Contextual Studies Brief for BA2

For this project, we are to look at 'Industry Roles and Practices'. We are to write a 1000 word report on a part of the industry of our choice, preferably a part that we would be interested in going into after university. As part of this project we are also expected to set aside a blog for our research, including at least 70 hours worth of study work.

We were given points to consider as a starting point:

• Media industry roles and practice - The Disney Strife of 1941
• How the past compares to the present
• Fashion industry - All walks on the catwalk 
• Lack of innovation in the industry

We were also told to consider possible questions to answer through this report:

• How have roles developed?
• How have they changed over time? - Oversaturation of the market
• What has shaped these changes?

Based on these starting points, I am considering looking into the role of the 3D artist, since I feel most inclined toward the 3D side of the industry. I could look at how the role of the 3D artist compares between smaller and bigger companies and how the role of the 3D artist came to be, as after all, for a long time games were in a 2D format only and the software used has evolved significantly over the past few years.

In a summary, I would investigate:

• How the role of the 3D artist developed
• When did 3D games become the norm?
• What was the sort of software that was used in the beginning?
• How the role of a 3D artist in a large company compares to that in a small company
• Specialists vs Generalists
• Workflow pipelines
• What is required to become a successful 3D artist
• The tools that you need to learn
• Your portfolio
• Networking and connections