Today, we feature two of Altitude’s game artists who happen to have the coolest names: Van Halen and Nacho!
Van Halen Cunanan
Who are you and what do you do in Altitude?
Van Halen: I am Van Halen Cunanan, 3d artist at Altitude Games.
What’s it like working at Altitude?
VH: Working at Altitude is pretty much awesome and relaxed. You get to work and learn with very talented and experienced people in each of their own craft, but in a very friendly and stress-free environment.
What is your nickname? (Can also be your favorite name you use when gaming)
VH: Van/Van Halen/ ~crazy
How did you get started as an artist?
VH: I asked my mom to draw Superman for me but she refused, so I did it myself. After that, I stopped talking to people, befriended my pencil and paper, then watched Saturday morning cartoons. I used to watch TV and recall every detail of my favorite characters (like Biker Mice from Mars) then draw it after the show. Comics was my inspiration for drawing so I practiced pencilling and inking with a pen brush. I got lucky that a company made me sketch for an exam, which eventually turned into intense 3d training. Since then, I’ve met people who pointed me to the path of 3D Art and Game Development.
Describe your art style in one word:
VH: Frankenstein
What are your favorite games growing up?
VH: I remember borrowing my cousin’s NES with Mario Bros. and Duck Hunt (with the actual gun) and we had a lot of fun. During the PSX era, the game that really stuck with me was Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. My friends even called me Alucard for quite some time. Up to now, I would play its music in the background while working. Then there are stealth action games like the Metal Gear series, Splinter Cell, Shinobido, etc. I would play anything that has stealth, katana, mecha, ninja, and guns.
Who are your biggest influences as a digital artist?
VH: I am always fascinated by artists who can draw beautiful women and mecha. My ideas were influenced by one or both of these artists for their pencil works and the use of black and white: Hiroaki Samura and Jay Anacleto. Also artists such as Jeffrey Watts, Marko Djurdjević, Raymond Swanland,Joe Madureira, Jason Chan and Evan Lee, Steven Stahlberg, and Vitaly Bulgarov.
Throughout your career, how did you go about improving your skills as an artist?
VH: Watching videos and digging deep all over the net currently work for me. I also download ebooks and audiobooks and read/listen to them while travelling, waiting, or even while I poo. Yet the most important thing after watching reading and listening is practice. Application and consistency are what build habits. 10,000 hours? I believe in that.
What are you working on now?
VH: I am part of the team who works on a mid-core RPG game as a 3D artist.
Where else can we see your works?
VH: http://vanhalen3d.daportfolio.com/
Nacho Garrido
Who are you and what do you do in Altitude?
Nacho: I am Nacho Garrido, Spanish by birth but based in Japan. I am a senior animator at Altitude Games
What’s it like working at Altitude?
NG: It’s pretty cool because the ambience is very friendly even when working remotely. Our daily chat is full of jokes and I appreciate that a lot. Besides this, Altitude really makes me feel like I am part of the company. It’s a place where the opinion of every worker counts, and this, based in my experience, is very rare to find.
What is your nickname? (Can also be your favorite name you use when gaming)
NG: O-chan. Usually I sign my works as O-chan, which sounds very Japanese, but really it is “Nacho” backwards.Well, “Nacho” is already the official nickname for “Ignacio” in Spanish… so I have a nickname of a nickname…. nicknaminception?
How did you get started as an artist?
NG: I liked to draw ever since I can remember, and always loved comics, animated movies, and video games. When I was still in high school, my parents took me into a jewellery school and I worked as jeweller for some years. It can be very artistic but it’s too serious a job, even kind of depressing sometimes, so I looked for a comic course to relieve my head. I ended up studying traditional animation and swapping my jewellery tools for pencils!.
Describe your art style in one word:
NG: Supercalifragilisticexpialiotaku
What are your favorite games growing up?
NG: When I was a kid the only gaming system we had at home was the NES, and I treasure the coolest memories playing it. I consider myself an absolute fan of the Zelda saga and I’ve played a zillion hours of the Mario Kart games (I never get tired).
But… what do you mean “growing up”?
Who are your biggest influences as a digital artist?
NG: I started admiring Disney movies, and very soon I really got into manga and anime, learning a lot from Studio Ghibli (atmosphere), Katsuhiro Otomo (cinematics), Masamune Shirow (robotics), Akira Toriyama (Dr. Slump specially), Satoshi Kon, Masakazu Katsura, Rumiko Takahashi… there are too many.
I am an absolute fan of stop-motion animation too, from Ray Harryhausen to Nick Park.
Throughout your career, how did you go about improving your skills as an artist?
NG: I am a image collector; usually you can find me checking art blogs, and sites like DeviantArt or Pixiv looking for awesomeness (or scrutinizing coolest scenes from movies, frame by frame). Besides that, I think practice is the most important step to grow as an artist. For better or worse, I’ve had to work in a lot of studios with different points of view about art, and that mix is a very good thing, too. Never get stuck!
What are you working on now?
NG: I am working on all the titles Altitude is developing. Since animation is a part of every game, I can work with all the different teams of this company.
Where else can we see your works?
NG: http://animatiki.blogspot.jp/