In April, Marie Isacsson joined Massive as a part of the Ung Svensk Form Scholarship program. During her time here, she has been focusing on fashion and design in video games and how her areas of expertise can be translated into a digital, interactive realm. The application process for the Scholarship for 2022 opened in May, and as we’re approaching the application deadline of September 15, we caught up with Marie to talk about her time at Massive, and why young, Swedish designers should take the opportunity to apply.
”For the past couple of years, I’ve had a strong interest and curiosity when it comes to fashion and games. This thinking has become clearer for me during my time at Massive, especially how it practically and theoretically fits in the context of concept art. But I’ve also learned how to stretch my design thinking for it to make sense in a gaming context,” says Marie Isacsson.
One of her goals during her time here at Massive was to grow into the role of a concept artist, and with the help of her managers and leads, together with her sense of curiosity, she’s has taken both to the role and to the industry.
“If I would describe my first impressions of the game industry, I would say it with one word: ‘exciting'”. I have only touched the surface and I want more. The industry is dynamic and extremely ambitious.”
If I would describe my first impressions of the game industry, I would say it with one word: ‘exciting’.
Coming from a more traditional design industry has meant that the scholarship constantly opened new areas to explore as a concept artist, but also in the games industry.
“One of the greatest insights I’ve gotten here is the knowledge of how games are made”, Marie says.
Over the course of the scholarship, she has had the opportunity to interview her fellow colleagues to learn as much as possible about how the production pipeline of making a game – and vanity items for player characters – work. She has spoken with art directors, tech animators, marketers and more, and all those conversations have helped her understand how everything is connected.
“There’s an even bigger picture that I haven’t yet explored, but it’s something I absolutely want to dig even deeper into, since I think it’s key to understand what keeps the wheel spinning.”
It’s a very generous scholarship that provides you with new contexts, new knowledge, new skills.
When Marie came to Massive, one of the first questions she got was “what challenges do you think you will face?” For Marie, it was to translate her skills and experience with physical clothes and design to the digital realm.
“I believe mastering digital tools are the future within design to make the process not only sustainable but also efficient and communicative,” she says. A statement she still believes in after her six months at the studio.
So why should young designers apply for the Ung Svensk Form Scholarship Program?
“It’s a very generous scholarship that provides you with new contexts, new knowledge, new skills, and the ability to transfer your design knowledge to virtual worlds”, Marie says. “It’s an amazing opportunity for designers in different industries, such as fashion, to try out new exciting industries!”
Want to learn more about the scholarship and how to apply? You can read all about it on Ung Svensk Form’s website.
Useful links
- Learn more about Marie and her approach to fashion in games.
- How we at Massive approach the Concept Artist internship.
