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how's the salary for artists??

in general, how much can you make as an artist...let's say a modeller..and a concept artist.
is it more depending on how well a game sells (for the royalty)

Replies

  • skankerzero
    it's more dependant on the region you live as a base, then it's talent, experience, and company ability after that.
  • benny
    can you at least earn a decent salary at a studio that is medium sized..let's say between 1 hundred and 2 hundred.
  • Matabus
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    Matabus polycounter lvl 19
    100 to 200k/year? Us? No. For a beginner (and again this really depends on where you are globally) you are going to be looking at 25-40k starting.

    *edit* I just realized you were asking about a 100 or 200 person sized company, not thousands of dollars. Well I hope my response helps anyways. smirk.gif
  • Lee3dee
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    Lee3dee polycounter lvl 18
    depends on experience, location, small or big company, etc. like the other guys said smile.gif
  • Mark Dygert
    Don't we have a stickied answer for schools, portfolios, and "how big is my mansion going to be when I land that first gig!?"
  • benny
    i am really just asking because i am going into the industry as an artist and would like to know in general if you can make a decent living in this industy in the US.

    if experience is related, how much more do you earn if you are a senior artist?
  • Joao Sapiro
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    Joao Sapiro sublime tool
    you should worry yourself first if you would even make into the industry rather how much you will make, but i can assure you that if you land a position as seniour artist you can live pretty well.

    anyone correct me if im wrong please.
  • Rick Stirling
  • Josh_Singh
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    Josh_Singh polycounter lvl 18
    If your'e good. and know how to market yourself. You can make enough to raise a family, buy a house, a car and even have a bit left over.
  • benny
    i am working on getting my first job. i am asking about the salary mainly because i am concerned about having a successful career. i guess i shouldn't be worried too much.
  • Jeff Parrott
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    Jeff Parrott polycounter lvl 19
    How does salary have anything to do with a successful career? It's fine if you want to know if you'll be able to pay your rent or mortgage, but that doesn't have anything to do with your professional success.

    Your first gig take what you can get borrow money, stay at a friends, whatever you need to do to make it work. After that you'll do fine.
  • Thegodzero
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    Thegodzero polycounter lvl 18
    Art first money later.

    In other other words worry about getting good enough to get hired, and once your there youl probaly be hired. If not then start to worry about getting hired and how much you should be asking for.
  • PaK
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    PaK polycounter lvl 18
    This guy has a valid point.

    The reason i transirtioned out of art and into tools production was $$.

    -R
  • Bradfordart
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    Bradfordart polycounter lvl 18
  • dfacto
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    dfacto polycounter lvl 18
    What I want to know is what the upper limits are, which is far less asked. Say you can concept, model, texture, rig and animate, and get promoted to art director at a major studio. How high can you go if you break you back to get there?
  • firestarter
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    firestarter polycounter lvl 18
    The route that you take through your career is very important, don`t get involved in Ubisoft/Sony/Corporation exploitation, it will only cause harm to your earning potential. Wish I had known that from the start...
  • Eric Chadwick
    ADs at major studios run between 70k and 300k. Big range, but it's all about how you negotiate, and what level you are in the managerial hierarchy. If you want the money, generally you sacrifice hands-on art for hands-on management.

    I'd say on average most ADs make around 95k, plus possible bonuses/stock/premium health coverage/etc., which all combine to raise it up a few notches. At that point, it isn't just the salary.
  • thomasp
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    thomasp hero character
    firestarter: i heard about the 'ubi-way' of earning - but sony, too?

    bonuses can make quite a difference. seems there are studios where bonuses account for a larger sum of money in your entire annual pay than your standard wage. nice smile.gif
    just heard the story about a studio where employees received bonuses worth of 8 - 9 annual wages in a single year. genre-defining title though.
  • Josh_Singh
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    Josh_Singh polycounter lvl 18
    Im at sony right now. I work eight hour days and life is chill. I hear it's a bit more hectic for other teams though just because of the impending ps3 launch. But It's all in what you negotiate at the begining of your employment. Don't count on "I'll bust my butt here for a year get a nice raise, get promoted to lead,then 2 years later AD." negotiate what you want at the beginning. That's my 2 pesos.
  • Jeff Parrott
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    Jeff Parrott polycounter lvl 19
    ghost is right. Some people take a job at a shit place, go to a better place, get more money, and repeat until they are happy. Poopster did that, I've done it, and I'm sure a ton of others. I know this slant on the topic has been brought up before. I just wanted to let benny know.

