Last Updated on August 13, 2024
Thirty years ago, computer-generated imagery and animation almost seemed like magic, but today, 3D art is a central component of contemporary movies, shows, video games, and even advertising.
Rapidly advancing technology and widespread audience interest have fueled impressive leaps and bounds in 3D art over the course of the last few decades, and the art styles and level of detail currently achievable are stunning, to say the least.
But audiences rarely get to see just how much work goes into these visuals behind the scenes, and in particular, Technical Artists, AKA Tech Artists, rarely get time in the spotlight.
3D Technical Artists serve as the point of connection and exchange between a team’s artists and a team’s programmers. Notably, Tech Artists themselves need to be able to balance artistic and technical components and concerns.
Tirumalaimuttu Shanmugam is an expert 3D Technical Artist, Generalist, as well as an instructor, and fortunately, he found some time in his schedule to speak with us about the ins and outs of his work.
Shanmugam has worked on projects across numerous categories, including movies, console video games, short films, and more. For more than thirteen years, he’s been able to support artists and filmmakers, making their work possible with his in-depth technical and creative knowledge. At the moment, Shanmugam is working with the renowned Telltale Games.
We really enjoyed this interview, and it’s a great read for anyone hoping to learn more about this unique and vital job.
InspirationFeed (IF): So how did you land on becoming a 3D Technical Artist specifically? Was it the technological element that drew you in?
Tirumalaimuttu Shanmugam (TS): 3D art production gets tedious, especially when there is a repeated change of idea or an iterative improvement, which is quite typical. When I used to do non-technical jobs during the earlier days of my career, I wondered if there was an efficient way to execute these improvements. I started exploring technical things to understand what is happening under the hood which helped me understand 3D in-depth, eventually leading me to become a 3D Technical Artist.
IF: What was one of your first major projects? Were there any aspects of the project that surprised you at the time?
TS: Most of the projects I’ve been a part of demanded 3D asset development using traditional methods. Once I had an opportunity to research and develop a procedural 3D city for an Autonomous Vehicle Simulator. The approach towards non-destructive 3D asset-making is different in the procedural workflow as opposed to traditional. The surprising factor about this project is the implementation of linear algebra concepts. To be honest, these concepts, which we learned in high school, stayed theoretical until I witnessed how it all came together in this project.
IF: Aside from timelines, what are some of the major distinctions between working on a movie and working on a game?
TS: In the initial stages of art development, I don’t see much of a difference. In later stages, the pipeline keeps changing in both industries for various reasons, one among them being technology.
Technology, in my view, is minimizing the distinction between working for movies and games. The obvious, Real-time vs Offline, is still going to create a difference in the pipeline. But in terms of the way optimization is handled in both industries, all I see is sharing of technology and artists, which minimizes these differences.
IF: How did you first get involved with Telltale, and what has the experience been like so far?
TS: I was looking for in-depth art and pipeline automation experience in my next job, and I couldn’t be more excited about the challenges that I am experiencing here at Telltale.
Cinematics-based games give so many opportunities for a Tech Artist to explore, experiment, and learn. They demand Cinematic Artists be engaged in 3D animation production, giving Tech Artists an opportunity to view tech art from a cinematic language perspective. It’s extremely exciting to work in a supportive team with progressive ideas.
IF: How important is it for a Technical Artist to be able to communicate effectively with the rest of the team?
TS: A Tech Artist is a hub role in a production, a role that demands different hats to be worn in a day, a role that demands a quicker understanding of every aspect of the project, a role that appreciates things like a naming convention at the earlier stages of production that might be a solution to a complex problem down the line. Effective communication is always the key.
IF: Do you feel that there are any common misconceptions about the work of Technical Artists?
TS: A job description for a Technical Artist could cover a wide range of skills and experience. It completely depends on the project’s needs and cannot be generalized. Tech Artists are basically 3D Artists with a piece of sound technical knowledge. Over the years, programming has become a mandatory skill for Tech Artists, at least Python. I never took a traditional programming course. I learned Python based on the needs of my work.
My approach toward a problem might differ from a developer or a game programmer. I feel this difference remains a misconception during my recent job interviews. In my view, Tech Artists are not core programmers. We do some coding and understand their needs, but our thought process begins with art as the basis.
IF: Looking ahead, what are some of the key areas for advancement regarding rendering technology?
TS: The rendering tools available today, both offline and real-time, guide the artist to focus more on aesthetics rather than worrying about technical things and physics, which is promising.
Another widely used term is real-time, which can potentially put artists on the same page. Working on an interactive 3D environment with close to final lighting and shading gives a better idea to the animators about the context of the shot and the story in general. That would be the ultimate goal moving forward, in my opinion.
Having performance and real-time together will continue to be a challenge, but the tools available today have definitely brought them closer together. Looking ahead, this trend will definitely continue.
