The ZeeGee Experience (Pt. 2 - Settling In)

I've survived two weeks of my production internship at ZeeGee Games, and things are going pretty smoothly. I've got two projects on my plate currently. While I was initially a bit disappointed they aren't game projects, I've gotten a chance to familiarize myself with them and am really excited about their potential.

The one I've been more heavily involved with, and one I feel like discussing this week, is a new IP (that is, a comic) for the ZeeGee Reader iPhone app, which is an interactive comic book reader. We've been working on some upgrades to the Reader software and reskinning the app to tie it more closely to the theme of the new IP. The team is comprised of just a lone programmer and an art intern from UCF that started on Wednesday last week. Luckily, they're both rockstars, which makes my job much easier. I just let them know what needs to get done each day, and they make it happen. I know just enough about both programming and art to be suitably awed, and perhaps a little frightened, by the arcane arts these two practice. I should be able to talk more about the Reader project within the next month or so I believe, but again, I'm so focused on the day-to-day I haven't remembered the long term details.

I came in at an interesting time on this project; although a lot of the foundational tech was already created with previous comics for the Reader, the upgrades and new IP have made this seem like a whole new project. I had the opportunity to create the sprint tracking spreadsheet for the project and I've been e-mailing the client regularly to request art assets or copy. While the some of the actual tasks I'm doing are somewhat dull, I do enjoy the unpredictability of everything. It's all about the barely controlled chaos. I go in each morning having an idea of what I'm going to be doing that day, but then find we got some new assets or new requests from the client and my plan goes out the window. Which is a lot of fun, really.

I've felt fortunate too that everyone at ZeeGee has been so helpful and cooperative. Chris (Oltyan, Director of Product Development) and Max (Voelker, Producer) have been great. Their advice, constructive criticism, and praise have all been invaluable in making the adaptation to the job as painless as possible. ZeeGee has got a pretty awesome corporate culture all around, and I really appreciate the fact that everyone's input during meetings is welcomed and valued.

Anyway, that's all I got for now. One final piece of advice: Remember that you can't spell "assets" without first typing "ass," and you'll find an unexpected source of amusement all day long.