Surviving Audio Layoffs Asbjoern Andersen


Working in game audio offers fantastic opportunities for audio professionals, but game development is also a volatile industry where mass layoffs and sudden studio closures are all-too-frequent. How do you deal with a layoff in game audio? What are the crucial next steps to take? How do you bounce back? That's what we're looking to help with in this new series.

We're looking at it from a game audio perspective, but the vast majority of advice in this series will apply to anyone working in audio:


By Jennifer Walden and Asbjoern Andersen
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Animal Hyperrealism IV Is Here!
Part 1: Insights from Damian Kastbauer

Damian Kastbauer
In this first installment, we talk to Damian Kastbauer — a Software Product Manager at Audiokinetic who is currently working to grow Wwise audio authoring with help from the interactive audio community. He spent years as a technical sound designer bridging the gap between content creators and game engines, striving towards a realization of dynamic sound.

He is the co-founder of the Game Audio Podcast and author of a two-volume collection of articles titled “Tales of a Technical Sound Designer”

Here, Kastbauer shares his experience of and advice for surviving a layoff:

 

Change is Good


You hear it all the time, coupled with the realization that change is also: difficult, stressful, transformative, and ultimately a good thing. When a layoff comes around (as it has for me twice over the last 5 years since making the jump from freelance to in-house), it’s been equal parts frightening and exhilarating. Many of us have felt that “fear of the unknown” and been sent spiraling out-of-control towards dark places where employment and happiness don’t exist.

Meanwhile, the excitement of what challenges await are often enough to send the mind reeling in a million directions all at once towards a choose-your-own-adventure of possibilities that may exist in the real world. How one passes through this maelstrom of mega-meta-heaviness is a personal journey. Here are a few things that have helped me in my time.
 

Slow Down Time


Every moment counts, but you won’t get through a layoff by counting the moments. Whatever you can do to slow the feeling of time passing will be to your benefit. This doesn’t have to mean idleness and deliberation but you should recognize the opportunity to re-frame the flow of time now that you’ve been forcibly removed from the normalcy of the working-week. Watch the foliage sway for longer than you’d usually feel comfortable; take a prolific walk; build a routine around savoring the moments between being productive at job hunting.

You should recognize the opportunity to re-frame the flow of time now that you’ve been forcibly removed from the normalcy of the working-week

The first layoff I experienced found me rewiring my guitar effects pedalboard. The second afforded some time to give the upstairs bathroom a long-overdue glow-up. These focus-opportunities operate on two levels — they provide a space to work through the thoughts in your head in-between accomplishing a task and, if you’re lucky, the successful completion of said task will help reinforce your feelings of ability and competency.

When you look back at your time in between jobs, there should be some space where you allowed yourself to embrace the change quietly and contemplatively while also feeding a feeling of tiny victories and accomplishments.
 

Get Outside Your Head


Flooded with ideas, concerns, opportunities, potentials, and fear you might find yourself reaching a saturation point. There is only so much that a one-sided conversation inside your own head can advance these things during the process of finding a new way of life. Find people who can allow for your internal process to unfold in whatever way you’re able to express it.

There is only so much that a one-sided conversation inside your own head can advance these things during the process of finding a new way of life

These conversations might dead-end on a moment’s notice once spoken out-loud or more often be lent a valuable perspective from someone outside of the situation. Within the art of conversation there lies a delicate dance between output and input; make sure you’re spending as much time actively listening as you are translating the words rattling around in your head to speech. Find the right moments to jump off the deep end into these discussions and leave space in between for processing.

Regardless of what you take away from these conversations, be sure to honor the process by bringing your honesty into the equation and valuing the contributions of those you involve both personally and professionally.
 

[tweet_box]Guide: How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer[/tweet_box]

Recognize Your Value


It’s difficult not to take a layoff personally. The feeling of rejection and being unneeded by an employer can strike a blow at a person’s vitality. While a business arrives at a layoff for a myriad of reasons, they are not often personally directed — which is to say that their decision to lay people off is not usually a reflection of the persons affected. Find a way to acknowledge and move through the feelings that accompany the change and recognize the contribution you bring to the industry. Take time to catalog your successes and use them as a jumping-off point in the direction of your next endeavor.

While a business arrives at a layoff for a myriad of reasons, they are not often personally directed — which is to say that their decision to lay people off is not usually a reflection of the persons affected

These accomplishments might just lead the way towards the next fulfilling opportunity, or at least help the healing process as you move forward.

A layoff doesn’t change the good work that you’ve done or the path that you’re on professionally; it is a moment of destabilization in a long-running career that stretches out before you.
 

