We Hatch Aspiring Artists Into Professionals
The following Before-Afters have been achieved
in only 5 weeks
A few weeks ago, we organized a contest.
We gave 5 minutes of feedback per week to each participant to help them.
This is the result they got.
We knew they would level up...
But we were not expecting they would level up THAT MUCH.
Some improved more than they ever did since they started
Some more than in years in art schools
Some pros got the one thing they needed to unlock the next level for them
Some absolute beginners got put on the right way so early in their Concept Art Journey
And everyone was absolutely delighted at the feedback
Following these results, some artists wanted to keep getting feedback
We said Yes
And over 20 people signed in immediately.
So let's introduce you to our New Mentorship
– THE ASCENT –
A Technique-and-Design-focused Mentorship
Accessible to any level
It is designed to offer the same level of feedback and care we do within our Flagship Portfolio-Building Mentorship.
It is done with the mentors supervising our Flagship Mentorship,
It uses the feedback process and criteria of our Flagship Mentorship that lead many of our mentees to get hired in big studios
But this time...
Rather than focusing on crafting a portfolio tailored to studios and job applications...
We focus solely on :
- Technique -
- Rendering -
- And Design -
For most Aspiring Concept Artist
These need to be improved before the can craft a relevant portfolio for jobs.
Who is the Ascent for ?
The Ascent is for Concept Artists of any level
Whether you are a beginner, a student, a self-taught artist or even a junior artist.
This is for you if you want to be taken by the hand to :
Level up your Technique and Rendering
Learn the Design and Problem-Solving Skills mandatory for Concept Art
Develop the right habits to produce relevant work for studios
Get surrounded by super hard-working artists in a curated community
And for some, become eligible to our Portfolio-Building Mentorship
Fast
And in a Streamlined Way
How does the Ascent work ?
It works in 4 Steps
- Step 1 -
You get our video course
"The Production Designer Playbook"
It is about learning how to do actual Concept Art, for production and industry's expectations.
We give it to every single mentee joining our Portfolio-Building Mentorship before they start.
It represents 30% of the total content the receive across the Mentorship and it covers all the artistic and design part of it.
It is in 4 parts :
The Industry Reality :
To understand what studios expect from Concept Artists today, how to help them with your work, and how to stand out positively in a seemingly saturated marketThe Full Design Process :
Explained to you step by step, and what to do for each of these.
From reading a brief and collecting references, to sketches, refining them, variations, callout sheets, and final renders.Advanced Design and Rendering :
To correct the most common mistakes, level up your Technique and Design Skills,
And implement storytelling, entertainment value and gameplay in your designs.Helping the Production Team :
What every other job requires in the Art Department and how to save them time, headache and money
This way when we start working with you :
You already know what to do
We can push your design further
We speak the same language when giving you feedback
- Step II -
You get a design brief to work on
Which you will interpret in your own way, and we will use it as a support to practice both technique and design at the same time.
To be clear :
This is NOT a "draw 100 cubes and study 50 hands" type of brief.
We are talking about a TRUE Concept Art brief :
With specific requirements to keep in mind
You will have weekly deliverables to submit as detailed in the brief.
As if you were producing for a client
Important :
While we are not imposing a set amount of time devoted to The Ascent, we heavily encourage you to have at minimum 10 hours per week you can devote to it to expect sizable improvement.
Of course the more you can put in the more you'll be able to improve.
- Step III -
You get Weekly Feedback
We work this way :
The feedback sessions are done in Group
Your dedicated mentor will review everyone's work individually in front of everyone
We work this way and give the same brief to everyone as it let everyone get personalized care while also benefiting from the “the power of repetition”.
This is about seeing the same problems being solved enough time in front of you to the point you can’t unsee the solution.In the first session with your dedicated mentor you will get your individual situation assessed
And while making the project you'll be instructed to focus on the top 3 priorities that we deem will benefit your progression the most.
So for example, if in your case it’s "posing", "material rendering" and "faces", you will do the project entirely and get feedback on the design and process, but we will put extra attention to those points that will have the biggest impact in your progression.Every session is recorded and made available to you just after it's finished
So even if you miss the session, you can watch the replay
Important :
We are not expecting or requesting students to attend the classes live
The structure is designed for asynchronous feedback to cater to everyone’s timezones and availability.
(Though you are very welcome to join when you can !)
It is the same method we’ve been using with the mentees for almost 3 years now and it also mimics how to communicate with clients or a lead/art director.
- Step IV -
Once a project is done (every 6 to 7 weeks)
We give you a new brief that will challenge you more.
