NOTE: This job is no longer available!
Character Modeler
at EA
Redwood City, California
ENTERTAINING IS OUR PASSION
EA was founded 25 years ago by individuals with a deep passion for making games. Many things have changed over the years as the gaming industry—and the company—has expanded immensely, but we are still driven by the same passion for developing, publishing, and distributing the world’s best games. Our history has been one of great success, and our future looks even brighter. Gaming has come a long way from Pac-Man & Space Invaders to modern EA Favourites like Burnout, Battlefield, Mercenaries, Dead Space, Spore, FIFA, Madden, Need for Speed and the world’s most successful game franchise, The Sims. Fuelled by our talented staff at locations right across the Globe we are united in our passion to continue shaping the future of interactive entertainment. Together we can make a difference.
Creating visually stunning, immersive games is an art that takes a tremendous amount of skill and talent. EA artists are responsible for creating the visual elements of a game, such as characters, scenery, objects, vehicles, surface textures, clothing, and even user interface components. Other Artists bring the game to life with Animation, Lighting and Visual effects and draw the gamer into an immersive experience where they can suspend disbelief and emotionally connect with the game and enjoy the ride. Some games go for a look that’s as realistic as possible, while others aim for a more stylized or fantastical look. In the end, the look of a game is one of the most significant factors contributing to the overall success of the game.
Role Overview
The design of a character is vital to the overall creation of a game. Character Modelers at EA might work on anything from the cute, cartoony style characters of The Simpsons' or MySims? to the photorealistic character models you see in our EA SPORTS games. Regardless of the style, it's important for all characters in all EA games to be emotionally believable. They must be characters that draw gamers into the action or story of the game.
The Character Modeler is responsible for building the geometry of organic and inorganic characters in the game. EA Modelers are skilled in human character modeling of both realistic and stylized figures in Maya/3D Max. Character models are highly complex and detailed in video games with some characters coming close to 500,000 polygons.
What skills does EA look for??
A Character Modeler must have strong organic modeling skills, strong drawing skills (light, form, shadow, color), knowledge of the human anatomy and form, and strong texturing skills (including photographic manipulation, texturing, and color correction. In addition, they must have excellent organizational skills (goal setting, working towards milestones, etc.), as well as strong Maya knowledge, and PhotoShop skills.
When reviewing a demo reel a Character Modeler, EA looks for the reel to showcase the artist's ability to create realistic models while also showing a flair for creativity. The reel will include highly detailed and clean texture work.
The reel should showcase the following:
- High quality, character models in low, medium, and high polygon counts
- Ability to create realistic models
- Clean texturing skills and an eye for color
- Good use of light and shadow
- Excellent sense of scale and form
- Excellent level of finish drawing skills
- Excellent drawing and/or sculpting of the human form, exhibiting a knowledge of anatomy, proportion, weight, and volume
- Ability to work from reference materials, such as photography or concept art
EA was founded 25 years ago by individuals with a deep passion for making games. Many things have changed over the years as the gaming industry—and the company—has expanded immensely, but we are still driven by the same passion for developing, publishing, and distributing the world’s best games. Our history has been one of great success, and our future looks even brighter. Gaming has come a long way from Pac-Man & Space Invaders to modern EA Favourites like Burnout, Battlefield, Mercenaries, Dead Space, Spore, FIFA, Madden, Need for Speed and the world’s most successful game franchise, The Sims. Fuelled by our talented staff at locations right across the Globe we are united in our passion to continue shaping the future of interactive entertainment. Together we can make a difference.
Creating visually stunning, immersive games is an art that takes a tremendous amount of skill and talent. EA artists are responsible for creating the visual elements of a game, such as characters, scenery, objects, vehicles, surface textures, clothing, and even user interface components. Other Artists bring the game to life with Animation, Lighting and Visual effects and draw the gamer into an immersive experience where they can suspend disbelief and emotionally connect with the game and enjoy the ride. Some games go for a look that’s as realistic as possible, while others aim for a more stylized or fantastical look. In the end, the look of a game is one of the most significant factors contributing to the overall success of the game.
Role Overview
The design of a character is vital to the overall creation of a game. Character Modelers at EA might work on anything from the cute, cartoony style characters of The Simpsons' or MySims? to the photorealistic character models you see in our EA SPORTS games. Regardless of the style, it's important for all characters in all EA games to be emotionally believable. They must be characters that draw gamers into the action or story of the game.
The Character Modeler is responsible for building the geometry of organic and inorganic characters in the game. EA Modelers are skilled in human character modeling of both realistic and stylized figures in Maya/3D Max. Character models are highly complex and detailed in video games with some characters coming close to 500,000 polygons.
What skills does EA look for??
A Character Modeler must have strong organic modeling skills, strong drawing skills (light, form, shadow, color), knowledge of the human anatomy and form, and strong texturing skills (including photographic manipulation, texturing, and color correction. In addition, they must have excellent organizational skills (goal setting, working towards milestones, etc.), as well as strong Maya knowledge, and PhotoShop skills.
When reviewing a demo reel a Character Modeler, EA looks for the reel to showcase the artist's ability to create realistic models while also showing a flair for creativity. The reel will include highly detailed and clean texture work.
The reel should showcase the following:
- High quality, character models in low, medium, and high polygon counts
- Ability to create realistic models
- Clean texturing skills and an eye for color
- Good use of light and shadow
- Excellent sense of scale and form
- Excellent level of finish drawing skills
- Excellent drawing and/or sculpting of the human form, exhibiting a knowledge of anatomy, proportion, weight, and volume
- Ability to work from reference materials, such as photography or concept art