Interactive Media Design alumnus Paul Packham is currently Lead Character Artist at the world-renowned video games developer, Rockstar. A travel lover, Paul leapt at the opportunity to join their San Diego office. Keep reading to discover Paul’s career high points, challenges, and his advice for budding games developers. 

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If you plan to work as part of a team, leave your ego at the door – being a team player will lead to much greater success

Paul Packham

 After completing an art course at college, Paul Packham was interested in exploring different forms of creative digital media. He was drawn to Edinburgh Napier’s Interactive Media Design course as it was multidisciplinary and taught many aspects of digital media. This included 3D Art, a subject Paul ultimately pursued as a career.

“The lecturers were passionate about their fields of expertise and carried this enthusiasm into their lessons and workshops.”

After graduating in 2010 with 1st Class Honours, Paul wanted to specialise in character art for interactive games. In addition to a couple of work experience roles in Advertising and Graphic Design, he involved himself with online digital art and game development communities such as Polycount and CG Society. Here he learned more about the area of digital art and started building his own gaming industry networks. He recalls his first role in 2013 at an outsourcing studio in England called Airship where he cut his teeth working on some well-known game titles including Ryse: Son of Rome and Forza, Horizon 2. In October 2014 Paul was hired by the cinematics team at Massive Entertainment – a Ubisoft Studio in Sweden, where he worked on Tom Clancy’s The Division, creating various real-time and pre-rendered assets including; environment props, interactive props, character gear, and hero assets.

Arriving back in Edinburgh in 2015 after a year of working in Sweden, Paul began his dream career with Rockstar North. Starting in Edinburgh as a Character Artist, Paul worked his way up and is now Lead Character Artist, based at Rockstar San Diego. He works with the global character art teams, focusing on pipeline and tools development, project planning and management, asset reviews and art direction. His connection to Edinburgh Napier remains strong, however, as one of his former classmates also happens to be a work colleague!

“Being offered a job at Rockstar is the high point of my career to date. Not only is this one of my dream studios to work in, but it is also a permanent contract. This has provided me with a much healthier work-life balance, along with other opportunities thanks to long-term, full-time employment.”

Moving to the sunny climes of California was a long-term goal for Paul, although he admits the relocation process was challenging during the first couple of months. He was incredibly grateful for the support he received from his work sorting through the visa process, shipping, and hunting for accommodation. Now settled after moving in August 2022, Paul intends to make the most of this incredible opportunity.

“Career wise, my job regularly provides me with new and interesting challenges, along with opportunities for growth. And, I have multiple creative projects that I plan to continue in my spare time.”

Published February 2023