are going to be using when they start working there.
So how can we stay relevant and up-to-date in such a volatile industry? This question keeps creeping into my mind and I’m sure some of you also went through the same questioning
I recently finished “21 lessons for the 21st Century” by Yuval Noah Harari, and in one passage of his book he made an argument that really impacted me:
“Most important of all will be the ability to deal with change, learn new things, and preserve your mental balance in unfamiliar situations. To keep up with the world of 2050, you will need to do more than merely invent new ideas and products, but above all, reinvent yourself again and again.” - 21 lessons for the 21st Century, Yuval Noah Harari
He wasn’t talking specifically about our industry when he wrote this passage, but I believe that this is the mindset that we must develop to keep our sanity in check during this information-overload era.
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
Instead of focusing on learning a specific software and hoping that I won’t have to learn anything new, I’m putting a lot of effort into knowing myself enough so I can be learning how to actively learn new things.
Also, by understanding how easy new programs come and go, I’m spending a lot of time studying concepts and ideas that won’t change with time, such as art fundamentals.
Book Recommendation
21 Lessons for the 21st Century - Yuval Noah Harari
5 - Protect Your Most Important Asset
When I started working in the VFX industry it felt like an amusement park ride. I had the chance to work on movies that I always dream about as a kid. All I could think of was to keep improving to become a better artist, no matter what it cost.
I didn’t mind staying up late every day losing hours of precious sleep to focus on a new technique that I wanted to learn. On top of that, for a long time, I neglected my health by skipping any type of physical activity, to be more and more productive. At times, I even ignored my loved ones to pursue what I wanted.
Then, the first symptoms of burnout appeared.
All of a sudden, I was feeling tired and cranky all the time and I couldn’t find joy in my art anymore. Luckily, I recognized the first signs of burnout and searched for support to slowly improve my life and career.
In his bestseller book, “Essentialism”, Greg Mckeown has a chapter called: “Protect the Asset”, in which he writes about how important sleep is to our cognitive and creative development:
“The best asset we have for making a contribution to the world is ourselves.” ― Essentialism, Greg Mckeown
Even though some artists, especially young ones, might think that they can skip sleeping and resting to be more productive, this can backfire after a few years, and it can have serious consequences down the road.
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
After going through a couple of burnouts in my career, I decided to develop healthier sleeping habits, aiming for 7 - 8 hours every day. Of course, it wasn’t an easy task, but I made that my priority and it really improved my life.
Even when I was working on a project with a crazy deadline, I forced myself to take a break and go to bed right away. The next day, after a proper rest, I was recharged to keep working.
Regarding my physical health, I slowly improved my activity routine by going on regular walks/runs around the block and also going to the gym when possible. The consistency helped me become more creative and less anxious.
And the most important decision I’ve made was to stop using social media as frequently as before and have more quality time with my loved ones. I want to write more about this topic in the future, but I can say that when I learned to prioritize what was essential in my life, everything changed.
Book Recommendation
Essentialism by Greg McKeown
Bonus Lesson - Give it back to the community
I was born and raised in a very small town in Brazil, called Almenara. We didn’t have access to museums, movie theaters or any kind of cultural activity. Back in 2006, when I developed an interest in learning more about movie making the only place I was able to find any kind of information was the internet, especially online forums and a social platform called Orkut.
Thanks to these online communities I was able to develop many skills and become the artist I am today. Later in life, I ended up leaving Brazil to study abroad, but my learning foundation happened in those blogs back in 2006.
That’s the main reason why I put so much effort into giving it back to the digital art community. Since I was privileged enough to study in a high-end VFX school I want to help those who unfortunately didn’t have the same opportunity.
Here’s a powerful quote from the book Show Your Work!, by Austin Kleon:
“Teaching people doesn’t subtract value from what you do, it actually adds to it. When you teach someone how to do your work, you are, in effect, generating more interest in your work. People feel closer to your work because you’re letting them in on what you know.”
― Austin Kleon, Show Your Work!
How I adapted this lesson into my life/career
After I graduated from Think Tank and started working in the VFX industry, I began writing articles on my website and recording tutorials on my Youtube channel. By doing so, I was able to meet and reach so many talented artists and I am deeply grateful for that.
By contributing to the community I also had amazing opportunities to talk in amazing events such as Siggraph. But that was only a side effect of my main goal which was to help as many artists as I can with what I know about texturing and VFX.
Book Recommendation
Show Your Work! by Austin Kleon
Final Thoughts
If you reached the end of this article I thank you for your time and I hope you found this useful.
I want you to keep in mind that these lessons are particularly based on my experience, so take them with a grain of salt :)
If you liked it, please share it with your friends who might be interested and if you still have any questions or suggestions let me know. I’ll be happy to help! If you have some thoughts and suggestions, you can leave a comment below or send me an email at paulhpaulino@gmail.com