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11:00am
11:00am - 11:45amRoom 2Building Your Portfolio
Wednesday 12th July11:00am - 11:45amRoom 2Anthony’s session will present a framework to build your portfolio which can be applied to a range of disciplines for artists including 3D Art (Environment Art, Props), Character Art and Concept Art.
The session also includes some time at the end, approximately 10-15 minutes to allow the attendees to ask any questions they wish relating to their chosen role, discipline, or the industry in general. It would be strongly advised that attendees prepare questions in advance and have them ready on the day.
Session Takeaway
- An overview of current common portfolio advice.
- A framework presented which can be meaningfully used to build a portfolio around to attain a job in the industry.
- Insight and answers to questions brought to the session
12:00pm
Shayleen Hulbert Freelance12:00pm - 1:30pmRoom 3The 3D Character Art Workshop
Wednesday 12th July12:00pm - 1:30pmRoom 3A full bodied and in depth breakdown of best practices to follow and common mistakes for games characters but most importantly; how to fix them. Learning any discipline can be trial by fire with universities not having the scope to foresee issues you may face in a studio, resources online often not breaking down key fundamental pipeline must haves and so fresh artists may not realize their mistake until it's already been pushed into the main branch. Here you will get a comprehensive guide to the pipeline for 3D characters with an abundance of opportunities to have your questions heard and answered.
Session Takeaway
- Best practices for games characters for production
- How to spot and best fix common mistakes in the character art pipeline
- How to implement stronger artistic fundamentals
2:00pm
James Noonan Hello Games2:00pm - 2:45pmRoom 2Bitmaps and Pieces: Tips and Tricks Learned from Working as an Art Generalist
Wednesday 12th July2:00pm - 2:45pmRoom 2One does not simply work on No Man's Sky updates for 5 years without picking up some handy lessons along the way.
In this talk, we will share and examine some of the practical and theoretical knowledge gleaned from working as an art generalist in a small team. From concept to gameplay, and from organic fauna to hard sci-fi surfaces, the talk will cover subjects such as:
- What the pipeline of an art generalist in a small team looks like.
- Practical skills for generating ideas as a non-concept artist.
- Techniques for getting more art with less time.
- Design tips and tricks, and why fundamentals are key.
Hopefully artists will walk away with new ideas and inspiration for making new work efficiently as well as ways to build on their level of quality with the tools they already have.
Session Takeaway
- An insight into some parts of the art pipeline that may be otherwise unfamiliar
- Practical tips and techniques for artists to add to their generalist workflows
- Inspiration and confidence for artists to get more out of their work
3:00pm
Veera Hokkanen Housemarque, Sony PlayStation Studios3:00pm - 3:45pmRoom 2Concept Art In Returnal: How Creative Principles Shaped Returnal’s Visual Development
Wednesday 12th July3:00pm - 3:45pmRoom 2Veera Hokkanen was part of the visual development of Returnal which is Housemarque's latest award-winning science fiction roguelite AAA-game. She will explain the core guiding design pillars of Returnal and how these principles affected the art style of the game. Throughout the presentation Veera will showcase various concept art paintings done during the production of Returnal with her personal views of each work on the side.
Session Takeaway
- The importance of defining creative goals in order to build a coherent visual look for a game
- Overview to the work of a concept artist in different stages of production
- Lessons learned from creating our first roguelite game from an artistic perspective
4:00pm
Sam Hogg Sharkmob4:00pm - 4:45pmRoom 4Creating Characters with Narrative Appeal
Wednesday 12th July4:00pm - 4:45pmRoom 4Concepting characters is one of the industry’s most sought after roles and a skill that is often judged by very subjective opinions. So how can you be sure you’re creating the right characters for your project? As humans we’re very drawn to other humans and the stories they have to tell, whether that’s AAA behemoths like Aloy or Masterchief, or the diverse array of characters that the indie scene presents. So how do you design the right character for your game? How do you know where to start, especially in those early development stages where nothing is locked down and everything is possible? Join concept artist and illustrator Sam Hogg as she talks through her process for compelling character design.
