If you haven't heard of them, Phoenix Labs is a small indie studio based out of Vancouver that's working on a action role-playing game called Dauntless. Like many independent teams, it's a studio filled with veterans from the triple-A world, who are now learning to work without the resources of a larger company.

At the 2017 Game Developers Conference, Dauntless lead animator Simon Unger took the time to explain how Phoenix Labs' animation team is learning to grapple with this new workflow. This meant building a new motion-capture system, learning how to polish animations on a limited schedule, and more. As more game companies emerge with these kinds of pedigrees, it's important for animators (and other team members) to be prepared for what this means for their workflow. 

Fortunately, if you're thinking of starting a company, or joining a smaller company's animation team, Unger's talk is now available for you to watch. You can see it embedded up above, or watch it for free on the GDC YouTube channel.

About the GDC Vault

In addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault and its new YouTube channel offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent Game Developers Conference events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers.

Those who purchased All Access passes to recent events like GDC, GDC Europe, and GDC Next already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscription via a GDC Vault subscription page. Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company by contacting staff via the GDC Vault group subscription page. Finally, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault technical support.

Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Americas