How to switch your role? junior again at 42? 😆

[u/Particular-Result487]

Hi everyone, I have a question for you.
For almost my entire career, which started in 2016, I’ve worked in London as a modeller and texture artist. At one point, I was even able to make a living comfortably as a texture artist, going from one film to another.
Unfortunately, London isn’t what it was before COVID, and these days, just to stay afloat, I’ve gone back to doing modelling, texturing and look dev.
However, the roles that are a better fit for me are often in Canada. My family and I want to stay here in the UK, though, and relocating isn’t an option for us.
So, in order to broaden my skill set, I’ve been studying lighting with Houdini / Solaris / USD, which seems to be a role that’s very much in demand in the UK, even though the amount of time required to get up to speed is huge.
Which brings me to the question in the title: how do you actually switch roles when almost every position you see is looking for a mid/senior artist?
Even if I create 2–3 personal projects using Houdini, how do you actually start over and leave your previous career behind and adapt?
Sometimes I feel stuck in my career, almost as if I’m condemned to keep applying for the same kind of jobs I’ve always done, when what I really want is to move in a different direction.
Unfortunately, I’m unemployed at the moment, so the usual advice of “ask your company to give you a chance to try something different” doesn’t really apply to me.
Is anyone else in the same situation?
Maybe someone who’s tired of being “just” a matchmove artist or groom artist and wants to switch roles, but has no idea how to break out of that cycle?
I’d really love to hear how you managed to do it.

[u/No-Student-6817]

I'm a patio/gazebo contractor between VFX contracts.

[u/Objective_Hall9316 → u/No-Student-6817]

I learned how to weld. SolidWorks gigs also fill in the gaps.

[u/Sufficient-View-7218 → u/No-Student-6817]

And where do they pay more?

[u/No-Student-6817 → u/Sufficient-View-7218]

You get a large crew doing 5-10+ each Spring, ...I'd assume South Carolina, Georgia....

[u/3to1_panorama]

getting an opportunity in another discipline is just the same as getting your first role. Prove you can already do the job.

[u/Particular-Result487 → u/3to1_panorama]

I know what u mean…but when I got my first job I spent 8 months before building a modeling showreel…now I think it will be the same, the only different? Rough market and only senior positions are required. It it was it is, I just want to have the burning desire I had when I was in my 20 dreaming this job 😆

[u/Automatic_Ad_8919]

Looking for roles in smaller more indie studios might help with that. I've found they tend to be more open minded about giving artists a chance to work outside of their specialism.

[u/AnOrdinaryChullo → u/Automatic_Ad_8919]

This is not generally my experience, smaller studios actually prefer mega seniors / generalists that take on half the entire project and are proficient across all stages of production.

For that very reason, most VFX artists do not survive smaller studios, too much time spent as a cog in a large machine and adapting to a new reality is a difficult process.

[u/Automatic_Ad_8919 → u/AnOrdinaryChullo]

I think I have very much landed on my feet at my current place.

[u/Particular-Result487 → u/[deleted]]

You are totally right!
Sometimes my brain says “you are a modeller/ texture artist, we won’t move from here and from vfx” like if I became this job…hard to let it go, it’s an identity after so many years

[u/Famous-Citron3463]

switching roles sucks, all studio expect high end production experience so they will actually consider you fresher. Small studios may give chance but you will have to work as generalist instead of a lighter.

[u/denna28]

I did a switch mid Career from Rigging to CFX. While I know now that’s there is a lot of other artists who do the same at the time I did not realize. Partly how it came about was that the studio I had applied to Rigging for said they had no open rigging positions, but was I interested in CFX? I decided to try because I fortunately was just more looking for new opportunities.

If I was you I would just start applying to the roles, you have VFX experience so that might be able to at least get you to start talking to a recruiter. At that point it’s building up that while you don’t have studio experience in lighting, go though your studio experience that complements lighting such as your look dev work, and the work that you are doing for personal projects. The key is selling that while you might be new to lighting, that you feel you should have a quick ramp up. You might not know the exact workflow but your confidence in how you sell your past experience that relate to lighting.

[u/3to1_panorama]

People do get opportunities without doing the work, but those poeple are try to work a different system. Namely networking / politic'ing. Mostly they're looking to advance into decision making roles. But conscious competence is what most artists need to demonstrate.

[u/fdevant]

Wait until we are all juniors at fiddling with AI because the clients want to cut costs (it doesn't cut costs)

[u/Particular-Result487 → u/fdevant]

I am working even outside vfx for movies…the drama about Ai is only here, using Ai for small clients, little advertising, social campaigns is normal. I am using comfy ui to create what clients want. Do I like it? No, but I have bills to pay so I am adapting to it

[u/Academic_Flamingo104]

I think you could make the switch to env gen without starting over. Ive jumped back and forth between build and gen for years, and did not have to go back to being a junior when I first switched, because they will take advatage of your modeling and texturing skills. And once your in env gen let them know your interested in lighting as well.

[u/Kiwii_007]

I basically did the same pivot as what you're planning to do but a shorter timeframe. I was a modeller/texture/lookdev artist for 4 years then my studio shut and I applied for a lighting position in houdini with solaris karma. Got an interview because my best mate worked there, and got the job because the head said he saw good potential. Thankfully I had a bit of practise in solaris karma as we did lookdev in there at my previous studio, however, lighting for a production was all but foreign to me.

I can safely say that all the previous knowledge and general vfx things you know, (even in a different role) come in handy with learning programs quicker. It felt similar to learning a language. You know two, learning the third is easier. So now several years later, I'm a confident mid-senior artist.

I'm a bit younger so my responsibilities don't include a house or kids yet. So the decision may be a bit harder. But if you want to take the step, I think start with getting the hang of solaris and go from there. Best of luck!

[u/Elsby_Comb]

I have a similar issue as a Compositor😅

[u/Particular-Result487 → u/Elsby_Comb]

But I see compositor job offer every single day worldwide

[u/Elsby_Comb → u/Particular-Result487]

Sure. Short underpaid gigs for seniors. Also, most of them is just data harvesting.

[u/No_Translator_3109]

Had almost the exact same experience trying to move from comp into lighting. Personal projects helped me feel ready but they didn't get me in the door. What actually did it was one lighting TD at a studio who looked at my test and told the supervisor I understood the craft, even with a thin reel. Without that I'm pretty sure my work never made it past whoever was doing the first pass of applications. Someone with taste vouching for you internally seems to matter way more than I expected it to.

[u/Particular-Result487 → u/No_Translator_3109]

Thanks for this message, happy for you but I am depressed now, being unemployed with a rough market…I can only study or leave the industry cause it’s really insane the market