We work this way :
We will re-assess your level and give you the new top 3 priorities to focus on for the project
And we keep going on for as long as you are in the loop
Fast
And in a Streamlined Way
And more
Welcome to
Portfolio Masterkey
A Premium Portfolio-Building Mentorship
and Private Community
With no expiry date
We work with you for as long as you need,
until you are hired
Here is how it works
Preparatory Module - Be ready before Day 1
You get 80% of the theory before we start, so we save time and you are ready for the Mentorship
A complete breakdown of the current Industry Landscape, how it works, how to navigate it, and how to stand out
A full set of courses and exercises to master the Design Process and understand Production Pipeline requirements
An ever-growing set of extra modules and demos to improve your design and rendering abilities
5 weeks of intensive training and personal guidance
You know exactly how get hired, we skyrocket your design skills, and you are launched in the right direction
Step-by-step guidance through every phase of the process, with everything you need to become the candidate studios want to hire
10 group sessions with in-depth feedback to review your work, answer your questions, and provide tailored direction
Access to extra workshops, bonus sessions, and resources, shaped by the needs and requests of the mentorship community (past, present, and future)
Ongoing support until you get hired
We don’t stop after five weeks, you continue receiving feedback and guidance on your portfolio and job applications for as long as you need
From start to finish, we work together to craft a portfolio that’s flawless and showcases your full potential when applying
Weekly feedback on your portfolio, or at your own rhythm
When you’re in contact with studios, I help you prepare for interviews, review your offers, and determine what salary you can confidently negotiate
Your work is also regularly shared with our network of studios, to increase visibility and open real opportunities
Our Commitment, and what we expect in return :
If you are accepted in the Mentorship,
We work with you for as long as you need, until you get a job
The only thing we demand in return is that you build your portfolio in less than a year.
One year is more than enough if you’re serious.
This is not an online class where people disappear after a few weeks.
We stay with you long-term because we actively connect top students with studio opportunities and negotiate recruitment deals with companies.
Studios come to us for trusted, production-ready talent and we only recommend artists who have proven they are serious and reliable.
Everyone who joins the mentorship is carefully selected to ensure they have the mindset and foundations needed to succeed in the industry. We don’t accept anyone we don’t fully believe in.
We build your entire portfolio together, piece by piece, until it reflects the best of what you can do. We take you by the hand, for every step of the process.
When you get in touch with studios, we help you prepare for interviews, salary negotiation, and support you through every step of the hiring process, as long as it stays within NDA boundaries.
Benevolent, Win-Win relationship between Mentors and Students
This is a supportive but high-expectation environment, you’re pushed to reach your full potential, build an outstanding portfolio, and dramatically increase your chances of getting hired. You get what you came for, and more.
In return, your success directly strengthens The Art Nest’s reputation, which brings more studios to us looking for serious, production-ready talent. That means more hiring opportunities for you and future mentees.
In short, when you win, we all win.
This is why many former mentees who have landed jobs now actively support the next generation inside the community to elevate everyone.
We take you by the hand
for every step of the process
Here is what to expect for every week
Week 2 : Inspecting the Door Lock
Closing the technical gap with professionals
By the end of the week :
You’ll know how to skyrocket your technical level above junior level, without having to watch any tutorial
You’ll know exactly how and where to learn the missing skills that matter for the job
You’ll fully understand how to match the Art Direction, style, and workflow of the studios you’re targeting
Content for the week :
Understanding Seniors and Art Directors Artistic Mind
Understanding Seniors and Art Directors Process
How to properly measure your work agains senior artists
How to close the technical gap with Seniors fast
How to level-up efficiently : the 80/20 rule for artists
And to accelerate your progress :
The A/B Comparison Blueprint A complete checklist to evaluate your work side by side with the pros, without missing a single detail
Homework resources, real examples, and demos So you know exactly what to do at every step of the process
Week 3 : Crafting the Key
Defining, Planning and Referencing your Targeted Portfolio
By the end of the week :
You have the ideal portfolio subject, tailored to tick all the boxes the companies you are aiming at, and planned so all you have to do now is draw
Once the 1st chapter of your portfolio is done, you'll stand out positively and you’ll be able to start applying immediately
You’ll know exactly how to present your work, making your portfolio a smooth, professional, and enjoyable experience for any reviewer
Content for the week :
Finding a portfolio subject that is Relevant, Understandable and Design-Heavy
How to tick all the boxes of studios as fast as possible with your work
How to properly plan, structure and research your portfolio
