The Matte painter figure

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Until a few years ago the Matte painter profile did not exist, but with the development of new technologies in the entertainment area, this professional profile has emerged for very diverse projects, from video games, cinema or virtual reality, but what is really a Matte painter? What is their job?

A matte painting artist is in charge of creating non-existent sceneries but offering the viewer a realistic and believable scene. Being a Matte Painter artist requires a certain skill as the images to replace the background have to be realistic and, thus, provide an appropriate visual effect that makes us believe that it is a real background.

Requirements to work as a Matte painter

The requirements for a Matte Painter vary depending on the features about the project. In general, the profile is usually a professional with knowledge in traditional illustration with mastery of drawing and color, as well as skills in lighting, perspective and composition.

Among the most used software we find Photoshop, Nuke, After Effects or Autodesk 3ds Studio Max, Mudbox or Zbrush, the last ones for the production of 3D Mattes.

Normally, in a first instance, the visual artist does not know this professional profile as such until he does not get a little bit into this area He starts in more specific projects, such as digital retouching, illustrator or 3D modeler, and comes across this type of projects in which he requires several of these skills and put them to work under the same job.

Where to find a job as a Matte painter

The figure of the Matte Painter gives rise to a profession of great projection in the labor market of cinema and video games. We can see these days job offers for Matte Painting in Zoic Studios, company in charge of the special effects of series like Arrow or Once Upon a Time. Also at Activision, developer of videogames like Call of Dutty, they are looking for Matte Painting Artists. At Moving Picture Company, a studio that creates visual effects for films such as Godzilla, Harry Potter or X-men, they are constantly looking for Digital Matte Painter professionals.

Generally film production companies and even advertising need the services of a matte painting artist so it is advisable to do a search on their websites. We can also find jobs as Matte painter on visual art websites or other more generic ones such as Linkedin.

Categoría/s: Digital art