The Art of Quantum Break with Ville Assinen

The Art of Quantum Break with Ville Assinen | #138

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Today we have something special to share here at Escape The Level, we are showcasing some of the Concept Art of Quantum Break along with a few pieces of insight from the concept art team over at Remedy Entertainment. We are having a short chat with Ville Assinen, Concept Artist at Remedy Entertainment on some of the work he has created and a little bit in how the development of Quantum Break went.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1472338321913{background-image: url(http://escapethelevel.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/01RMD-1.png?id=7891) !important;}”][vc_column][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^7886|url^http://escapethelevel.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/00RMD.png|caption^null|alt^null|title^00RMD|description^null” img_width=”150″ icon_animation=”pulse” title=”About Remedy” read_more=”more” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fwww.remedygames.com%2F||target:%20_blank|” read_text=”View Studio” pos=”left” title_font_color=”#ffffff” desc_font_color=”#c1c1c1″]Remedy Games a Finland-based Game Development Studio has gone through a lot of changes throughout the years and are mostly known for their critically acclaimed Alan Wake series along with Max Payne and more recently Quantum Break.[/bsf-info-box][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”Chatting The Art of Quantum Break with Ville Assinen” font_container=”tag:h2|font_size:24|text_align:left|color:%230f0f0f” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Hey Ville, It is a pleasure to have a little moment with you and discuss Quantum Break, do you wish to introduce yourself to our readers?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]My name is Ville Assinen, I am currently working as a concept artist in Helsinki, Finland. I have been working in-house at Remedy Entertainment for a bit over four years. I am working with concept art, art direction and visual development in general.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Who do you look upto within the videogaming industry, what initially got you into following this career path?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]If I have to name one inspiration from the gaming industry, I think Half-Life 2 made a big impression on me back in the day. My earlier profession as a carpenter led me to study product design in Lahti, Finland. There we were drawing alot of concept illustrations for our projects and I found that to be the most fun part of the process.

I realized that this is something I would want to do full-time, so I bought a Wacom tablet and started to focus on practicing creating concept art. I built a small portfolio and when we had to do an internship as part of the school curriculum, I ended up doing it for Remedy. After that I put the school on hold and continued to work here.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”8177″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”img_link_large”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”8179″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”img_link_large”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]So, what sources of inspiration to you draw from to create the concept art you create?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Inspiration often comes naturally during the process when trying to understand the current design-problem. I think my decisions are most often derived from the functional needs of a particular design.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”8182″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”img_link_large”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]How long does it usually take to create a single piece of Concept Art at the studio? Is there usually a bit of input from other teams within the studio?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]The process is very back and forth between the teams, I make suggestions and adjust according to the feedback from the team. Depending what is the needed level of polish, it takes anything from 1 hour to several days to create a piece.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”5578″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”img_link_large”][vc_column_text][dropcap size=big]W[/dropcap]e needed to create a space for Monarch Solutions to store a powerful piece of technology at. I tried to achieve a feeling of danger and containment for this location so I went with an isolated cleanroom with strong colored light and a dramatic contrast between the rest of the environment to emphasize that.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”8190″ img_size=”large” onclick=”img_link_large”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Did you face any challenges when it came to envisioning a new environment and world such as what we see in Quantum Break?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Creating a new IP had its challenges for sure, but I think we had a strong story and good guidelines regarding the art-direction so that helped alot.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”5576″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”img_link_large”][vc_column_text][dropcap size=big]S[/dropcap]ince Quantum Break is a time-travel game, we then needed to design the time machines as well. We even had a physicist as a consultant and derived the designs somewhat from real-world physics and how real time-travel could theoretically work. Basically the idea is that you travel in a protective corridor around an artificially created micro black hole which bends space-time around it.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”4780″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” css_animation=”appear”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Before we wrap up with the article, do you have any last bits of advice to our readers? Do you have any wisdom that you’ve carried through your career that you’d like to share with readers?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”8163″ img_size=”100×100″ style=”vc_box_border_circle” border_color=”white” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” css_animation=”appear” link=”https://iiwul.artstation.com/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]Being more process-oriented instead of goal-oriented. Working to improve your own design process is something useful to pay attention to. When you’re more familiar with your process, you can then always apply it to any new and unfamiliar design-problems and tackle them even when you dont immediately know what the end result should be.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]