Session Takeaway
- How to give yourself a starting narrative
- The design process in a nutshell
- How to find the unexpected
- Why appeal is important
5:00pm
Dan Evans-Lawes Deep Silver Dambuster StudiosAaron Ridge Deep Silver Dambuster Studios5:00pm - 5:45pmRoom 3The Innards of F.L.E.S.H: Dead Island 2’s Gore System Dissected
Wednesday 12th July5:00pm - 5:45pmRoom 3A deep dive into the Fully Locational Evisceration System for Humanoids that powers Dead Island 2. F.L.E.S.H. pushes procedural real time gore to a frankly ridiculous level, as well as providing optimised content pipelines for authoring a large number of damageable zombies.
Session Takeaway
- Smart combinations of simple techniques can be used to create procedural gore at a quality level that is competitive with bespoke art assets.
- Clever thinking about in-game procedural techniques can improve content pipelines.
- Procedural feedback systems can improve the sense of connection between the player and the virtual world.
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11:15am
Andrej Horoschun Frontier Developments11:15am - 12:00pmRoom 4Observational Drawing
Thursday 13th July11:15am - 12:00pmRoom 4This talk would be the value of observational drawing/ painting and it's possible carry over effects into art and other fields.
Session Takeaway
- Observational Skill, learning how to perceive the world or a specific subject matter.
- Analytical thinking. Breaking down the visible and understanding it's mechanics
- Astraction and projection. While transitioning the seen onto paper we need to re assemble information and since we are limited by our tools, we need to learn to abstract and imitate.
12:15pm
Leanne Bayley Atomhawk Advance12:15pm - 1:00pmRoom 2Style, Trends, Immersion and Abstraction - Developing UI Art Direction
Thursday 13th July12:15pm - 1:00pmRoom 2Great game UI art elevates a game, it keeps players immersed, it helps tell the story or build the world, it makes reading quest entries, crafting items and selecting skills things players want to do not have to do. So how do we develop our UI art to make sure we are creating something that compliments the game rather than something we have to add because otherwise its hard to know how many bullets/pumpkins/gems we have?
It is not always obvious how to get from grey boxes to UI that stands out for all the right reasons, but by looking at UI styles and trends, where on the immersion to abstraction scale we want to be and how genre and platform can influence UI, we can develop truly striking UIs. This talk will cover some kick off points to consider when developing your UI Art Direction.
Session Takeaway
- Trends and styles in UI art
- Immersion to Abstraction, a scale to plot against to help with decisions about UI elements
- Tips for how to kick off your art direction for the UI
2:00pm
Eric Luhta Blackbird Interactive2:00pm - 2:45pmRoom 4Minecraft Legends: Building a Unique Animation Style True to Minecraft
Thursday 13th July2:00pm - 2:45pmRoom 4When Blackbird Interactive was given the opportunity to develop a genre-bending action strategy game set in the iconic Minecraft universe, it led to a fascinating problem: how do you make a distinct adaptation without inadvertently losing what made it so beloved in the first place?
In this presentation, Game Studio Animation Director Eric Luhta examines that problem through the lens of animation. He explores Minecraft's distinctive (and very unique) approach to character animation and movement, and the enormous challenge he and his team undertook to find that core essence of Minecraft's animation style and adapt it to Minecraft Legends' host of brand new characters and enemies. Alongside plenty of videos and screenshots, Eric will provide concrete examples of his team's approach to bringing the world of Minecraft to an entirely new genre and at a level of detailed movement not seen by the IP before.
In doing so, Eric creates a loose framework that other developers — regardless of discipline — can apply when developing new games set in well-established IP. A philosophy that can help you identify the inalienable essence of that IP, what aspects of it can be modified or altered, and an iterative process for bridging those two elements together.
Session Takeaway
- How to find what makes an IP unique and preserve it
- How to add new ideas while maintaining the IP’s integrity
- How to animate characters from the inside out
3:00pm
Kosala Ubayasekara W.R.K.S Games3:00pm - 3:45pmRoom 4AI in Art and Marketing Pipelines - How We Integrated AI to Create Reliable Commercial Returns
Thursday 13th July3:00pm - 3:45pmRoom 4Kosala will talk through how W.R.K.S Games deeply integrated AI into their art and marketing pipelines, increased their conversion rates to 8%, and made AI a cornerstone of their company strategy for sustainable game development.
The talk will include the process, marketing results, and commercial results, and leave attendees with a blueprint that they can use to replicate and integrate that knowledge into their workflows.
Session Takeaway
- What AI tools to use and how to use them
- How the combining of these tools improve results and our results were
- A blueprint of how to replicate and integrate AI into your game company processes
