About
Cochey Cantu Senior Artist, Level Designer
Who I am
My name is Cochey and I am a 3d Artist working in games development and interactive entertainment since 2004. Originally from Texas, I travelled a bit and am now situated in beautiful sunny California. Along the way I have worked at some pretty cool places and have contributed to some amazing video games that you have probably played too.
What I do
I am a 3D artist. Most of my work consists of level art and everything that pertains to that; props, layouts, block outs, environment models, textures/surfacing, collision, lighting, effects, sound, and scripting where needed. I have also lead small teams of artists to reach some pretty hefty goals. I have obtained a rather large amount of experience over the years working with all sorts of great people. It’s a great feeling to work with various teams and departments to take on massive challenges that require huge team effort on everyone’s part. These sorts of collaborations are always fun and at times hectic, but the end results are very rewarding.
Cochey is good,even if he has a starwars name.
Samuel Sharit, Character Artist
I’ve used all sorts of tools and technology and think of myself as very technically savvy. I spend a great deal of time researching new technologies and approaches to doing things better. I don’t like to sacrifice the project’s vision and will only accept compromise if it is in the best interest of the project. I take pride in my ability to find the best practical approaches possible to maintain a sense of balance and consistency, something that is tough to do in the every changing technological medium of digital entertainment.
What impresses me most about Cochey when I worked with him at The Collective was how internally motivated he is to not only stay current but be far ahead of the technology curve He was constantly bringing new solutions to the table in the form of new processes and new software.
Lee Imes, Senior Character Artist
RESUME
I am a creative professional who specializes in the design and creation of engaging interactive software. My core strengths are creative execution and technical implementation. I have the ability to design, develop and implement
high-quality designs and make strategic use of styles and themes to support the project’s vision. I strive to foster a collaborative, innovative culture and clear communication within every team I work with. Areas of interest include:
experimental game design, alternative interfaces, art integration and casual game development.
- Expert knowledge with next generation tools, feature sets and their requirements
- Can handle and delegate many tasks within varying time constraints
- Excellent at research and documentation
- Performs well under pressure
- Proactive team player
- Passionate about games and technology
- 3D Studio Max
- Maya
- Mudbox
- Zbrush
- Photoshop
- Unreal Engine
- Gamebryo
- Proprietary Tech
| Lead Artist- BLIND SQUIRREL GAMES |
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10/2010-present |
UNDISCLOSED TITLE
- Lead and maintain team art goals, procedures and functions
- Work closely with other departments to accomplish department wide tasks
- Mentored other team members and provided technical knowledge and other expertise
- Established content creation pipeline and other systems
- Created/optimized models/textures/material shaders
- Level layouts/design, particles, scripting [everything but the kitchen sink]
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Release Dates TBD |
| Artist- OBSIDIAN ENTERTAINMENT |
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04/2007-11/2010 |
Alpha Protocol
- Balanced technological constraints while optimizing the level flow
- Directed small teams in order to create complete levels within given time frames
- Liaison and mentor between artists and designers
- Researched better workflow methods to increase productivity
- Created the props, levels, lighting and post effects for environments
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Shipped Jun 2010 |
Fallout New Vegas
- Created large environment sets, props and weapons
- Found clever ways to reduce the memory footprints of assets to make the consoles game playable
- Helped fine tune exterior steaming issues while reducing memory overhead
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Shipped Oct 2010 |
Dungeon Siege
- Optimized levels
- Identified problem areas and bottlenecks hindering level progression
- Created additional props, materials, and assets as needed
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Shipped May 2011 |
| Artist- COLLECTIVE STUDIOS |
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04/2006-04/2007 |
Silent Hill: Homecoming
- Modeled and textured props for use in game environments
- Set up pipelines and minor systems for future artist teams
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Shipped June 2008 |
Dirty Harry
- Used Maya and in-house tool sets to create levels for next gen consoles
- Worked with level design and prop teams to achieve a perfect blend of scope and balance
- Set up modular system for faster level design and completion so as to meet deadlines
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Unreleased |
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| Artist- LIQUID DEVELOPMENT |
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05/2005-05/2008 |
Mass Effect
- Created props and vehicles for game
- Tested out shader and material properties for the game’s particular style
- Contributed to creation demo levels used in E3 unveiling and later game release
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Shipped 2007 |
Damnation
- Created weapons and environment props for level designers
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Shipped 2009 |
Empire Earth 3
- Created several stylized vehicles and LOD models for RTS game
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Shipped 2007 |
Mojo Masters
- Made small browser based game levels for online interactive dating game
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Shipped 2005 |
City of Villains
- Created props, vehicles and weapons for the next CoH release
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Shipped 2005 |
The Outfit
- Created [more] vehicles, weapons and props for RTS RPG hybrid game
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Shipped 2006 |
Swat: NEXT
- And created even more weapons and props for a SWAT game prototype
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Unreleased |
| Artist- MYTHIC ENTERTAINMENT |
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04/2004-10/2005 |
Warhammer Online
- Helped prototype look and feel of environment art
- Worked with designers to lay out game world exteriors for game play and aesthetic purposes
- Planned and set up dungeons and terrain zones for art and design teams
- Set up proxy models to let artists and designers work in tandem
- Set up lighting and effects for environments
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Shipped 2008 |
Dark Age of Camelot: Darkness Rising
- Created new art to match new style
- Re-textured preexisting assets to match new content and visual style
- Optimized or revamped dated collision data
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Shipped 2005 |
Dark Age of Camelot: Catacombs
- Created new art to match new direction
- Re-lit dungeons and terrain zones
- Optimized older models for new workflow
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Shipped 2004 |
| The Art Institute of Houston- Anim, Art and Design |
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2003 |
| The Science Academy of South Texas- HS Diploma Babee! |
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2001 |
Project Showcase
Personal and Professional works
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ALPHA PROTOCOL
SAUDI AIRFIELD: Environment models, propwork, some layout work, lighting, level finalization
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ALPHA PROTOCOL
MOSCOW EMBASSY: Environment models, propwork, layout work, lighting, level optimization, finalization
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ALPHA PROTOCOL
ENDGAME: Environment models, propwork, initial blockout, lighting, level optimization, finalization
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FALLOUT NEW VEGAS
THE STRIP: Various models and interiors created for the Strip including tile sets for Tops Casino, Airport storage, large vehicle and props
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FALLOUT NEW VEGAS
MCCARRAN AIRPORT: Airport exteriors construction and vehicle model creation
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FALLOUT NEW VEGAS
THE WASTELAND: Environment mesh creation including every rock formation found in the game, large single structures for key locations in special areas
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EMPIRE EARTH 3
A small collection of RTS vehicle models created for several of the game’s factions. Actual in-game model scale is greatly increased for showcase purposes.
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Personal Project
A few levels created to showcase shader related gameplay properties. Everything except FX created by me.
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MASS EFFECT
Temp section; more to come soon
