Become A Lead Artist

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Working As A Lead Artist

Interacting With Computers
Thinking Creatively
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization
Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Mostly Sitting
Make Decisions
Stressful
$63,970
Average Salary

What Does A Lead Artist Do At Microsoft Corporation

* Work with the Art Director and Creative Director to understand the big picture goals of the project.
* Work closely with Art, Cinematic and Development teams to create industry leading lighting across our environments, characters and cinematic sequences.
* Work with the Lighting team to craft compelling visuals that supports story, art direction and experience objectives.
* Establish lighting style for the project and ensure we achieve a unified look throughout the game.
* Foster the sharing of work, ideas, techniques and culture across the Lighting team.
* Manage the Lighting team, providing mentorship, career guidance and ongoing performance feedback, ensuring that the team is operating effectively.
* Establish & represent the Lighting team’s needs & priorities in larger team discussions including technology investments, staffing needs etc.
* Manage hiring needs and recruitment efforts across Lighting team

What Does A Lead Artist Do At Jam City

* Design mock-ups/iterations using Photoshop, Illustrator, and Flash focused on UI and gameflow.
* Creating appealing, user friendly, innovative and crisp 2D game assets with a focus on usability and freemium best-practices in the mobile casual game styles.
* Preparing and designing of all facets of the User Interface including: mockups, wireframes, icons, animations, UI style guides, general art and documentation.
* Create clear and attractive messaging, buttons, icons, widgets, and other UI elements which work well within tight fixed aspect ratios, and with a wide variety of game themes from cheerful and casual
* Collaborate with the art lead to provide UI style guides for new titles to ensure product consistency.
* Work with engineering to ensure artwork is accurately and consistently represented in the game

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How To Become A Lead Artist

Most multimedia artists and animators need a bachelor’s degree in computer graphics, art, or a related field to develop both an impressive portfolio of work and the strong technical skills that many employers prefer.

Education

Employers typically require a bachelor’s degree, and they look for workers who have a good portfolio of work and strong technical skills. Multimedia artists and animators typically have a bachelor’s degree in fine art, computer graphics, animation, or a related field. Programs in computer graphics often include courses in computer science in addition to art courses.

Bachelor’s degree programs in art include courses in painting, drawing, and sculpture. Degrees in animation often require classes in drawing, animation, and film. Many schools have specialized degrees in topics such as interactive media or game design.

Training

Some animation studios have their own software and computer applications that they use to create films, and they often provide on-the-job training so that workers can use the specific software and computer applications.

Important Qualities

Artistic talent. Animators and artists should have artistic ability and a good understanding of color, texture, and light. However, they may be able to compensate for artistic shortcomings with better technical skills.

Communication skills. Multimedia artists and animators need to work as part of a complex team and respond well to criticism and feedback.

Computer skills. Many multimedia artists and animators use computer programs or write programming code to do most of their work.

Creativity. Artists and animators must be able to think creatively to develop original ideas and make them come to life.

Time-management skills. The hours required by most studio and game design companies can be long, particularly when there are tight deadlines. Artists and animators need to be able to manage their time effectively when a deadline approaches.

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Lead Artist jobs

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Lead Artist Career Paths

Lead Artist

Director President/Chief Executive Officer Marketing Coordinator

Associate Marketing Manager

5 Yearsyrs

Senior Technician Specialist Operations Manager Property Manager

Communications Director

7 Yearsyrs

Adjunct Instructor Instructor Editor

Content Manager

5 Yearsyrs

Art Director Design Director

Creative Director

6 Yearsyrs

User Interaction Designer Senior Web Designer Creative Director

Creative Director & Designer

6 Yearsyrs

Creative Director Design Consultant

Design Manager

7 Yearsyrs

Senior Technician Specialist Program Manager Marketing Manager

Digital Marketing Manager

6 Yearsyrs

Creative Director Marketing Director

Director Of Communications And Marketing

9 Yearsyrs

Graphic Designer Art Director

Freelance Art Director

6 Yearsyrs

Director Adjunct Instructor Creative Director

Marketing And Creative Director

7 Yearsyrs

Adjunct Instructor Writer And Editor Marketing Specialist

Marketing Communications Manager

7 Yearsyrs

Art Director Creative Director

Marketing Director

7 Yearsyrs

Graphic Designer Project Manager Program Manager

Marketing Manager

6 Yearsyrs

Art Teacher Adjunct Instructor Writer And Editor

Senior Editor

5 Yearsyrs

Art Teacher Art Director Freelance Designer

Senior Graphic Designer

5 Yearsyrs

User Interaction Designer User Experience Designer User Experience Architect

User Experience Manager

8 Yearsyrs

Average Length of Employment

Senior Artist 4.0 years
Lead Artist 3.0 years
Technical Artist 2.7 years
Creative Lead 2.7 years
Game Artist 2.1 years
3D Artist 2.0 years
Concept Artist 1.8 years

Top Careers Before Lead Artist

Top Careers After Lead Artist

Lead Artist Demographics

Gender

Male
68.9%
Female
29.3%
Unknown
1.8%

Ethnicity

White
78.0%
Hispanic or Latino
13.1%
Asian
7.0%
Unknown
1.5%
Black or African American
0.3%

Languages Spoken

Spanish
40.0%
Japanese
15.0%
German
10.0%
French
10.0%
Portuguese
5.0%
Russian
5.0%
Mandarin
5.0%
Korean
5.0%
Thai
5.0%

Lead Artist

Unfortunately we don’t have enough data for this section.

