Panayot Nikolov – from student at ARC Academy to producer at Snapshot Games
Panayot Nikolov begins his studies at ARC Academy in 2021, enrolling in the 3D Art program. He currently works at the Snapshot Games studio and holds the position of Associate Producer.
Read more about his experience at ARC Academy and his favorite moments from his two years of studies:
Which program did you complete at ARC Academy, and when?
When I started my studies at ARC, I had a lot of trouble with which major to choose – 3D Design or Game Design. I had an affinity for both, and while it’s not recommended, I didn’t want to let one go at the expense of the other. Fortunately, the program allows me to largely attend the lectures of both programs. The ones I missed – I caught up with the online recordings. Although I chose 3D, I was no less active in the Game Design learning process.
What are you currently working for – in which company and in what position?
I’m currently training to be an art team producer at Snapshot Games, which is a third direction that I didn’t even suspect could be my true professional development in the gaming industry.
What do your job duties involve?
My work duties include supporting, in all aspects, the work of the various teams, as well as the coordination and organization of everything that is needed to move forward.
What projects are you working on so far?
Over the years I’ve mostly worked on personal projects, if I can even call them that, now that I know how many steps I’ve missed that I had no idea were necessary.
As a fan of the RTS genre, I have developed various types of maps/campaigns on almost all game makers, editors and user-friendly engines that I have had access to. For the past year and a half, I have been creating some 3D models for small videos, and more interestingly, I was able to help with the creative process on the script and models of a video that became a finalist in the annual festival organized by NASA at Houston out of over 300 entries.
My first project with a real studio workflow, as far as we could get as students, was Mesozoic Mayhem or “the dinosaur game” or as we also called it “dino dragon”.
What was your favorite part of your time at ARC Academy?
My favorite part for me was between the third and fourth semesters. At that time the ideas on paper started to take shape as a real game – having models, level design, game design, action plan, etc. And the fact that it went much more smoothly than we expected was just a bonus for the team.
Of course, none of this would be possible if our teachers and mentors from the academy did not support us, sometimes correcting our direction and encouraging us on a daily basis.
How did studying at ARC Academy help you get started in the studio?
Training at ARC Academy helped me a lot to find my voice, my place, and the hardest part – people with similar interests. I needed reassurance that I would fit in there because I had doubts that turned out to be unfounded.
The practical focus of the program, the daily feedback sessions and the fact that the lecturers were industry people who took a keen interest in their students’ progress certainly helped the most in the long run.
If you have an interest in 3D art and a desire to build 3D models of characters, environments, and more, apply to ARC Academy’s 3D Art program now.
