Don’t ever underestimate your soft skills, like a positive attitude and being responsive to teamwork! That’s the one piece of advice that the Co-Founder of Important Looking Pirates Niklas Jacobson gives to up-and-coming VFX artists wanting to have a successful career.
Important Looking Pirates (ILP) is a visual effects and digital animation studio located in central Stockholm founded in 2007 by Niklas, Yafei Wu, Carl Hermelin and Eric Hermelin. The studio has more than 200 artists and have worked on big titles like Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker; and series like Westworld, The Mandalorian, Stranger Things, Lost in Space.
ILP was nominated for a number of Emmys for their work on Stranger Things and Lost in Space. So many times, artists get stressed out about their technical ability and they overlook the importance of core skills like communication, curiosity or leadership skill. In order to achieve career success – and to stand out as an artist – you have to learn to balance your hard and soft skills. Make sure to check out this quick career talk with Niklas and get some tips – and hopefully inspiration – to take your career to the next level!