Roger Gibbon Digital Matte Painter: consideration about the painting career
Roger Gibbon, Digital Matte Painter. (source: CG Society)
CG Society published the professional profile of Robert Gibbon by the always clear words of Barbara Robertson. Being interested in the career of the digital matte painter, also thanks to my friends Marco Genovesi, Marco Rolandi and Tiziano Fioriti, I read this article with much attention.
I am usually curious to know how things work and how people become what they are and Robert Gibbon holds one interesting story for me. He taught himself painting by copying photograph. Interesting recurring theme for the apprentist artist. Either copying nature or something very realistic is one of the best approaches to painting and visual arts. Gibbon didn’t know about matte painting and (as many of this generation of CG artists) he discovered the world of applied arts to the entertainment industry thanks to George Lucas, his Industrial Light and Magic and a beautiful book about visual effects for movies. Welcome to the club.
There are some lessons in the Gibbon’ story that I want to write down and keep for the future.
- You can be professional in the movie industry by self-teaching
- Copying is a good way to learn. Copying nature is a better way to learn painting.
- Getting informed about the evolution of arts, science and the industry gives you opportunity about jobs you maybe don’t know about.
- Having a real paying job while crafting your career path is important (unless you are rich)
- You need a portfolio. If you don’t show what you are capable to do, nobody is going to listen to your potential
- Move where the job is.
Roger Gibbon's matte painting on 'Moon'. Images courtesy Cinesite. (source: CG Society)
- Your ideal job position might be some steps away. You need to walk along a path made by steps related somehow to your final destination
- Meeting people related to your profession is important. Who you know may be the key to your wanted position
- Being not qualified to a job position does not mean you should not apply. Do not waste people’s time though.
- Learn by observing what others are doing. Don’t be afraid to ask: for help, for explanation.
- Supervising experienced artists can be useful to learn from the masters. There are experience painters who prefer to paint rather than supervise
- Gibbons ended being the supervisor of his master and mentor Michael Pangrazio who was a traditional matte painter in the need of updated his computing knowledge. You never know if one day you are going to supervise Dylan Cole…
- Going forward the digital matte painting discipline is moving from establishing shots and panoramas to complex 3D environments fully developed. Digital Matte Painters are going to become more experts in the modeling, texturing, animation and rendering fields.
- Sadly, because I never really verbalize these words: ” [Matte Painting is creative and exciting] … But it isn’t painting. Michael Pangrazio said that we have to remember it’s not art,” says Gibbon. “He said, ‘You shouldn’t fall in love with your work. It’s a production. It’s about creating a story point and giving clients what they need. But on the flip side, it should be creative and give you satisfaction.“
- That is where the final, revealing part comes: matte painters may tend to move into the Concept Art field to gain more freedom.
Thanks to CG Society and Barbara Robertson for a thoughtful and thought-provoking article.
I would love to hear the opinions of painters and matte painters, both aspiring and professionals. What do you think about the considerations I made on this article?
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