    I never assumed that my first job or salary would be remotely what I'd want for more than 6 months. Now I'm really happy where I'm at. I'd be fine here till I die.
  • motives
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    motives polycounter lvl 18
    My problem with it is the way that the actual art career path is kinda limited.. If you wanna bounce your salary after a few years you will most likely have to start workin as AD or similar mid/low-managment roles which means no more making art for you!

    Atleast thats how i think it looks atm. More money= less art and more answering emails
  • Eric Chadwick
    For me, increasing my income is a separate issue from evolving my art career. Sometimes they go hand in hand, but mostly I've pursued challenge/fun over pay.

    The way I see it, if I want more money, I'll stop working for someone else and start my own business, or go freelance, or move into a different market altogether.

    Ultimately a game art career is going to be a trade-off, unless you're really good at marketing yourself, and have some good luck.
  • benny
    i am not too crazy about getting rich..but i would like to be able to make a small amount of money so i can enjoy my life while making art. i don't know if i said it, i graduated from 2D animation and there is hardly any jobs for it, and low pay too.
  • Eric Chadwick
    I think we're on the same page here. It's all relative.

    I make enough to support myself and my family comfortably, and still have a job I look forward to every day. Now, I wish I could afford a state-of-the-art high-end home theater projection system with a raid movie server, but hey other things are a bit more important.

    You won't go hungry, at least not after you get past the internship.
  • Ruz
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    Ruz polycount lvl 666
    whatever it is its not enough. people who work in call centres earn a similar slary which annoys the hell out of me.
  • Mark Dygert
    When I switched from graphic design to doing tech support for games I took a pay cut. When I switched from technical support/customer service, to art I took a slight pay cut to land my first gig. If you're in it for the money I say shuttle onto something else or start your own company where you dictate where the pieces of the pie go. Don't look at Cliffy B and think thats the norm.

    For me I love what I am doing and would gladly give up some extra cash to keep doing it. Besides its not like I can't do some contract work on the side and pull in a little extra.
  • Ruz
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    Ruz polycount lvl 666
    well most of us start out for the art then money becomes the key. a mans gotta live. If I wanted peanuts I would still be a monkey

    gotta say though i still love the art side of it, I am an eternal grunt.
    suppose to earn bigger bucks then you have to become a manager , but the downside is the endless meetings
  • benny
    hopefully i can all different aspects of game art from work so i can move up in the future (if i can even get my first job).
    but i think that as a gamer since i was 11, and a person that loves art and storytelling, i will be happy working in this industry (i would love the animation industry too if it isn't so full of kiddie and pre school shows).
  • thomasp
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    thomasp hero character
    oh, ok. so you prefer to tweak motion captured footage for pseudo-realistic FPS games instead? laugh.gif
  • benny
    me? I love FPS games. and i will still do animated films on my free time. I just don't want to animate for the tv or film industry, if it is kiddie stuff.

    also, how should I behave and what should I be asking on a phone interview? the company likes my stuff and is giving me a phone interview.
  • EarthQuake
    Be yourself. Unless you're a complete idiot. Be honest, tell them what you enjoy doing and what you're passonate about. Ask lots of questions, an interview(phone or otherwise) goes both ways. This is probablly one of the most important things to do, make sure you ask very specific questions about exactly what they want you to do, the more informed you seem about what they want you to do the better for you. If you've played thier games and enjoyed them make sure they know that. But dont relentlessly asskiss them about it.
  • benny
    I am a little nervous since this will be my first interview from a game company ever. Should I be open and willingly tell them positive things about me? Such as skills and achievments.
  • killingpeople
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    killingpeople polycounter lvl 18
    i'm not a professional interviewer, just want to offer some free advice and some good words.

    these people interviewing you are normal people. definately tell them the good things. that's why you're there. they want to be convinced to hire you. definately tell them your good qualities. be real. you don't have to gush about yourself, tell them logical good points to why you would help their team.