Dream the Big Dream


Unshackled from the day-to-day, let your mind wander in the direction of pure bliss. Entertain the what-if scenarios you may have set aside while gainfully employed. Breathe life into the dreams that have been waiting in the wings for a chance to fly and imagine the possibilities. Build bridges to those desirable futures in whatever way you’re able; talk about potentials with colleagues and find clarity towards paths that might motivate your pursuit of these dreams. A layoff is a moment to employ the concept of radical acceptance; embrace the circumstances, look at your immediate surroundings, quickly come to terms with the current state of affairs, and be ready to meet the road as it rises to meet your feet.

Sometimes knowing the “what” can help shed light on the “how” when it comes to lining up the next thing. The more clarity you have on the question of where you want to end up, the easier it can be to chart a path to it.


Popular on A Sound Effect right now - article continues below:


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    Mattia Cellotto’s extraordinary sound libraries are some of the most popular releases in independent sound effects – and here’s your chance to get them all at a nice discount. Here’s what’s you get:

    NEW: ANIMAL HYPERREALISM IV contains animal vocalisations – from hippos, hyenas, vultures, dwarf mongooses, elephants, African cranes, parrots, tigers, pigmy hippos, rhea ostriches, to brown bears, pheasants, wildebeests, African wild dogs and many more. Features 2000 individual sounds in 294 files.
     

    CATACLYSM is a collection more than 1400 sounds in 400+ files of recorded, synthesized and designed sounds created to support important destructive moments and add a stronger sense of extreme consequence to any sound.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL I is a library containing themed animal vocalisations & sounds, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 1300 individual sounds in 290 files.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL II is a library containing themed animal sounds & vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 2000 individual sounds in 283 files.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL III is a library containing sounds themed animal vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 1700 individual sounds in 279 files.
     

    METAMORPHOSIS is a huge collection of recorded source, synthesized material and hybrid sounds – more than 2300 sounds total.
     

    GLACIER ICE is a library containing over 300 high quality sounds of ice cracking, breaking, shattering in various sizes of blocks – recorded entirely in the Italian Alps over the course of two winters.
     

    POLARITY delivers more than 950 sounds of electricity, science and technology – captured in several locations around the world, from electricity museums to science labs.
     

    ULTRASONIC DRY ICE is a library containing over 600 sounds themed metal resonances, scrapes and all sorts of weird.
     

    ROCKS MOMENTUM gets you more than 1100 sounds of rocks, bricks, wood logs, stones, impacting on different surfaces, rolling, being scraped one against the other and so on. The library was recorded in the Italian alps, and in Inverness, Scotland.
     

    WATER VOLUMES delivers you over 300 sounds of natural hot-springs, bubbles, and liquids of various densities boiling under the effect of dry ice.
     

    METAL GROANS AND SLAMS is a library for which metal was kicked, hammered, bowed and… induced to vibrate through feedback loops?! The collection features 346 unique sounds recorded through field trips in US, UK and Italy.
     

    CRUNCH MODE & THE BORAX EXPERIMENT are also included as a bonus: Crunch Mode features 230 crunchy sounds made with a variety of vegetables, fresh bread, pizza crust & frozen goods, and The Borax Experiment gets you 158 squishy, gory, slimy, gooey SFX.
     

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    BROKEN
    Car crashes, explosions, crumbling buildings, earthquakes, ripping earth and metal, to debris, and more.


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    Punches, kicks, blocks, bodyfalls, grabs, slaps, bone breaks, blood splatters, and more.


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  • PLANES & HELICOPTERS contains flybys, takeoffs, and landings of 13 aircraft models and 5 helicopter models, including small and medium-range passenger planes, private jets, tiny planes and firefighting aircraft. Recorded as close as possible to the aircraft, in airports. You’ll find turbojet, turboprop, and propeller-powered aircrafts. You’ll also find military and civilian helicopters sound effects.
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Always be Preparing

Every conversation resonates. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there is always a value to sharing your experience with other people. If you recognize the value of your contribution to conversations in the community, or within your personal relationships, you begin to build a support system that can help unlock some of the suggestions expressed throughout this article.

If you were at Game Developers Conference this year, there’s a high likelihood that I shared my process with you during a time when the unknown loomed like a cloud over my San Francisco experience

During my last layoff, I called on family, old friends, new friends, colleagues, and strangers to help me understand my career aspirations and job intentions. If you were at Game Developers Conference this year, there’s a high likelihood that I shared my process with you during a time when the unknown loomed like a cloud over my San Francisco experience. I valued being able to share my experience, and folks shared theirs’ in exchange, working towards a better understanding of how to align my dreams with the reality of a paycheck (which isn’t to say that any of these conversations resulted in a paycheck, necessarily). Sometimes timing doesn’t align with a person’s ability to help in a measurable way. Engaging with folks in these kinds of discussions should come with no expectations. It’s sometimes difficult to see the wheels turning behind-the-scenes and it’s important to value every discussion and bring your best self.

