Going to see the recent release of the How To Train Your Dragon sequel genuinely became the kick up the butt I apparently needed. I have always had a passion for animated movies, beginning with my collection of the Disney Classics and venturing into the more recent computer animated movies by companies such as Pixar and Dreamworks. I also have a collection of the "The Art Of..." books that I absolutely adore so the idea of being a concept artist has always been an seemingly unreachable dream of mine. I say 'unreachable' as realistically the way I work doesn't fit the bill. Perfectionist. I am a perfectionist, and sometimes this limits the creative process as I get too focused on details and accuracy, so the fast paced idea generating of concept work just isn't for me. Having said this, once I do get a concept, I get into the most dedicated and almost ruthless mindset until the final product is just right. After a very in depth conversation with a friend of mine, who has recently started work at The Moving Picture Company as a Software Programmer, it was discussed that I would very much suit being a texture artist, something I had never thought about before. The level of detail that these guys work to and the digital yet also hand rendered methods they use just sounds like a dream! This accompanied by the potential for 3D digital sculpting just completes the package. But it was only when I watched How To Train Your Dragon 2 that I became set on making this dream happen. I had been anticipation the film as I had been reading up on the new Apollo animation software they were using that allows them to render in real time. I was absolutely amazed by the quality of the animation in the film and loved it so much that that was it, I have to be part of it.
I will be spending the last year of my degree doing everything in my power to learn and create all that I can to give myself a fighting chance at getting into that industry.
So here we go...