Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winners Interview — Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World

1st place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Olya Anufrieva

 

Next in our series of Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World winner interviews is an inspiring conversation with Game Character Art winners Olya Anufrieva, Julia Acherontias, and Karol Vieira. Learn more about their amazing real-time character work and find out what it takes to join an ArtStation Challenge!

 

See all Game Character Art Submissions

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2nd place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Julia Acherontias

Taking on the Challenge

Among the many benefits of participating in an ArtStation Challenge is the opportunity to connect with professional 2D and 3D artists working in the field:

Julia: ArtStation Challenges are an essential event for me. This is my third time participating and they always energize and motivate me. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, prove yourself, and get a good piece for a portfolio.

Karol: The main reason I decided to participate was to improve myself and see what I was capable of delivering in a limited time. It was an amazing opportunity to take part in an event where lots of professionals participate so I could compare myself to them.

Olya: I really like to participate in the ArtStation Challenges. I like the idea of dividing (the Challenge) into stages, where the 2D artists participate first, and the 3D artists make their models based on the 2D art after.

3rd place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Karol Vieira

Behind the Submissions

The winners of the Game Character Art (Real-Time) Challenge category explored three unique concepts with different stories to tell:

Olya: I looked through the concepts of the participants from the first stage and I liked the very cute and mysterious character by Onihime San. I immediately imagined how I would make it in 3D.

Julia: “Tsing lung” by Yue Hai was one of my favorite character concepts. I really liked the idea—the dragon is a wise guardian of nature, and his little teapot delighted me. I decided to test myself and choose this concept that was different from what I was used to doing. I also chose this concept because I was able to bring a little bit of my vision into it.

Karol: When I was looking at all of the concepts by the talented 2D artists I came across Elisa Knopp’s submission “Reign of birds”. I fell in love with it at first sight as I really like birds and the style she used was perfect for my taste.

1st place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Olya Anufrieva

Plan Your Time Wisely

If you’ve read our earlier interviews in the Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World winners’ interview series, you’ll know that planning ahead before jumping into your Challenge project will help you make the most of your time:

Karol: I wish I’d have known how hard it was going to be (to do the Challenge) so I could have prepared better…even with planning things can take a lot of time! Underestimate your speed so that you can redo/fix things if needed. It was my first time doing feathers, so they took a long time to make and it almost messed up my schedule. You’re going to have to research and learn a lot when making the project.

Julia: The most difficult thing for me was to combine work and the Challenge. If I could take a little vacation at the start of the next Challenge it would be great.

2nd place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Julia Acherontias

Advice for Future Challengers

Olya, Julia, and Karol have some helpful advice for you before the next Challenge begins:

Olya: Be sure to complete the work. Otherwise, it will be very disappointing later that you did not finish.

Julia: I would say do your job with love and enjoy the process. Also, do not forget to make a schedule before starting the work.

Karol: Don’t just “copy” your concept; think about how you can translate it to 3D while also improving every aspect of it. I think that’s the key to a great character. Also, presentation! Bring out the beauty of your character, don’t hide it.

3rd place Untamed: When Animals Ruled the World – Game Character Art (Real-Time) Winner: Karol Vieira