Game animated by UWE graduate is nominated for BAFTA
Since graduating from UWE Animation in 2019, Jess Dyer has been working as an animator at Ground Shatter, on BAFTA nominated game ‘Fights in Tight Spaces’.
‘It’s a rogue deck-building card game, where you drop into different levels and fight a variety of enemies…it’s like John Wick meets Superhot’, Jess explains. ‘It’s a really lovely small team, and has been a great opportunity for me to build my visual development skills. We’ve been really pleased with the response to the game since it was released in December 2021.’
Jess had been working as a lipsync animator for Doghouse postproduction during her second and third years at university, a role she heard about through her university tutor Steven Roberts. When she saw this job come up from Ground Shatter, she initially felt underqualified as she didn’t know all the software they used, but the company loved her showreel from UWE and she was successful in getting the role.
‘My advice is don’t hold yourself back with anxiety or fear; I sat there for hours wondering if I should apply for this job, but here I am 3 years later with a promotion and nominated for a BAFTA. Have the courage and energy to put yourself forward.’
‘What I love most about animating for this game is creating is the flips and really dramatic moves – specific kicks, where you change the movement mid-air and kick again, fun moves that aren’t realistic or physically possible. That’s what animation allows you to do.’
Jess has also enjoyed being part of a close-knit team at Ground Shatter, including director and game designer James Parker, and art lead Dave Preston. The UWE Animation team is pleased to see her succeed and can’t wait to see what she makes next.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1265820/Fights_in_Tight_Spaces/
See more of Jess’s work on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/synthgetti/
