SEAN KEETON
Art Director / Artist     seankeeton@gmail.com     seankeeton.art


Expertise

Art Direction / 3D Modeling & Texturing / Concept Art / Animation / Painting / Photoshop / Maya / Unity / ZBrush / 3ds Max / AnimateCC / Illustrator / After Effects / Jira / Console / Steam / Browser / Mobile / MMORPG / Games-as-Service / UGC / F2P

Work Summary

Art Director & Art department head
Hidden Variable Studios | June 2016 – Present

Spellomancer (Steam game: currently in Alpha)

  • Lead the art department in creation of new IP and game

  • Identify, test, hire & manage remote and internal artists

  • Art direct everything in the game from the characters and world to the animation, weapons, vfx, and ui

Skullgirls Mobile (mobile F2P games-as-service)

  • Lead the art department in creation of new game

  • Revamp & expand IP to become cross platform games-as-service

  • Develop art styles, create art bibles, define workflows

  • Identify, test, hire & manage remote and internal artists

  • Provide direction, paint-overs, notes to maintain vision & quality

  • Create art solutions to gameplay, player acquisition, retention needs

  • Create mockups, characters, animation, UI & other 2D/3D assets

  • ~360K DAU ~2.1M MAU ~608K Peak DAU ~3M Peak MAU and ~$455K average monthly revenue

Skullgirls 2nd Encore (Steam & console game)

  • Revive & expand dormant IP

  • Identify, hire & manage artists

  • Direct team of animators & artists in creation of characters, stages, vfx, & promotional materials

  • Provide direction, paint-overs, notes to maintain vision & quality

Art Director
SEGA Networks | Nov 2014 – Mar 2016

Cranky Food Friends (mobile F2P games-as-service)

  • Designed new IP that tested well with target audience

  • Provided direction, paint-overs, notes to maintain vision & quality

  • Defined workflows, set deadlines, kept team motivated & on schedule

  • Created mockups, characters, animation & other art assets

SENIOR ARTIST
SEGA Networks | OCT 2013 — Nov 2014

Spiral Knights & Puzzle Pirates (Steam F2P games-as-service MMORPG)

  • Designed assets

  • Created 3D avatars, NPCs, buildings, props, ground tiles & weapons

  • Created 2D icons & UI elements

Lead Artist
Three Rings Design | Mar 2012 – Oct 2013

Spellwood (mobile game)

  • Created IP

  • Designed art style

  • Designed and created characters, backgrounds, items & UI

  • Defined workflows, kept art team motivated & on schedule

  • Provided direction, paint-overs, notes to maintain vision & quality

Artist
Three Rings Design | Jan 2008 – Mar 2012

Puzzle Pirates (UGC, PC games-as-service MMORPG), How to Train Your Dragon: Dragon Academy (PC game), Whirled (UGC, F2P games-as-service browser), Bang Howdy! (PC games-as-service), Downtown (browser games-as-service)

  • Designed and created assets

  • Created 3D avatars, NPCs, buildings, props, ground tiles & weapons

  • Created 2D avatar assets, NPC characters, icons, and UI elements

Personal brand

Owner operator
Sean Keeton Art | Mar 2016 – Present

  • Created and ran independent art & merchandise brand

  • Collaborated with projects & brands to expand reach

  • Hired & art directed assistants

  • Paintings exhibited in galleries: Thinkspace, Giant Robot, Gallery 1988, & Gallery Nucleus

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

  • 2024 Solo Show: Thinkspace Projects, Rebirth, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Andrew Hosner)

  • 2024 Nucleus Portland, Post Card Show, Portland, OR (curated by Stella Ischan)

  • 2024 Giant Robot, 30 Year Anniversary, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2024 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, Five by Seven, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2024 Nucleus Portland, Salut 9, Portland, OR (curated by Stella Ichsan)

  • 2024 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, Rakugaki 6, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2024 Wonderfrontfest, 1dropwater, San Diego, CA

  • 2024 Gallery 1988, The Sci-Fi Show, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Scott Listfield)

  • 2023 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, 8x8, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2023 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, Multimater, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2023 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, Rakugaki 5, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2022 Muzeo Museum & Cultural Center, Houdini Unchained, Anaheim, CA (curated by Clark Silva)

  • 2022 Times Square Billboards, New York, NY

  • 2022 La Luz De Jesus, EBTKS, Los Angeles, CA

  • 2022 Nucleus Portland, Salut 7, Portland, OR (curated by Stella Ichsan)

  • 2022 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, Rakugaki 4, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Eric Nakamura)

  • 2021 Gallery 1988, Crazy 4 Cult, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Jensen Karp)

  • 2021 Nucleus Portland, Salut 6, Portland, OR (curated by Stella Ichsan)

  • 2021 Gallery 1988, oNE Sheet, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Jensen Karp)

  • 2021 Gallery 1988, 30 Years Later, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Jensen Karp)

  • 2020 Nucleus Portland, Salut 5, Portland, OR (curated by Stella Ichsan)

  • 2020 Gabba Gallery, No Pants Required, Los Angeles, CA

  • 2020 Gallery Nucleus, PIN 5, Alhambra, CA

  • 2020 Featured Artist #1: The Hive Gallery, Hive Tarot 11, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Nathan Cartwright)

  • 2019 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, The Post-It Show 15, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Mark Todd)

  • 2018 Giant Robot 2 Gallery, The Post-It Show 14, Los Angeles, CA (curated by Mark Todd)

  • 2018 Featured Artist: Garage Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

ANIMATION SCREENINGS

  • My animated shorts have been featured in the following:

  • 2007 Channel Frederator: Episode 83

  • 2006 I Castelli Animati Festival

  • 2005 The Nicktoons Animation Festival

  • 2005 Stash DVD Magazine: Issue 14

  • 2004 SoFA Honors Show

  • 2001 SoFA Honors Show

EDUCATION

  • Rochester Institute Of Technology: BFA, Animation

  • Summa Cum Laude (Top 1% of graduating class)

  • Outstanding Undergraduate Scholar Award

  • RIT Presidential Scholarship

  • R. Bruce Reinecker Art Scholarship

  • Edward J. Blounstein Distinguished Scholar Award