Tian Cao

What Program did you graduate from and when?

I graduated from Drawing & Painting: Digital Painting & Expanded Animation (DPXA), in 2020.
 

What is your current title or role? (ie. freelance designer, art practitioner, etc.)

I’m a Technical Artist working in a Game Design Company.
 

Why did you choose to attend OCAD U?

Simply because I always wanted to study Art, and OCAD U is in the largest city in Canada. OCAD U has a good reputation and many program options.

Please briefly describe your current job/practice.

I’m currently working as a Technical Artist in a Game Design Company. In my position, I am in charge of rendering and shader development. The work is not very close to drawing or painting, it is more about technique. The knowledge and skills I learn from work can be very helpful within my own practice in the digital art field.
 

How did you get started in your career?

I started to be anxious about my future career in the second year, as I knew that I didn’t want to be a Gallery Artist, I always wanted to work in the industry. I started trying different things related to my industry of interest, such as concept design, animation, VFX, 3D modeling. After trying so much I found the thing I really wanted to work on, then started to find an internship for that. In my experience, it hasn't been hard to get the opportunities once I prepared for them.
 

What were your policies regarding internships, volunteering, and paid work?

My policy is not to do the work that you cannot learn. If I’m sure that my goal is to work in the game industry, I will not do an internship or paid work as a waitress or a seller, although I can make money from these jobs. I think the time before graduation is very short and precious, and I encourage using that time to efficiently learn skills that are aimed at your ideal industry. I've definitely spent time working in jobs that I regretted taking lol. 
 

What do you enjoy most about your work? What is the most challenging aspect of your work?

My daily job is not very artistic – I use two PC screens every day and you will see a lot of codes on them. As an outsider, it may look as though my work is very boring, however, a Technical Artist’s work is about solving problems. My work is very challenging and interesting. I do research and read a lot of papers and books to find the answers and solutions to the challenges we are faced with. For me, the whole process is very satisfying and makes me feel a sense of accomplishment, which is very different from drawing and painting.

What skills or relationships developed at OCAD U helped you participate in your field? Is there anything you would have done differently?

My program is pretty much a combination of digital art and animation. DPXA is a very hybrid program and I got the chance to experiment with many different mediums and formats. In the last two years, our assignments were very open and motivated us to learn, do research, and try various techniques. Because of that, I learned to code, use game engines, projections and get familiar with various software in the industry.

OCAD U is very focused on the education of Art and artistic literacy. This is helpful to anyone who wants to learn and work within the Art Industry, whether that is in Fine Art or generally in the industry. The only thing I would've done differently would have been paying more attention in my Art History classes.
 

What are the key responsibilities you maintain for your practice?

For my work, the responsibilities I maintain are solving problems as required by colleagues from the Art Department, for example, if a VFX Artist needs a specific shader in the engine to achieve their ideal effect, they will come to me and I write a shader for them. Focusing on the front techniques in the industry is important. Maintaining knowledge and doing research in the industry is important. 
 

What are your personal and professional goals for the coming years?

To have a role in my current industry, and keep my practice in the art field meanwhile. There are so many things for me to learn in my industry, I want to be a pro and participate in more great game projects in the future. There is still a long way to go.