YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY EPISODE 28: Alex Neonakis

YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY

Hey kiddo… I found one of them episodes you like to listen to! This one features an interview with concept artist and illustrator Alex Neonakis, who worked at Naughty Dog. While at Naughty Dog, she worked on games such as The Last of Us, Left Behind, Uncharted 4, Lost Legacy and The Last of Us Part II. We discuss the exceptional work she did at the studio, her passion for details, the current state of the industry and much more. Furthermore, we talk about the concept art of Elden Ring, how social media impacts our perception of art and I get to ask about a very interesting theory about Martyr Logarius from Bloodborne. We openly talk about story events and locations of The Last of Us Part II, so if you don’t want to get spoiled, you better finish the game first and then come back.

Time – Topic Discussed:

0:00 - Intro

04:10 - Guest topic: Being a raid leader in World of Warcraft

06:55 - Guest topic: Elden Ring

14:04 - The job of a concept artist

20:20 - Wear and tear in clothing

23:50 - Staying motivated

26:40 - Her love for details

34:18 - Design notes from the director and player feedback

37:50 - Big setpieces vs. intimate moments

43:31 - Going freelance

48:18 - Crunch in the industry

55:00 - Lessons learned

01:01:00 - The impact of social media on art

01:04:53 - State of the industry

01:08:45 - Negativity on twitter

01:10:53 - Master Chef

01:12:20 - The implosion of Bon Appetit

01:13:35 - The infamous Martyr Logarius theory

01:15:38 - Outro

Things mentioned on the show:

Character Concept artist Hyoung Taek Nam

Alex fake Twitter campaign for The Last of Us

Take on Me in The Last of Us Part II

Blood, Sweat and Pixels by Jason Schreier

Activision Blizzard scandal

Eytan Zana

Neil Druckmann

Bruce Straley

Deleted Owen’s painting in the Last of Us Part II

Ashley Swidowski

The implosion of Bon Appetit

Martyr Logarius

The Ice king from Adventure Time

Social Media:

Alex Neonakis

Alex Neonakis on Twitter (@Beavs)

Alex Neonakis on Instagram (@alexneonakis)

Alex Neonakis’s Homepage

YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY

YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY on Twitter (@youmeindustry)

Dorian on Twitter (@DorianChou)

YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY on Instagram (@youmeindustry)

Dorian on Instagram (@dorian.chou)

YOU ME AND THE INDUSTRY on Facebook (youmeindustry)

Intro/Outro by FreshMcZone

Artwork by Thomas Martin (Instagram: @thomas.martin.martin)