Recognize that your professional (and personal) journey with people doesn’t just happen between jobs; it’s a skill that needs to be cultivated throughout your career (and life) towards a better understanding of the world.
 

 

Start Right Away


It’s my hope that in years past I’ve been able to help support others on their quest for job security — whether this is by being a good listener, providing honest opinions and encouragement, or by putting folks directly in touch with others who might help them on their personal journey. Building a support system for a future destabilization starts by providing that support to others when they’re in need. Ideally, this support is easier to give during times when the stability of your own situation is well established, but even in the midst of upheaval, there are opportunities to be the quiet in another person’s storm and give them a lift towards their future.

Nothing about these suggestions suggests that any of this is easy; as they say, nothing worth doing ever is. In the long campaign of any career, the successes are measured by a single step in the right direction arriving eventually at one’s goal. Taking the time to understand where you’re headed when life gives you an opportunity to slow down, check-in with yourself, and read the signs will make the journey more pleasant and hopefully land you on-target. The people you involve along the way, how you engage, and how you honor and respect their perspectives can make all the difference.

A big thanks to Damian Kastbauer for sharing his insights and experiences on this oftentimes difficult subject! Meet him on Twitter here, and stay tuned for upcoming episodes in this series.

If you’ve got any input on how to cope with layoffs in game audio (or audio in general), please share your thoughts in the comments below:

 

 



Power Lists - essential audio resources and insights:

• The Sound Design Power List

• The Game Audio Power List

• The Film Sound Power List

 
  Succeed in sound:

• How to Set (and Get) the Right Price for Your Audio Work

• 10 Essential Tips for Game Audio Freelancers

• How to be a successful sound designer – with Scott Gershin

• How To Actually Live as an Audio Freelancer – by Melissa Pons

• How to set your sonic creativity free & overcome creative inhibitions – by Mark Kilborn

• 5 Useful Tips for Upcoming Sound Designers and Sound Editors

• Sound Opinions: How to get game audio pricing right

• Building a successful audio post studio – with Kate Finan and Jeff Shiffman

• Rebuilding your studio: Goals, tips and lessons learned

• Creating audio for games – with Martin Stig Andersen

• A life in sound: How to foster creativity and protect yourself from burning out – with Chance Thomas

• Better audio work habits: How a Wacom Tablet can help reduce the risk of Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI)

• Better audio work habits: How a sit & standing desk can reduce your sedentary studio life

• Tips and thoughts on running your own audio post production house – with William McGuigan

• 30+ year audio veteran Andy Greenberg, on building client relationships in the advertising industry

• 7 Sound Alternatives to Working For Free

• Audio Outsourcing Success: Essential Tips, Thoughts and Working Practices from Adele Cutting

 
 
The sound success series:

• How to succeed in UI/UX Sound Design, ADR Recording, & Audio Programming

• How to succeed in sound design for Film, Documentaries, and Trailers

• How to succeed in sound design for Games, Animation, and Television

How to succeed in Field Recording, Foley, and Teaching Sound

• How to succeed in Audio Branding, Music Editing, and sound for VR

• How to succeed in Theater Sound Design, Podcast Sound Design, and Podcast Production

• How to succeed in Sound Editing, Sound for Advertising, and Production Sound

• How to succeed in Sound Editing, Sound for Advertising, and Production Sound

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Film – ft. Pinar Toprak, Nainita Desai, & Jonathan Snipes

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for TV – ft. Charlie Clouser, Sherri Chung, & Cindy O’Connor

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Theatre – ft. Elyssa Samsel, Kate Anderson, and Daniel Kluger

• The Composer Success Series: Composing for Games – ft. Inon Zur

 
Breaking into audio – guides and resources:

• The ‘Quit Aspiring’ book – by Adam Croft

• How to get hired in game audio – thoughts and insights from your potential employer’s perspective

• Why gear is not the ticket to entry in the game audio community

• 4 Effective Ways to Break into Game Audio

• Tips for Creating a Perfect Resume for Audio Industry Jobs

• Yet Another Game Audio Hiring Article – by Ariel Gross

• 5 Tips for Getting a Job in the Audio Industry

• Applying for a job in game audio – by Matthew Florianz

• Freelance Game Audio: Getting Started and finding work – by Ashton Morris

• How to get started (and make it) in game audio – 10+ fundamental questions answered by Akash Thakkar

