Realtime.xyz – Alibaba customer – (China)
.XYZ’s reputation as a domain for innovative creatives has inspired talented individuals from around the globe to join the movement and develop their own portfolio websites on .xyz domains. England-based artist and cultural producer Rocca Holly-Nambi shares her portfolio on Rocca.xyz. Philippines-based tech designer Brian Tan uses BrianTan.xyz to share his design projects as well as news about his local chapter of Effective Altruism. Austria-based Aleyda Rocha uses AleydaRocha.xyz to demonstrate her work as a researcher and artist. In this week’s #WebsiteWednesday, we spoke with a China-based visual effects designer who understands the importance of VFX artist portfolio websites to display your work as a visual creative: Realtime.xyz.
Realtime.xyz is the online portfolio of visual effects (VFX) designer Yue Jia. Yue is a VFX Director for Shanghai-based game developer and global publisher, XD Inc. He shared with us that he is an experienced real-time VFX artist, and previously worked as a designer for Epic Games where he worked on popular games such as Fortnite and Paragon. Real-time VFX artists apply real-time technology to game design. With this technology, the game’s response to the player’s command is nearly immediate, which is known as “real-time.”
Portfolio websites are very helpful for anyone to showcase their work and further their careers. A portfolio website can let your work speak for itself and help set you apart from your competition. When asked if he thinks it’s important for VFX designers to have a website, Yue said “Absolutely! Visual artists presenting their own works is an important way to build a brand. What can be more attractive than having a URL with your own unique domain name and custom-designed content?” We also inquired as to what helped him decide to build his website on a .xyz domain. He told us, quite simply, “I like the sense of mystery .xyz gave me.”
A visually striking splash page containing clips of Yue’s projects is the first thing a visitor sees when loading Realtime.xyz. These vignettes include imagery of robots, a red and hazy doomscape, electric blue portals, deserted temples, and more. Visitors can gain an immediate understanding of Yue’s experience and skill in video game design as soon as they land on his website. The work in Yue’s splash page inspired us to ask him if he has a favorite project, and where he finds his inspiration. He told us, “My favorite project is the next one, and my inspiration is from the world’s best games and film effects, as well as the scenery of nature.”
Aspiring VFX creators can develop skills by taking Yue’s online courses. He told us, “I am now setting up course content step-by-step to serve practitioners in the game industry. Yes, in the future I plan to have more excellent and professional course content.” The Course page of Realtime.xyz provides detailed information about Yue’s course content options. Interested students can create a login and purchase their classes of interest. Yue implements the online on-demand method which means that users can log in to the website at any time to pick up where they left off. One of the courses he teaches is on Niagara, one of Unreal Engine’s advanced VFX development tools. Epic Games developed the Unreal Engine platform in 1998 and uses it to build their own games, including Fortnite, Gears of War, and Unreal Tournament. Yue states in the course description that while at Epic, his main work was centered around the use of Niagara.
We enjoy learning about the inspirations that drive the career choices and other paths of our .xyz community. Yue told us about the inspiration behind his pursuit of a career in VFX. “We all have had those little fantasies since we were young, the rabbit on the moon, stars that can be picked, I just persisted a little longer.” He also spoke more of the draw of .xyz domains. “.XYZ reminds me of the concept of ‘unknown’, and it is a very cool word that attracts artists, especially VFX artists.”
Choosing a strong, memorable domain name is beneficial because they’re easier to remember, repeat, and type. Smart creatives use their website URL as an opportunity to make a lasting impression on potential clients and collaborators, and set themselves apart from others in the industry. With Realtime.xyz, Yue has a domain name that makes a statement, indicates his expertise, and sticks in potential users’ minds. He believes his .xyz domain helps him reach his audience. “I think it makes the audience feel I am different. There are obvious differences between .xyz and regular domain names such as .com and .net, which will blow people away. It will be even better if the audience can also feel the ‘unknown’ charm that I like.”
We are very appreciative of this opportunity to speak with Yue. We are excited to see more of his work, and look forward to seeing more VFX artist portfolio websites populate the .xyz community. You can learn more by following Yue on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Bilibili (one of the most popular video content sites in China) and by visiting Realtime.xyz.
XYZ is proud to share about the many incredible members that make up the XYZ community! We encourage you to do your own research before using the products and services of the websites we feature. The information about products and services contained in this blog post does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by XYZ.
