Can Do Anything, Only Limit Is Own Imagination - Why Extend My Drawers

When Toha was working as a 3DCG artist at a game company, someone once said to him...

"We can do anything, the only limit is our imagination."

These are words I will never forget, even after all these years.

If you want to become a 3DCG artist working for a game company,

Rather, I think it is a quote that all people working as creators, regardless of whether they work for a game company or as artists, should take to heart.

In this article, I would like to write about what CG artists often say about "Extend your drawers" with this quote.

 

Often seen on CG artist job search sites "Extend drawers"

Have you ever seen something like this on a site that handles job postings for game companies?

Toha has seen a lot of it :)
This is an image that senior artists already working in the company often say in interviews.

 

This is what the blog of HAL Laboratory, known for developing games for Nintendo, has to say about this.

To come up with many ideas, you naturally need to have many "design drawers" within yourself.

I believe it is very important for artists to increase their own "design drawer" by being extended to many things regularly, such as movies, anime, games, dramas, books, and manga.

Source:[Artist's Work] Game Visuals｜HALKEN Blog

 

These "extend drawers" is something that is said not only in the 3DCG field, but also in the web industry, publishing industry, and anywhere else artists work.

Furthermore, if you are a game company, it is not limited to artists but is also said to planners and programmers.

Well, it is certainly better to know a lot than not to know, and I think that will give me a lot of ideas.

But that's not the only reason people say, "Extend drawers".

 

 

The real reason people say, "Extend drawers"

In fact, This is precisely the underlying reason why people say "Extend drawers".

 

"We can do anything, the only limit is our imagination."

 

These are the words of the president of the game company where Toha worked.

The president of the company is both a president and a programmer. One day, the president created an in-house system on his own, which was amazing and had a lot of functions, so I said "Wow, the program can do so many things!"

When I expressed such a sentiment to him, he replied that words.

When I heard these words, I was surprised.

Yes.

 

Artists are told to "Extend drawers" because they need to develop their imagination.

After all, "the only limit is your imagination".

To extend the only and greatest "imagination limitation," we must develop a rich imagination by seeing, hearing, and experiencing a variety of things.

To increase the number of "design drawers" = to expand the "limits of imagination.

After all, I think this is the only way to achieve this.

 

The only limitation is imagination.
This really applies to everything.

Of course, the artist cannot create something unless he or she has an image of what he or she wants to create.

A program that a programmer cannot assemble in his or her head cannot actually be programmed.

No game will ever be created in this world if the game planner cannot come up with a plan.

 

There are some things that we can imagine in our minds but are technically unfeasible. But that means it can be realized if only we can solve the technical problems. The possibility is not zero.

There is absolutely zero chance that anything that cannot be imagined in a person's mind can be created by human hands.

For example, if you want to create a game with "graphics that no one has ever seen before," you must first be able to envision "graphics that no one has ever seen before.

If you work as a 3DCG artist, you should
We would like to extend drawers and extend the boundaries of the "imagination limit" as much as possible.

 

 

How to extend drawers? The best way is to be "interested"

I understand why artists are told to "Extend drawers," but how exactly should we extend drawers?

Of course, as is often said, it is also good to watch lots of movies, games, books, cartoons, etc.

You can go to the theater, opera, kabuki, or travel abroad.

 

However, it is not recommended to look at a variety of things that you are "not interested" in just because you are told to "Extend drawers".

People forget "not interested" things very quickly.

It is meaningless to watch something without interest if it is not memorable and does not remain as a "drawer" in your mind.

So I think it's a good idea to start by looking at some of the things that interest you.

If you like movies, watch lots of movies.
If you like books, read lots of books.

It is not hard for me to do what I like, and I can work on it enthusiastically because it is something I am interested in, to begin with.

If you have your hobbies and likes, you probably already have several "drawers".

 

I don't have many hobbies or things I like to do, or
What do I do when my interests alone might not be enough to draw out the right kind of drawer?

Toha's recommendation is to "try to be interested".

If you watch something you are not interested in, it will not remain in your memory, but if you consciously watch something you are interested in, you may discover something new.

There's a lot of different ways to be interested.

For example, a game I've never played.
If "I've never played this game before, and I'm not interested in it" that's the end of the story.
But, "I've never played this game before, so I'll give it a try!" you may be surprised at how much fun it can be.

For example, an anime you don't like.
If you think "Oh, this anime is not interesting, I don't like it" and watch it, that's the end of it.
But if you think "Why is this anime not interesting? Why don't I like it?" and then you see it, it's interesting in a different way.

In other words.

By consciously "taking an interest" in something, we can gradually extend and variety of your drawers.

 

Well, there is a limit to the amount of time people have, so I think the basic idea is to prioritize what you are interested in~

Both are good in their way: to know various things in a broad and shallow way, or to become familiar with a single thing narrowly and deeply.

The nice thing about the company is that it brings together people from all walks of life.

One artist doesn't need to cover all areas. A company is a place where people with various interests and skills can come together and combine their talents.

So, I think that if extend your drawers and create your unique flavor, it will become your individuality and strength as a 3DCG artist.

 

Summary: Can't make what can't imagine, Extend drawers = more imagination

This is the real reason why artists often say, "Extend drawers," and this is the answer.

"We can do anything, the only limit is our imagination."

One cannot create what one cannot imagine in one's mind.

Therefore, it is necessary to accumulate knowledge and develop imagination by being exposed to various things regularly.

The knowledge you have accumulated and the imagination you have nurtured will become your "drawer" as a 3DCG artist.

It is hard to suddenly extend drawers in a short period, so it is good to be aware of this regularly and try to take an interest in a variety of things.

 

By the way, I think "the only limit is imagination" is actually a truth of the world :)

It's just too difficult for anyone to come up with, but there is a possibility that even a "world peace method" could be realized if only we could come up with it - isn't this romantic?

The nationally popular manga One Piece also has this theory.

 

Every event that one can fantasize about is a possible reality.

From ONE PIECE #218

 

 

In my blog, I have written various other articles about 3DCG artists and 3D modeling. Please read them with interest.