Monthly profile : Michel Lanoie, Graduate from the Digital Design and Video games Program
Interview with Michel Lanoie, Graduate of the Digital Design in Video Games, Fall 2006 and senior texture artist at Eidos Montreal.
1. Where do you work and what is your job?
Senior texture artist at Eidos Montreal.
2. Why did you choose a career in 3D?
Since I was young, I was always captivated by video games. As I grew older, I began to wonder how they worked. How was it possible to create something as wonderful, seemingly from nothing? That what was intriguing in 3D.
Also, being able to move vertex and polygons, to use simple geometric shapes in order to create a complex structure and to create a 3D object from 2D shapes, is a process that I find wonderful. At this point, imagination is limited only by the obstacles that we set up ourselves.
3. How did the Centre NAD help you to start your career in 3D?
I had already a basis in 3D before I joined the Centre NAD. Thus, NAD helped me develop my potential to a point I couldn’t reach by myself. The Centre NAD is a renowned institution and its members have a lot of contacts within the industry. This really helped me get a job.
Of course, gradually building my portfolio, based on the demos I produced at Centre NAD, greatly helped starting my career.
4. Tell me about your professional experience.
I got a job before I finished my year at Centre NAD. I started at Ubisoft Montreal as a texture artist on Splinter Cell Conviction. Afterward, I moved to Eidos Montreal where I worked on Deus Ex Human Revolution. Soon, it will 5 years since I am part of the industry.
5. What do you like about your job and why?
Texturing an environment is similar to give it life. It is one of the last steps in the production of a level and it is, in my opinion, the best part. First, what I found fascinating in the texturing process is to observe a given surface, to establish its own physical characteristics and thus, based on these observations; determine its reaction inside an engine and an environment. It is both challenging and rewarding to find the best way, for a given material, to reach the maximum of quality level with limited resources. This job requires a logical mind even though it is also a very artistic process. I also enjoy being able to do level art and level modeling, once in a while, because this add diversity inside my work.
6. What qualities are required to succeed in your field?
It is strongly recommend knowing how to accept critics and to present your work to other artists to help improve your work based on their comments. Also, you must be available to your colleagues and share your knowledge with others. Team spirit is essential. But, the very first quality is passion. This is the reason why you improve, that and the thirst for knowledge.
7. Do you have any advice to students who wish to make a career in 3D?
If your dream is to have a career inside the 3D industry, that’s a good start! Keep this dream in mind for motivation, every time you get up in the morning. Everything is possible if you really want it. There’s no secret : the only way to achieve your goals is through hard work and it’s worth it, believe me! If you follow these steps, there’s no doubt you’ll soon end up with a quality portfolio and this will help get the job of your dreams. Put time and thought into it, not only for the content but also to the packaging!
In conclusion, look around you! It’s a very good reflex to develop. Observe your environment, notice all the details, the scene composition and where the items are located. Then, ask yourself how you would reproduce it in 3D. You’ll be inspire and will develop your artistic vision.