How to avoid the most common traps when working on your Portfolio
How to elevate the quality of your work with proper paging
And to accelerate your progress :
Portfolio Structure examples for every single Concept Art Specialty Every specialty has different nuances, we cover them all. Pick a structure, apply your subject, and your planning is done
Banger, Safe and Fresh portfolio subject suggestion list 150+ curated subject ideas, organized by category, for when you’re stuck or want inspiration
Portfolio Content and Design Roll Tables In case you need some interesting twists to your designs, showing your attention to details
Homework resources, real examples, and demos So you know exactly what to do at every step of the process
Week 4 : Disarming the Traps
Nailing the Hiring Process
By the end of the week :
You’ll eliminate 99.9% of the non-artistic reasons recruiters disqualify candidates, and gain an unfair advantage over 95% of other applicants
You’ll remove the stress around hiring, interviews, art tests, and negotiations, by knowing exactly what to expect and how to prepare
You’ll know how to send 10 targeted applications per day in under an hour and negotiate better offers with real arguments
Content for the week :
How to present your portfolio professionally and make a strong first impression
Artstation Algorithm Explained
How to beat the ATS
How to make a banger CV and avoid being disqualified with it
How to write a relevant cover letter to score points when being read
How to Nail Industry Gathering Events
How to prepare for and succeed in interviews, even under pressure
How to nail Art Tests
How to win against Loaded Questions during Interviews
The most common interview mistakes and traps and how to avoid them
How to negotiate properly and secure a decent salary with real arguments, not just a salary average you found online
How to spot legal red flags in contracts and protect yourself from abusive clauses
And to accelerate your progress :
Email Skeletons written by a professional Copywriter To send 10 Relevant and Personalized Emails to Studios or Pros in less than 1 hour of work, without ever sounding like a LinkedIn Bro or like you copy-pasted some crap from Google or ChatGPT. No more artists spending 3 hours writing an email while crying
Complete HR Interview Breakdown The Good, the Bad and the Ugly explained to you
Interview Preparation Checklist Includes answers to Loaded Questions and how to defuse them
ATS-Friendly CV and Letter Files Don't get disqualified by a robot before your work can get reviewed
Wolf of Art Street : Advanced Negotiation Tactics How to get paid with real Money instead of a Foosball table and a Nespresso Machine
Week 5 : Harvesting Rewards
Once you get hired, replicating the process to access the next step of your career
By the end of the week :
You'll know how to increase your Rates/Salary and climb the hierarchy
You know how to stabilize your career and have several clients in parallel rather than staying one layoff away from being jobless
You know how to protect yourself from Crunch and Drama and Corporate Politics in the Industry without burning bridges
Video Course :
Professional Etiquette : how to protect your reputation
Corporate World Survival Guide
Salary vs Freelance Career Growth
How to raise your Rates/Salary and get a Promotion
How to navigate Corporate Politics & High Positions
International Pricing explained
Tax Structures explained
How to build Abundance, Security and Comfort as a Professional Artist
How to Network effortlessly
How to remain happy and fulfilled at work
And to accelerate your progress :
Lifetime access to all workshops, including sessions with past, current, and future mentees. Continue to learn and evolve even after the mentorship sessions end
Lifetime Access to Alumni Private Community Your direct access to pros who went through the same process as you and can help you
Tax & Business structures explained How to increase your purchasing power thanks to company expenses
Follow up and Feedback
We build your entire portfolio together We help you in your job research until you get one
Benefits:
You'll get guidance, feedback and support from start to finish while working on your Portfolio so it is as good as you possibly can
You'll be surrounded with hard-working, like-minded and benevolent artists and professionals every single day
You get help for the hiring process and negotiation, and continued support until you land the job
What to expect :
Weekly access to live feedback sessions
Community Feedback available anytime you want
Extra content and resources based on community requests
Lifetime access to all future updates of the Mentorship
Active promotion of your work to our network of studios
Studio recommendations when your profile matches their needs, if you’ve shown commitment and progress
Extra workshop and presentations, including from studios
And to accelerate your progress :
Your own private feedback channel Every time you need feedback, you post your work, request a review, and once a week everyone in need gets individual feedback like your personal art director
Access to all group feedback sessions : watch others get reviewed and learn from every critique
IRL meetups at industry events with personal support to help you connect and network with professionals
The best, most curated and hard-working Art Community available worldwide
Here are some of the results from our Mentees
Here is what they have to say about The Art Nest
You are close to or above junior level and want to get Guidance until you get a job?
Let's work together !
Next Class Starts on May 18th
Enrollment ends on May 15th
You want more reviews?
