Interview with Richard Lico, Monolith Productions
by William "Proton" Vaughan

Richard Lico has been helping to change the face of bleeding edge games one animation at a time. His work can be seen in such games as Condemned:Criminal Origins, Xmen: Legends, Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy and many others. We pulled Lico away from the development of his next big title long enough to get the scoop on what makes this great artist tick.

CGF - Can you tell us a little bit about your Background?

I am 30 years old, and besides animation and video games, my driving ambition is raising my son Caid with my very patient and understanding wife Renee. I also enjoy gardening, travel, comics, and doing illustration as a hobby.

I grew up in New Jersey, in a small town called Park Ridge. It's located right outside New York City, so I had plenty of diverse cultural influences growing up. Sony has a large office in Park Ridge, so many of my friends growing up were Japanese. They introduced me to eating seaweed, watching Anime, and playing games such as Dragon Quest and Street Fighter II. This Japanese influence lead to my passion for illustration, and a strong desire to make games, which translated into my goal: To become an artist in the video game biz.

With the support of my mother and grandfather, I took leave of Park Ridge to attend the Savannah College of Art and Design, in Savannah GA, where I began as an illustration major. There, I was exposed to many different kinds of art, and took as many figure drawing classes as I could afford. I tripped up on some great paid opportunities to illustrate for a few local book authors, which was my internal confirmation that I could succeed as a professional artist. Just like almost any college student, I lacked funds, yet I found a way to remain an avid gamer, and hooked-up with roommates who shared the same interests. (who needs running water, anyway?) Back then, there were no college courses about what makes a game tick, so I did my own study on every aspect of game design, especially what game functions translate into "fun". About half way through my time at SCAD, Pixar released their first film, Toy Story. I was overwhelmed when I first saw it, and immediately changed my major to computer art. My goal had now evolved: To become a character animator for video games.

After obtaining my bachelors degree, I scored my first job as an animator for digital billboards, and a CNN International show called "Sights & Sounds" in Atlanta, GA. It was the open door I needed, and I made sure to use every resource I could to improve on my demo reel. I produced an animated 3D short in my spare time about the plight of bowling pins, which granted me my first gaming job.

CGF - What inspires you to create?

My biggest influence over the years has been the work of Japanese game designers such as Shigeru Miyamoto and Hideo Kojima. Their games have consistently gone beyond my expectations. I'm also very influenced by games such as Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Devil May Cry, Prince of Persia, The Mark of Kri, and Shadow of the Colossus. I believe a lot of what makes a character animator successful in this industry is not only animation skills, but a clear understand of what makes a game fun, and how best to use and present the animation within the game technologies and design. Next time you play any of the games mentioned above, pay attention to the role animation plays in the overall experience.

I also watch a lot of animated films for inspiration. I have a bizarre interest in what a character's thinking beyond overall story or the moment to moment goal. I want to know what the history of that character is, and what his or her flaws are. I'm constantly trying to give the characters I animate a subtle personal "tick", and most of what I've learned in this area comes directly from the works of Pixar and Studio Ghibli. They're a preverbal gold mine for character development and animation.

Finally, I'm a huge fan of the martial arts. Specifically, the old Shaw Brothers films, Jackie Chan flicks, or more recently, the art of Parkour. They're the perfect place to learn the extremities of human locomotion. I'm obsessed with the poses which martial artists manage to hit, their grace, rhythm, and what happens during their subtle weight shifts. I'm always striving to give my work that sense of flow and weight.