Personal Profile
I am a determined and hardworking individual who takes pride in doing my job well. At a basic level I love to make games and carry that enthusiasm with me even through stressful periods. My enthusiasm is tempered with a level head and there is always a clear path to the achievement of my vision. Being highly proactive, I will constantly strive to make things better, whether that is clarity of direction, refinement of a process or skill set of a team member. I like to think of myself as a generous colleague who will do what they can to help.
Professional Highlights
I love my current role as Head of Art at Ripstone and consider it a big career highlight. It was a personal challenge to step into a central role not only involving Art Direction but with greater exposure to brand building, marketing and business strategy. I have also had the chance to shape an art team from the ground up and drive a creative and collaborative atmosphere.
As a long-time fan of the Alien franchise, I am very proud of Alien Isolation and my contribution to the project. To then be nominated for six Baftas was a great feeling. In addition to working with the Art Director and concept teams to refine and deliver stunning environments, I collaborated with the Lead Designer and Production to restructure our teams to work more harmoniously, adopting PODs of multi-disciplined members to rapidly unblock development issues.
Halo Wars 2 required a shift in team skills and I was asked to lead the concept art team through the first half of the project, this was in addition to the Environment team. I worked closely with the Art Director to deliver assets for the art bible and refined the overall artistic direction. I have also overseen the recruitment of seventeen artists into both of these disciplines and am proud of the caliber of team assembled.
Interests and Activities
Recently I have turned my hand to writing and am really enjoying the creative process. I love fashioning a complete and detailed world then inhabiting it with interesting characters that have their own motivations, experiences and journeys.
That’s the result I’m aiming for anyway.
Board games are a big love of mine, I am also a born again Warhammer player who regularly attends tournaments and appreciates the social side to gaming.
Cinema is a great source of inspiration to me both on a personal and professional level. I enjoy films from all eras but have a particular fondness for sci-fi, historical fiction and world cinema genres.
Just before the first UK lockdown I became a Dad and have loved every moment, I guess you could say my daughter has become my main interest and is a constant source of inspiration.
I regularly host Macmillan parties to raise money for the charity and donate to a range of other worthy organisations.
Me at the 2015 BAFTAs
A full version of my C.V can be found here...
My Linkedin profile can be found here...
