Artist: Romain Pommier Website: https://www.artstation.com/romainpommier Location: Canada 🖼"Hi, my name is Romain Pommier. I'm french and have been working in Canada as a freelancer for two years. I'm working as a 3D character artist, mostly for video games." ❓Who or what influenced your art style the most at the beginning of your journey? 🗣 I have always been drawing creatures and monsters since I was a kid. I remember when my mother put me in a Warhammer painting class. After that, doing something related to art was the only thing that matters! My love for video games kept growing, and now here I am. If I had to choose and suggest three artists that inspired me in my work, it would be H.R.Giger for his aesthetic and design. Zdzisław Beksiński for his tortured universe and work on organic shapes. And John Howe... Lord of the rings, that's all we need. ❓How did you start your professional career? 🗣 I «simply» went to a school called Supinfogame in France. For five years, I study a lot of things related to the creation of video games, from 2D to3D, game design, and even management. After my last internship, I started working at Ubisoft Montpellier for two years before moving to Canada. ❓What software and hardware do you use, and why? 🗣 For now, I'm working on an MSI laptop GE75. It was easier for me as I didn't know if I was going to move again or not. Most of my work is done using Zbrush for sculpting and Substance Painter/Designer for the textures. Then Arnold or Marmoset for rendering my projects. ❓How do you like to work: as a freelancer, or maybe full-time or part-time? 🗣 I think I need more experience in both to give an honest answer. There are pros and cons. Working in a studio and having this team spirit great. Everyone is working and helping each other, and this is where you learn most and gain experience quickly. Being a freelancer gives you the choice of the projects you're working on, and I feel that I have more time for my personal work. Both are great. ❓What was your most challenging project, and why? 🗣 Probably my last year student video game project. I was in charge of the art direction and 3D modeling. Being sure that everyone in the team shares the same vision about art, game design, etc... is hard and very important. ❓What was your most significant learning experience, and how does it help you now? 🗣 I'm learning new things every day with every person I'm working with: anatomy, optimization, texturing, etc... However, back at Ubisoft, I'velearnedwith most experienced people that it's not just about technical skills but also about the experience. For me, the experience is making mistakes, understanding what is possible to do or not, what is a good design, and improving your artistic sens. All of that takes time and make you a better artist ❓What is your dream project or art direction that you're starving to try? 🗣 Hard to say; it might change with time. But I like the idea of the «aesthetic of imperfection» and I really love how Giger improved his design with lines and curves or by playing with organic and robotic shapes. He created his own style and universe, and I want to find mine. ❓Can you tell us about a personal or professional project you are proud of? 🗣 Hard to be proud of something that I will dislike two days after. But my Blind Lord (https://www.artstation.com/artwork/k45WRx) is probably my personal work I enjoyed the most. This is my first very personal work that represents most of what I want to do. I loved doing the design, working on the details, and playing with shapes. I also started rendering on arnold and texturing my high poly sculpt. I might try to create new characters in this mood/universe. ❓Do you have any passion projects you're working on or plan to start? 🗣 As I said before, I will probably try to focus on a universe or a style that I like and create some characters that could be part of the same world. I started working on a Nosferatu version close to my Blind Lordstyleand also would like to go back to my Priestess and improve her with all the things I've learned this year... Also, my Creatures of Gotham series is still in the back of my head... too many things!! ❓What are you passionate about and do you have any hobbies besides art? 🗣 I really like music; there is not a day of work without music. Especially during personal work, it helps to be in the mood. As you can imagine, video games are also crucial to me. It's the same when you saw a really good movie that will make you scared, cry or laugh. I love when a game makes me feel something intense through the story, universe, or gameplay. And maybe the most important, being out in nature. As a kid, I spent a lot of time walking with my parents in Corsica's mountains. It feels so good to take time for yourself. It is also good for inspiration and helps clear up your mind. ❓If you had just one question about anything that you could ask and get an answer, what would it be? 🗣 Right now, I'm sitting in front of my computer and thinking about Alien life, new living planets, ps5 restock ... But I guess for now, I just want to know how we could go back to enjoy the simple things of life without killing all things around us... Oh, AND without COVID, please!?