Lead Artist Education

Schools

Savannah College of Art and Design
17.6%
Academy of Art University
11.8%
Full Sail University
8.5%
Art Institute of Pittsburgh
7.8%
Art Center College of Design
6.5%
School of Visual Arts
5.2%
Columbia College Chicago
4.6%
Art Institute of California - Inland
4.6%
San Jose State University
3.3%
Pratt Institute-Main
3.3%
Carnegie Mellon University
3.3%
University of California - Santa Cruz
2.6%
New York University
2.6%
Salt Lake Community College
2.6%
University of Advancing Technology
2.6%
San Diego State University
2.6%
University of Utah
2.6%
University of Arizona
2.6%
Rhode Island School of Design
2.6%
University of Oregon
2.6%

Majors

Graphic Design 28.1%
Fine Arts 17.8%
Animation 13.5%
Computer Science 8.5%
Photography 5.2%
Design And Visual Communication 4.9%
Computer Applications 4.0%
Visual And Performing Arts 2.5%
Business 2.0%
Digital Media 1.8%
Communication 1.6%
Marketing 1.6%
Entertainment Business 1.3%
Cosmetology 1.3%
Drafting And Design 1.1%
Theatre 1.1%
Audiovisual Communications Technologies 1.1%
Journalism 0.9%
General Education, Specific Areas 0.9%
Culinary Arts 0.7%

Degrees

Bachelors
52.3%
Other
18.1%
Associate
12.2%
Masters
10.3%
Certificate
5.1%
Diploma
0.9%
Doctorate
0.7%
License
0.4%

Lead Artist

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Real Lead Artist Salaries

Job Title	Company	Location	Start Date	Salary
Lead Flame Artist	Psyop Inc. D/B/A Mass Market	New York, NY	Jan 28, 2011	$178,500
Lead Artist	Riot Games Inc.	Los Angeles, CA	Aug 02, 2016	$175,000
Digital Environments Supervisor, Lead CG Artist	The Mill Group, Inc.	Los Angeles, CA	Dec 01, 2014	$158,080
Lead CG FX TD Artist	A52, LLC	Santa Monica, CA	Apr 25, 2016	$156,000
Artist (Lead World Artist)	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	May 07, 2016	$144,600 - $164,600
Lead Lighting Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Kirkland, WA	Oct 01, 2014	$141,047
Lead Lighting Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Kirkland, WA	Jan 10, 2014	$141,047
Lead Dynamic Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Aug 07, 2016	$135,127 - $155,127
Lead Dynamic Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Aug 29, 2016	$135,127
Lead Character Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Feb 01, 2013	$124,933
Lead Vehicle Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Feb 01, 2013	$122,299
Lead Environment Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Sep 01, 2010	$120,000
Lead VFX Artist	Ascent Media Group, LLC	New York, NY	Nov 01, 2009	$120,000 - $180,000
Lead Artist	Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.	Irvine, CA	Jan 08, 2012	$112,000
Lead User Interface Artist	Activision Publishing Inc.	Foster City, CA	Nov 19, 2015	$111,000
Lead Environment Artist, Interactive Games	Neversoft Entertainment, Inc.	Los Angeles, CA	Feb 15, 2013	$110,885 - $111,736
Lead Character Artist	Crystal Dynamics, Inc.	Redwood City, CA	Oct 01, 2010	$110,000
Lead Character Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Feb 01, 2010	$110,000
Lead Artist	Disney Online	Palo Alto, CA	Sep 16, 2014	$107,000
Lead Environment Artist	Electronic Arts, Inc.	Redwood City, CA	Aug 21, 2013	$106,827
CG Supervisor/Lead Artist	Carbon Visual Effects LLC	Santa Monica, CA	Apr 28, 2014	$105,000
CG Supervisor/Lead Artist	Carbon Visual Effects LLC	Santa Monica, CA	Apr 28, 2014	$89,648 - $120,000
Lead Nuke Artist	The Mill Group, Inc.	New York, NY	May 01, 2014	$87,152 - $200,000
Lead Vehicle Artist	Microsoft Corporation	Redmond, WA	Feb 01, 2010	$85,500
Lead FX Artist	Dreamworks Animation Television, Inc.	Glendale, CA	Feb 11, 2016	$83,480
Lead Artist	Melody Street LLC	Los Angeles, CA	Oct 01, 2011	$83,480 - $93,915
Lead FX Artist	Dreamworks Animation Television, Inc.	Glendale, CA	Nov 02, 2016	$83,480
Lead Artist	Melody Street LLC	Los Angeles, CA	Sep 25, 2012	$83,480 - $93,915

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Top Skills for A Lead Artist

Top Lead Artist Skills

Artistic Vision
Concept Art
Adobe Photoshop

You can check out examples of real life uses of top skills on resumes here:

Established the artistic vision and helped define brand identity for blockbuster videogame franchise TONY HAWK'S PRO SKATER.
Created fun, stylized 3D environment assets using 3D Studio Max based on concept art provided to our team.
Establish game interface layout in Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.Create character designs and final character and environmental assets in Adobe Illustrator.
Created a storyboard and script for a marketing video for the company website.
Created 3D assets for video game development Managed and critiqued artists on project teams.