• Courses: How to network and get paid for your work in the game industry – by Akash Thakkar

• How to Craft a Perfect Cover Letter for Audio Industry Jobs
 
 
Finding those audio jobs:

• Get the weekly Audio Jobs newsletter

• Join the Audio Jobs Facebook group
 
 
Showcasing your work:
 
• Get a free profile on Soundlister

• Upload your demos to Soundcloud

• Upload your demos to ReelCrafter
 
 
Networking:
 
• Find game audio community groups around the world

• Find interesting audio events around the world

• Find other audio pros around the world
 
 
Coping with a layoff - and how to bounce back:

• How to prepare for – and power through – a layoff in the game audio industry, with Brian Schmidt:

• How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer

• What it’s like to be laid off from your video game studio

• What To Do Before and After Being Laid Off

• Facebook Group: Survival Skills for Creatives
 
 
Education and knowledge:
 
• Get an audio mentor at the Audio Mentoring Project

• How To Learn Game Audio Online – A talk with Game Audio Educator Leonard Paul

• Hear the very best podcasts about sound

• Read the 100s of sound stories and guides on the A Sound Effect blog (search for stories here)

• Browse Industry Data: Game Music and Sound Design Salary Survey Results

• Browse 100+ Sound Design Guides

• Find essential books about sound – for film, games and audio post production

• Get tips and ideas for making your own sound effects

• Use the Audio Events Calendar to find audio-related events around the globe

• Get a steady stream of great sound stories from the community

• Discover 1000s of sound libraries from the independent sound community

• Take online courses in Wwise, FMOD Studio, Unity, Pure Data & Unreal at the School of Video Game Audio
 
 
Getting into independent sound effects:
 
• DIY SFX libraries - Your guide to your first sound effects library

• Sound effects survey results: Here are 90+ ideas for new SFX libraries

• How to create an indie sound bundle

• The quick-start guide to adding sound FX library metadata
 

Please share this:


 



 
 
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A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:

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    Mattia Cellotto’s extraordinary sound libraries are some of the most popular releases in independent sound effects – and here’s your chance to get them all at a nice discount. Here’s what’s you get:

    NEW: ANIMAL HYPERREALISM IV contains animal vocalisations – from hippos, hyenas, vultures, dwarf mongooses, elephants, African cranes, parrots, tigers, pigmy hippos, rhea ostriches, to brown bears, pheasants, wildebeests, African wild dogs and many more. Features 2000 individual sounds in 294 files.
     

    CATACLYSM is a collection more than 1400 sounds in 400+ files of recorded, synthesized and designed sounds created to support important destructive moments and add a stronger sense of extreme consequence to any sound.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL I is a library containing themed animal vocalisations & sounds, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 1300 individual sounds in 290 files.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL II is a library containing themed animal sounds & vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 2000 individual sounds in 283 files.
     

    ANIMAL HYPERREALISM VOL III is a library containing sounds themed animal vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 1700 individual sounds in 279 files.
     

    METAMORPHOSIS is a huge collection of recorded source, synthesized material and hybrid sounds – more than 2300 sounds total.
     

    GLACIER ICE is a library containing over 300 high quality sounds of ice cracking, breaking, shattering in various sizes of blocks – recorded entirely in the Italian Alps over the course of two winters.
     

    POLARITY delivers more than 950 sounds of electricity, science and technology – captured in several locations around the world, from electricity museums to science labs.
     

    ULTRASONIC DRY ICE is a library containing over 600 sounds themed metal resonances, scrapes and all sorts of weird.
     

    ROCKS MOMENTUM gets you more than 1100 sounds of rocks, bricks, wood logs, stones, impacting on different surfaces, rolling, being scraped one against the other and so on. The library was recorded in the Italian alps, and in Inverness, Scotland.
     

    WATER VOLUMES delivers you over 300 sounds of natural hot-springs, bubbles, and liquids of various densities boiling under the effect of dry ice.
     

    METAL GROANS AND SLAMS is a library for which metal was kicked, hammered, bowed and… induced to vibrate through feedback loops?! The collection features 346 unique sounds recorded through field trips in US, UK and Italy.
     

    CRUNCH MODE & THE BORAX EXPERIMENT are also included as a bonus: Crunch Mode features 230 crunchy sounds made with a variety of vegetables, fresh bread, pizza crust & frozen goods, and The Borax Experiment gets you 158 squishy, gory, slimy, gooey SFX.
     

