November 19, 2018

House by the Hill by Andrew Christianson

Andrew James Christianson ′11 is an art director at Fantasy Flight Games in Minnesota. They create board and card games, role playing games, and other real-world games. Though many are based on beloved licenses such as Lord of the Rings, they also create their own proprietary worlds. Andrew works with artists on these games, envisioning the worlds.

What drew you to Fantasy Flight Games?

Well, I do feel that the stars aligned somehow for that job to be open… My wife and I wanted to live in or near Minneapolis / St. Paul to be near family, so I had been thinking creatively on how to apply my background and passions to a career. I’ve been a gamer throughout my life, and having played some FFG games, I had looked them up early in my last year at CCS and was surprised to find them located in Roseville, MN! I actually applied to a few other openings there, which were honestly less ideal, but when I saw an opening to work with the art and artists, I knew it would be a perfect fit because my interest is in illustration, storytelling, and gaming. I actually applied in the same month as graduating from CCS, and had an interview within a few weeks of moving back here.

Legend of the Five Rings: Seeker of Enlightenment by Eli Ring

How long have you now worked at FFG, and what kind of work you do there?

I’ve been at FFG a little over 7 years. I’m an art director, my primary responsibility is to work with freelance artists to create the artwork in our games. I also help with some of the visual development of our games, and worldbuilding where I can (mainly with the visuals). There’s a whole pile of other little things I’m involved in, but the main thing is working on art!

How have your studies at CCS aid you in your work at FFG?

Composing visual narratives in many little boxes (comics) is perfect practice for applying to card illustration.  Of course, at FFG we work with a different type of illustration than I personally practice with comics, but the principles of design and storytelling apply the same.

Additionally, FFG focuses heavily on telling stories through our games. So the lessons in storytelling frequently apply also.  The main difference between storytelling in comics and the art I work with at FFG is telling the narrative within single images… So, story often gets told through character design, environment, and what is depicted in the single moment with regards to expression, mood, action, staging, etc.  Of course, in a set of cards, story is also told through the collection of images throughout the set—they combine to form a broad theme, which presents ways for players to interact and create a narrative through their gameplay.

Legend of the Five Rings: Moto Horde by Calvin Chua

What has been your favorite moment at FFG so far?

This is a challenging question! I’ve had the opportunity to work on so many awesome projects, including some related to Star Wars, A Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, etc. Also, I’m going to define “moment” broadly, since our projects often stretch on for many months.

One of the most fulfilling (announced/released) projects I’ve art directed has been the new Legend of the Five Rings card game. It gave me the opportunity to develop a style that we don’t frequently implement in our games—one that utilizes a more impressionistic approach that allows more emphasis on emotion, poetry, intangible qualities, etc.

I’m currently working on a yet-unannounced project that I’m especially excited for… It may be the project I’m most excited for to-date in my career there! Sorry to tease without details, but I expect announcing or releasing this will definitely be my “favorite moment” at FFG in the relatively near future. 😉

Legend of the Five Rings: Fearsome Mystic by Shawn Ignatius Tan (“Muju”)

Do you have any comic projects in the works, personal or not, that you can share with us?

Honestly, I regret that I haven’t been able to commit enough time to my comics work in recent years, though I am in the early stages of developing something I hope to really dig into soon. However, I do continue to do individual illustrations.

What are your favorite drawing tools?

I especially love brush and ink… I enjoy being able to see the marks left by drybrush strokes, and in general the motion of the artist’s hand. On-the-go, the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen is my most-used tool.

That said, I do get drawn to beautiful pen/line work, too. (I use the Faber Castell Pitt pens.) I’ve been exploring the use of brush and pen together in my drawings because I feel they can interact in a beautiful way, adding a sense of depth and varied texture, or helping to manipulate focus.

Sea Clouds by Andrew Christianson

(Interview with Angela Boyle.)