For 27 years, I've been enjoying the wild electricity of creative minds and crazy ideas that pour into game development. I've been at both big studios and small start-ups and noticed the common thread at both is the talented, passionate people of every discipline who love what they do striving to make the best gaming experience they can. I view my role as Art Director is to provide a framework for such talented artists to draw on their amazing imaginations and channel their abilities through a shared, cohesive vision for a given product. A framework that consists of a vision for not only the look and feel of the project, but also for an organized pipeline to communicate with other departments and collaborate on delivering high quality results in an efficient manner.My approach is one of balance between the delegation of responsibilities based on implicit trust in my team and an active awareness of their plans and pipelines. I have worked in most of the art fields to one extent or another in my career, so I can generally understand the specific needs of each discipline. I ensure my vision is clear and well communicated and evolve that vision as it is incorporated with the creativity and ideas of the team and the needs of the product. It is important to be focused, but flexible with one's direction and vision so you don't miss out on opportunities to improve on it.For effective product development, I believe in the following concepts:Team Empowerment and AccountabilityA Holistic Vision for the ProjectThe Iterative Development ProcessIn my career, I've launched/shipped the following titles:Planet Mojo: Mojo Melee and Gogo MojoSam and Max: This Time it's Virtual (Oculus Quest)Brave OrderWartide: Heroes of AtlantisNinja Time PiratesRobot RisingQuantum of SolaceCall of Duty 3Call of Duty 2 - Big Red OneBaldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2Command and Conquer: GeneralsLionheartIcewind Dale 2Icewind Dale: Heart of WinterIcewind DalePlanescape: Torment