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  • Bundles The Vault – The Ultimate RTSB Bundle Play Track 29683 sounds included, 2459 mins total $1,159

    The whole 9 yards.
    Comprised of 11 heavy hitting libraries, this bundle includes SEISMIC CORE, OVERKILL, 4 ELEMENTS, COLLISION, INTERACTIVE, SCI FI, GEARBOX, SORCERY, HERO, BROKEN, and MELEE. Save by bundling all ELEVEN in a single library.

    GEARBOX:
    Boutique analog mechanical contraptions, steampunk gadgetry, gizmos and machines big and small.


    SORCERY:
    Spells, deflects, casts, blocks, beams, and more. Unrivaled wizardry at your fingertips.


    BROKEN
    Car crashes, explosions, crumbling buildings, earthquakes, ripping earth and metal, to debris, and more.


    HERO:
    HERO – Sword fights, stabbing, guillotines, impaling, battle cries, shields, drawbridges, armor, foley and more.


    MELEE:
    Punches, kicks, blocks, bodyfalls, grabs, slaps, bone breaks, blood splatters, and more.


    SCI FI:
    Spaceships, machines, mechanicals, weapons and more. Technologies exceeding your boldest visions of the future.


    INTERACTIVE:
    The ultimate Game UI SFX library including clicks, pops, whooshes, musical and tonal elements, and ready to use designs for every UI action and game style.


    COLLISION:
    The ultimate sound effects library for massive impact sounds. Stingers, crashes, hits, whooshes and fully designed impact effects.


    4 ELEMENTS:
    Harness the raw power of fire, water, earth, and air with over 3000 elemental sounds crafted for limitless creativity.


    OVERKILL:
    Unleash pure audio carnage with OVERKILL – a brutally detailed 5.7 GB sound library featuring 3390 hyperreal gore sound effects across 607 files.


    SEISMIC CORE:
    Unleash raw sonic power with SEISMIC CORE – a meticulously crafted 1.62 GB sound library featuring 548 impact-driven sound effects across 108 files.


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    Animal Hyperrealism Vol IV is a sound library containing animal vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 2000 individual sounds in 294 files. The sounds were recorded in zoos, and wildlife centers.

    The asset list includes but is not limited to: hippos, hyenas, vultures, dwarf mongooses, elephants, African cranes, parrots, tigers, pigmy hippos, rhea ostriches, brown bears, pheasants, wildebeests, African wild dogs and many more. The content has been recorded at 192KHz with a Sanken CO100K, an Avisoft CMPA and a Sennheiser 8050 for center plus two Sennheiser MKH8040 for stereo image.

    The resulting ultrasonic spectrum is rich and allows for truly extreme manipulation of the content.

    15 %
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Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:
 
  • All files are recorded 32bit, 192 kHz, with RØDE NTG1, Line Audio Omni1 and FEL Clippy XLR EM272 microphones, Sound Devices MixPre-6 II & Zoom F3 recorders. Library contains wav files of driving, foley, mechanical and electrical sounds. It is only available in UCS.

  • PLANES & HELICOPTERS contains flybys, takeoffs, and landings of 13 aircraft models and 5 helicopter models, including small and medium-range passenger planes, private jets, tiny planes and firefighting aircraft. Recorded as close as possible to the aircraft, in airports. You’ll find turbojet, turboprop, and propeller-powered aircrafts. You’ll also find military and civilian helicopters sound effects.
    The sounds can be used for a realistic purpose but you can design spaceships or futuristic vehicles.

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3 thoughts on “Guide: How to Survive a Game Audio Layoff – insights from Damian Kastbauer

  1. Thank you for sharing this Damian, that was a refreshing outlook on a difficult situation that many of us can relate to. If anyone reading this has never gone through it then especially take this guidance to heart.

  2. Thanks again, Damian.

    There are two kinds of people, and I don’t like to finish this sentence. Nonetheless, you, Damian, are distinguished by your willingness to offer a heart as well as an ear, and even sometimes a hand, and this lovely article is an illustration of that.

    My favorite bit:

    True and happy news that the layoffs aren’t often personal. Time the Great Healer shows that over and over, and we can waste energy on bitter and ungrateful thoughts. We’re actually very likely in an excellent position, with Life taking care of us in ways we can’t possibly understand. But something inside fights the recognition of that; some lurking idea as kooky as it is that we “ought to have kept that job.” And probably every job we’ve ever had. And car. And significant other. And pet. And guitar. And t-shirt. And think of what a mess our houses would be _then!_

    “Acceptance of insecurity is Wisdom.” –Alan Watts

    “May they be healthy, happy, joyous, and free” –a nice little prayer to free you from any lingering anger at “Those People!”

    Thanks, Sir.

    -George (having a little moment of asking myself if I am actually telling the truth when I click in the “I’m not a robot” box…) :D

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