Hey everyone,
I know the games industry is in a really tough spot right now (especially in North America), but I'm running into a wall - I can't get any offers, not even unpaid ones.
I'm currently in Canada as an immigrant, which makes things harder. From my research I found that the vast majority of junior hires in Canada, especially over the last year or two, are recent university graduates. Unfortunately, university isn't an option for me: it's expensive, and honestly, I already have several years of hands-on industry experience and don't see the point in paying for things I already know.
Despite the challenges that come with my location, I haven't been limiting myself to the local market , I've been searching for remote junior positions worldwide. I'm willing to wake up at 4–5 AM to match timezones, work for free for the first month or two, and after that take minimum wage. I'd genuinely rather work as a junior/assistant Technical Artist for minimum wage than flip burgers for the same money.
And I'm not complete zero. I spent several years working in UE4/5 and shipped real corporate projects as a game designer. After that I got into VFX as a hobby, but wanted something more technical and broader which led me to Tech Art. I can work in-engine, I've built my own effects in Niagara and written shaders in the Material Editor, done rigging in UE, I have basic Python knowledge and have written scripts for personal automation and in-game systems.
I know one option is to just keep grinding tutorials, but I don't think Tech Art is the kind of role where you can learn from tutorials alone and be ready to contribute from day one. In my view, a Tech Artist needs real production experience - you need to start hitting actual problems as early and as often as possible, and learn to solve them. That's where the real growth happens.
On top of that, I really don't want to get stuck in tutorial hell especially given how broad the Tech Art skillset actually is. The responsibilities span so many different areas that trying to "cover it all" through tutorials before even getting started feels like an impossible and endless task for someone just breaking in.
Yet despite all of this, I either get no response at all or a flat rejection with no feedback (even if I ask for it).
My question is : what am I doing wrong?
I'd genuinely appreciate any advice. This is the first time in my career I feel completely invisible, even for free work and that's hard to accept when I know I'm not complete zero and I genuinely want to learn and grow.
Thank you for any answers.