Meet Chen Tang of LA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chen Tang.

Hi Chen, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My name is Chen Tang. I completed my master’s degree in Visual Effects, Game Development, and Interactive Design as a double major at Savannah College of Art and Design in 2021, following my undergraduate studies in Biology at Wuhan University. It is enthusiasm that leads me into the CG world. It is my dream to contribute to creating an immersive virtual world.

I am currently pursuing a PhD degree at Rutgers University with a focus on physical simulation in Computer Graphics. Before that, I worked as an FX Artist at Scanline VFX and Ingenuity Studios for three years. I have accumulated three years of professional experience in the film and game industry, working on various projects like Flash, Black Adam, The Gray Man, Moon Fall, etc. You can check out my portfolio. https://peterctang.artstation.com/projects/18kDZ2

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
From my point of view, it was not a smooth road. First of all, I had no idea what I should learn to jump into this field. And I needed to learn a lot of new stuff that I never got a chance to know before. It was a bold decision for me. I didn’t know if the dream would come true or what the career would lead to at that time. It was also the first time for me to go abroad and study at a college. I needed to learn how to live and study in a new place by myself. There were lots of uncertainties on the road. I’m so glad I couldn keep going.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
It looked difficult to me at the very beginning. Any 3D software looks like a huge system. When I was not in this field, I tried to use Maya and model some 3D characters by myself. This interests me a lot. And I studied some tutorials by myself to get familiar with it. After I went to SCAD, I had some opportunities to work on some projects and get to know Houdini, Unreal. Once I started playing with it, the process became more fluent. I can create the project and study how to use these 3D apps at the same time. I learned a lot from a lot of great resources online, like Houdini’s official website, there are a lot of great classes there, and some tutorials from Rebelway.

I learned different aspects in the CG field, and I specialize in FX. Even though a major part of my work is developing natural effects such as pyro smoke, explosion, rain, splash, etc., or some abstract effects like magic particles, I like to work on some personal projects in my free time. I need to have some abilities to handle different aspects so I have the chance to understand how to model, lighting, rendering, etc. The most important part is to cooperate with other talented artists. You can learn a lot from them. There is a lot of great work on portfolio websites. You can get inspiration from there.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I’ve always been a movie fan, captivated by the stunning visual effects on the big screen. Sitting in the cinema, I often found myself wondering how those incredible scenes were created – and dreaming of making them myself one day. My creative journey began while I was an undergraduate Biology student, when a childhood love for painting resurfaced through elective digital art classes. During my free time, I started experimenting with digital painting, and soon realized I wanted to pursue this field seriously. The turning point came when I was introduced to 3D art and became fascinated by animated masterpieces like Zootopia and Coco. Inspired by their artistry, I decided to shift paths and dive into the world of computer graphics. This led me to pursue a degree in Visual Effects and Game Development at SCAD, where I began turning my creative dreams into reality.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://peterctang.artstation.com/projects/18kDZ2
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tangchenpeter/