Interview with Dan Roarty

Q. Hello Dan, could you tell us a bit about yourself and your background in CG and from where you have taken some training?

Sure! Well, I am Originally from Vancouver B.C. and grew up in a small suburb of Vancouver called Maple Ridge where I grew up most of my teen life. I can remember obsessing about art and 3D art from a very early age and really wanted to get as much exposure from it as possible. For my 13th birthday I begged my parents to buy me a 3D program called true-space, which they did. From there I obsessed over it and created as many pieces of art in my spare time as I was able to and couldn't wait until high school was over so I could pursue college to begin my eventual career in CG. I went to CDIS in Burnaby B.C. (Now known as the Art institute) and before graduating I was fortunate enough to be contacted by MTV who got a hold of my W.I.P. demo reel and asked me to create a small movie/skit for one of their Canadian shows. My demo featured an old character of mine called Guzz.. A story about a green alien who is invaded by a human from earth who tries to abduct him) eerily similar to Planet 51.. however; this was years before the movie came out. From there, I moved onto a few different game studios working on a game for Midway called 'Spy Hunter 3' and then to Radical Entertainment on some Crash Bandicoot games and eventually 'Scarface' and Lead Character Artist on 'Prototype' After Prototype I made the move to 2K and working on some sports titles there before moving to LucasArts (which has been a long term goal of mine) and here I am now!

Q. Currently where you are working and what's your nature of job?

Currently I am working at LucasArts as a Lead Character Artist.

Q. How do you typically approach character design? Do you have a process through which each design goes (fleshing out a backstory, following a script, sketching, etc)?

At LucasArts or other studios there has always been back and forth between 2d conceptual to eventual 3d design. All elements are talked about and discussed in a design and artistic fashion before proceeding with building the asset. On personal projects I usually 3D conceptualize character before building. It makes it easier to target issues that arise when you're working in a 3d environment. I usually see the rough finished piece in my head though before proceeding with building it. So I always have a basic visual to build from.

Q. What do you think is the best work you've ever produced? Are you a perfectionist? Does it take you long to achieve that final perfect image you are happy with?

I would say that 'The Blue Project' is currently up there for work that best demonstrates my ability. That being said, at LucasArts I am always pushing to better myself on my current project.

The label Perfectionist is almost too loaded. You will always push and push to achieve perfection, but what is perfection? I usually assume perfectionism with 'reality' as we see it on a day to day basis. If you are trying to achieve this, then there are always elements you can stride to get better at but nothing beats reality like reality. In a production standpoint, I do find it hard to let go of projects until I find there is nothing else I can physically do any better. I always notice small details afterwards that I would change on artwork I have completed but I think that's a great element of growth. As an artist you want to come back to your work and notice elements you know you can improve on next time around.

Source: http://www.cgarena.com/archives/interviews/dan-roarty/danroarty.html

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