Click here
Frequently Asked Questions
If you want to do it properly, you can count between 4h30 and 6 hours of work per week for the homework
For the video course, there is an average of 1h30 of videos to watch per week, these are delivered on Saturdays so you can watch them during the week-end
This leads us to around 6 to 8 hours of work total per week for the work
The group sessions assume around 30 mins per student. So on average these should last 3 to 4 hours
No worries, if you have to leave, these are recorded and available as replays almost immediately after they are done
Yes ! And available as replays almost immediately after they are done !
If you watched the Free Course, you can confidently apply when you reach Commission Hell / Semi-Pro level or above.
If you are unsure about your level, feel free to apply anyways, if you show the right mindset, there is no problem to allow you into the mentorship.
However, if you are under that level, be aware that you will have to do extra work or work for a longer period of time after the 5 weeks in order to reach pro level.
We got people attending the mentorship while they were about to start a year in Art School and it still benefited them tremendously !
All that matters is the right mindset
All the communication and Group Sessions will happen on Discord
The Video Course and sessions replays will be available on Systeme.io
There are 2 sessions per week : one on Mondays, the other on Thursdays I'm running 2 classes in parallel each of these days, one from 1:30pm to 5:30pm CET and the other from 8:00pm to Midnight CET
This allows us to cover everyone's availabilities and timezones
You can join any of these that suit you best and you spectate the other if you want.
English
A microphone, an internet connection, and if you want a webcam
For the work, just your usual gear and softwares
We understand that unexpected events occur
If you happen to miss a session, don't worry, you can watch the replay and we will make time during the next session for you to catch up
In the event of multiple absences, we will work together to devise a suitable catch-up plan, provided this benefit is not exploited
It depends on how much time you have available every week for your portfolio.
Some former mentees able to work full time on their portfolio managed to make it in 3 months
Some other mentees, working a full-time job, took 6 months to craft their portfolios
In any case, for as long as you do the work, I keep working with you until you get a job
This mentorship is a portfolio-building one and focused on the professional part of the job, not just the technical part of art
However, this mentorship is meant to get you to level-up A LOT
You have seen some Before/After on that page already, you can see way more here
In Week 1 and 2 we discuss in depth about the art techniques and tools you need to develop
During Week 4 and 5 you will also do a "test piece" and receive feedback and paintovers on it. It is a crucial step in preparing for your full portfolio
And for every piece of your portfolio, you will be pushed to the maximum of your abilities and beyond
While the mentorship is Job-Agnostic and could easily be transposed to any artistic role in the Industry, I currently work solely with Concept Artists and Illustrators.
This is my expertise and I want to ensure anyone in the mentorship gets as much value as I can possibly give them.
Absolutely !
As I said, I Art Directed and Oversaw several projects and classes that were stylized, the principles are the same !
This happens quite frequently as our dream jobs are often very high-end companies hiring only seniors.
While there might always be some exceptions to that rule, it is crucial to accept that as part of our artistic journey, it is part of the process to find some companies hiring juniors, start there and keep working on our professional journey by applying the same framework explained in the mentorship.
Exactly as you did for that first job, you apply the framework again for the next job, then the next one, then eventually your dream job.
Again, it is all about perseverance and doing the work to become the perfect candidate for that company, and this is exactly what this course is about.
In this case, the course/mentorship is perfect for you because you will need to strongly target a company that wants you enough to either relocate you or let you work remotely.
Also, after the world changed massively with Covid, the industry realized that it can still function very well with remote work, and this allowed a lot more companies to hire people regardless of their location. Also it sparked the creation of a lot of remote outsourcing studios.
These are massive advantages for us.
Totally !
And actually around half of our past mentees were already working their first or second job in small studios.
It's very likely that you have accomplished part of what is mentioned in the mentorship without ever deeply thinking about it and understanding how it works universally, or else the studio you are part of was more flexible on their requirements than the AAA industry.
The mentorship is there to get you out of your comfort zone and allow you to move forward by understanding how to aim for the next step in your career, whether you're just starting in art or already have a few years of experience behind you.
Additionally, the mentorship will likely help you increase your rates.
Because I've been successfully applying this formula with students for over 6 years.
Because I went from art school dropout to AAA Concept Artist to Art Director using this exact process, all of that while actually not being a massively popular artist in the industry or with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram.
Because I have more than enough results from my former mentees to prove my method works and I share these results all the time in total transparency. These speak louder than any word or marketing tactics.
Because you can ask any current/former mentee on The Art Nest Discord about the mentorship if you want and I know the mentorship will be heavily recommended.
And because very little to no other mentorship online is solely focused on that other 50% of the artist's job and providing that much content about it.
Still don't trust me? Have a look at the Free Course to let what I do speak for me.