Competency needed to get jobs

[Guest juko101]

I would also be interested to know how competent someone is expected to be before they could get a job doing arch. viz. Let's say you (any reader) were hiring. What kind of training, and how many years experience would you look for? Would you be willing to teach someone software? Is it better to be a little bit familiar with lots of 3D software, or very knowledgeable with just one?

[nisus]

Hi Jake,

 

Experience is something you cannot count in years as many individuals have different speed of learning. Every 3d-artist should know how to model, how to light a scene, how to setup a camera/perspective before trying to get hired. This is a basic that we won't teach you as tools and software are something you can learn better/faster on your own.

If you don't want to learn it on your own or you want someone to show you the ins&outs, this signals a lack of devotion, in other words: no one will hire you at all! It's insane to think that they will train you for your own sake as no firm will hire you to learn software at a risk of leaving them once you're 'fully' trained. So there only is a HARD way to get you to where you want to be - wisdom? - , but it's real fun and extremely satisfying

 

On the other hand, to know how to setup the basics well is not sufficient too as you need to be better than mediocrity; you need to have vision and a well trained eye, an analytical mind for problem solving and a strong will to succeed (+ some additional social skills too). Only if a sprout of this is apparent we will train you and share our knowledge. In fact we share our knowledge everyday, everytime but it will only make sense to you IF you have vision.

 

But even this is not enough too! Like the chinese proverb says "vision without action is only daydreaming". So even when preparing is good - the cga-forum is a good start - you will only make real process when you DO(/make/create) things.

 

So it's NOT about software, it's about skills and mastering craft! People involved with tools are a far end of from being a professional as the goal is NOT about knowing the tools - mastering those is only the VERY VERY basics - but what you communicate by using them. It's about WHAT you want to achieve - or even better: WHY.

HOW you do things is something not to worry about, because there is always a way to finish something within shedule if you master your craft well enough.

 

So we look for people who can solve things, who invent new ways to stay within shedule, people that make themselve happy by growing everyday, NOT button-pressing operators.

 

I hope this helps you out

 

rgds

 

nisus

[kid]

sounds great nisus, now gimme a job

[nisus]

lol

[Guest saturnfive]

I went to a Hayes Davidson lecture where someone asked what kind of people they like to employ. The answer was that 'techy' types pick up software quickly but ultimately tend to lack the artistic vision they're looking for. They prefer photographers and other 'trained eye' professions, who may be a little slower to pick up modelling skills, but know how to compose an image to maximum effect.

[Guest juko101]

Ok, so one is expected to know the basics of at least some software and to demonstrate that he/she has an eye for composition, a desire to learn, and is not a signifigant flight risk once he/she has been trained. This is so me.

 

So nisus, about that job... kidding.

 

I've often wondered whether it would be best to work at a firm for free or for next to nothing for a year or two, just to gain the experience. My (somewhat limited) learning experience has taught me that there is no substitute for peers with a common interest.

[Greg Hess]

To me personally....

 

Traditional skills are more valuable then technical ones. If you working as part of a team, its far faster to sketch out an idea to other members, then to sit down and try to model, light, and render it. Traditional skills also teach color theory, composition, lighting, and most importantly...they develop the individual style of each artist.

 

There is a reason that almost all of pixar's animation team was originally traditional animators. (Aka people with little if no computer ability whatsoever).

 

Then of course, I'm no architect. I'm more of some borg twisted designer, hardware junkie, scientist freak.