The Snakehead Interviews – Priyanka Jain

There’s nothing like a good piece of art, and I for one have NEVER produced a good piece of art. I mean, sure, Mom put my crayon drawings up on the fridge, even when I was fifteen years old, but I understand now that she was just…sorry, Snakehead Fans, where was I going with this?

Ah, that’s right. Art. Today I sat down with Priyanka Jain, an intern of ours whose artistic talent has graced and will be gracing several of our products, now and in the coming months. Well, I checked my seat before sitting down. The many beehives that surrounded her workstation served as models for her latest project, and while they seemed to have accepted her as one of their own, I was getting the stinkeye from more than one royal guardsmanbee out on their rounds.

Tell us about yourself, Priyanka.

Well, I am a student at Sheridan College, currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Applied Arts-Animation Program. I’m getting to my final year – it’s been an excellent journey so far – and I am looking forward to make a short animated film in my last year.

And how long have you been interested in art and animation?

I have always been interested in drawing, although Sheridan’s been my only formal training so far. I was among the best
artists back in my High School, but after that I got really interested in how things move. That interest in movement grew and grew, and that’s why I chose it as a career.

So what brought you to Snakehead Games?

I heard about Snakehead from my Co-op Advisor at Sheridan when we were looking for placement possibilities. There was a couple days, maximum, between my hearing about it and my acceptance – it all happened so quickly, it didn’t even sink in that I was really here until I’d been here a week!

Ah, that good ol’ “Whoa, I actually made it!” feeling. That’s a good feeling.

As for my experience so far, I think I am having a wonderful internship and I am glad that I am interning here.

And just a glance at your work so far reminds me why we’re glad to have you. Would you expand on that work for the Snakehead Fans at home?

Well, I’ve definitely been busy. Right from day one, I have been constantly involved in different projects. Starting with Word Nerds, then Combat Cards and now Spelling Bea.

I redesigned the graphics for Word Nerds – Combat Cards I didn’t get the same amount of time with, but Spelling Bea has been fun so far. Designing all these graphics also made me realize how much I love what I do. And because I really like designing/animation, it never seemed like work to me. It has always been fun exploring more designs and concepts.

It’s a lucky person who can truly love their job that much. How else do you like to pass the time?

Umm…I draw, play video games, watch TV, play golf (Yes, I do!)…and I guess my work is fun for me, so I work!

*laughs* Well, what else…*shuffles through his list of questions* Superpowers? Nah, people are tired of that one –

Actually, I’m glad you asked that…

??? You are?

…because unlike many people, MY answer is Yes!

I actually possess two superpowers – My mom and Dad. Whenever I am in need of these superpowers, I know I can rely on them, no matter what. No, seriously, I think being supported by my parents all through my life is a superpower for me. I don’t think a lot of people are lucky enough to possess this superpower, but I am.

Gosh. Well, that’s very good to know. Have you found much time to try our own games, and if so, do you have a favourite?

Word Nerds for sure. Firstly, because I designed the graphics for this game and as you know, I am the best!

*laughs* Naturally.

*laughs* But really, I think one can never master an art. There is always room to learn more and make yourself better. Anyways, going back to Word Nerds, it is actually a wonderful game. It is very engaging and challenges your ability to make words out of random letters. I had fun designing its new look, and I hope people enjoy the game.

So what’s next after Snakehead?

First thing on the list is graduation. I still have one more year to go.

After that, I am thinking about taking on a Post-Graduate Program at Sheridan. After interning at Snakehead, I am actually getting very interested in the video game industry, and I would like to enhance my skills to be a part of this world. So I am thinking about taking a game design program at Sheridan itself. Hopefully that would do for my studies, and then I would be able to get myself a decent job in this industry.

Very ambitious! What kind of inspiration have you had in your growth as an artist?

For any of the artists reading this, I would definitely like to share some others who have been a great inspiration for me.

Firstly, Ryan Woodward. His amazing 2D animation Thought of you has been truly inspiring for me. It has been so beautifully designed and animated that whenever I need inspiration, I look at this animation. It points out that there are so many things I could work on and improve.

The second would be Pascal Campion. Pascal has a wonderful talent of telling a story just in a picture. And it is not just a story, there are emotions involved and you can actually feel them in his artwork. Apart from the storytelling aspect in this art, I really like the simple yet appealing style of his sketches.
You can even subscribe, get one sketch every day in your mailbox, so you don’t have to look for inspiration 😀

That’s about all I would like to say here, except for one thing. My Mom always says, “When things go your way, be happy; but when things don’t go your way, be happier as God sure does have a better plan for you”. These have been very important words of wisdom for me all through my life, and hopefully some of you may get some motivation from these words. Good Luck!

With that, she resumed her work. Her honeymongering henchmen buzzed with renewed purpose as she drew them a spanking new queen to guide them in their eusocial endeavours. Wary of their bared stingers, I slipped out to type out this interview with my sticky, sticky fingers.

Priyanka’s presence is a quantum leap forward for us, as we’ve frequently had to outright outsource our artistic needs. She’s changed the game for us, which means we get to keep changing the game for you! Join us next time for another installment of browser-based buzz with the Snakehead Interviews, folks!