Project Gotham Racing 3 will be a Microsoft Games title for the Xbox 360. Courtesy of Bizarre Creations Ltd.

On the other hand, those coming over from the film industry will need training as well, particularly in how to work within the memory constraints associated with gaming. Omernick cites an example of an artist with experience in film or broadcast being given an 8,000-polygon limit for a character. “They get one hand done and their polygon budget is already blown,” he says. “It’s mainly about understanding the limitations we’re working with.”

Tight schedules are another issue. Film modeling and lighting are completed more slowly than the same tasks in gaming, where the process is sped up at least by half, according to Davoudian. That requires a new mindset for film artists moving into gaming.

And, of course, interactivity remains unique to games. “Understanding interactivity is the biggest challenge,” says Entis, who adds, “Some [film people] struggle with it, but for some it’s like a big shot of caffeine.”

“I think it will slowly become easier for individuals from film and TV to transition to games,” adds Kitson. “We are gradually structuring our tools to work in the same way they do in their industries. For example, our lighting and color space control techniques are virtually the same as you would find in any broadcast editing suite. Our character rigging setups are comparable to those found in advanced film applications, and in some cases even superior in that many of them have realtime cloth and physics components.”

Many experts believe that artists who, whether having a history in films, gaming or another artistic field, are trained in multiple facets of production — texturing, modeling, lighting and rigging, for example — will become increasingly valuable to the development team. “Generalists will become more of an asset,” Davoudian believes. And the best person for the job may be the one who has both gaming and film experience. As Davoudian says, “The next generation will be a cross between the film and the games businesses.”

Karen Raugust is a Minneapolis-based freelance business writer specializing in animation, publishing, licensing and art. She is the author of The Licensing Business Handbook (EPM Communications).