    if you are what they are looking for talent wise, they want you to be on the team as much as you want to work for them. the fact you have an interview shows that have an interest in you. they are just trying to get to know ya and make sure the rest of the team digs ya. and if it doesn't work out, this won't be your only interview; there are other companies. it was probably for the better. you can only get better from here. in the meantime, keep rocking your work.

    not only tell them logical information about yourself, but ask questions about them to decide if you want to work for them or not. you should be more concerned about them. do you want to work with them? can you work with them? what would a regular day of work at their studio be like? are they as pumped about games as you are? etc.
  • benny
    well, I like the type of games they make, like FPS, action adventure etc. I think I will be comfortable working there.
    also, do you think I will be tested? I mean I have already taken one.
  • Leech
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    Leech polycounter lvl 18
    The most decent wages you can expect in the US:

    Experience
    1 year or less: 35-40k
    2 years: 45-50k
    3 years: 50-60k
    4 years: 60-80k
    5 years: 65-90k
    6 years: 65-90k

    It starts to cap out if you don't keep advancing. But, I think you have a greater chance after 6 years to get a much sweeter deal. Some startup that has vc money is bonkers for anyone with 10 years, paying 150k with bonuses, etc.
  • Mark Dygert
    I found that when you can flip the interview around and start asking them questions the more at ease everyone will be. People are always looking for a chance to talk and you can find out about the company. This is a two way street you need to find out about them also so you don't end up in the wrong place. Your name and more important your rep ride on who you work for and what titles you have worked on. It also starts to put you in a good position for negotiations since you are now the one doing the interviewing =)

    Leech I don't know too many places that would shell out anual raises of 10k, but it does make sense that you can come close to demanding those numbers if you jump around. Sticking in the same place is never a great way to make bank, you normally just get tiny increases unless you shift positions or jobs.
  • Leech
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    Leech polycounter lvl 18
    That's not staying at the same company. Those numbers are coming into a job with x years exp.
  • nealb4me
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    nealb4me polycounter lvl 18
    [ QUOTE ]
    If I wanted peanuts I would still be a monkey


    [/ QUOTE ]

    Hehe I like that one.

    Personally I am on a quest to create balance between straight up grunt work and some of the extra managerial/business duties. Though still in the early stages smile.gif Variety is important to me, especially challenge and I have started to search for it in areas other than art. As they say, be good at you do first and foremost and the money will follow. I have certainly found that.

    I don't know of many people who pull down triple figure salaries doing purely art for games in general. It is possible but a sacrifice of sanity would be on the cards due to the hours involved in achieving this. If you are chasing more money then work smarter not harder.
  • Ruz
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    Ruz polycount lvl 666
    I was told that that I would become popular with the ladies if I worked in the industry. Instead I have developed RSI and have a nervous tick.
  • benny
    sounds bad..but what's a RSI?
  • Mark Dygert
  • benny
  • Eric Chadwick
    I'm with nealb4me. And there's a lot of good advice all over in here benny. Keep asking questions.

    RSI has been fairly rare among people I've worked with. I've never had it. It can happen tho, now they have warnings pasted on every new keyboard. Just get yourself comfortable, pay attention to what your body is telling you, etc.
  • firestarter
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    firestarter polycounter lvl 18
    ThomasP: Maybe I should break that down, seems SCEA employees are pretty happy. SCEE on the other hand are fucking atrocious, they dont negotiate whatsoever.
  • benny
    as a newcomer, should I negotiate salary at all?
  • Eric Chadwick
    Depends on how big your balls are. crazy.gif

    Only after they mention salary should you start negotiating, generally you should never start talking about it yourself (unless they actually say you're hired but never mention the compensation).

    If the amount is low, I would tell them you've heard X amount is the usual starting pay for someone with your talent level. Get that amount from a quotable source (in case they ask where you pulled that number from), like the Gamasutra salary survey. Gamasutra breaks it down by region, so that should factor in.

    You should know in advance how important this first job is to you, how low you'll go before declining. If they're desperate enough, they may increase their offer, even after you decline.

    Often though if you name a price, they'll go halfway or lower. For the first job, I'd just accept their 2nd offer and take the job.

    Oh, forgot to mention, usually if you're polite and professional about the request, they'll actually think better of you because it shows you regard your work as valuable.
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