ERIN SCHLEUPNER

 

Erin Schleupner
 

 

 

 

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Profile

Results-driven creative leader who designs and directs artwork and staff to launch and expand mobile games across wide variety of genres. Served as lead on multiple well-received games, educational webisodes, and both comedic and dramatic short films. Skilled in digital design and illustration to create high-impact and visually appealing artwork, with experience in 3D modeling and animation. Effective working with, training, and managing in-house teams and multiple vendors to produce high quality assets under tight budgets and deadlines.

 

Areas of Expertise

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Technical Proficiencies: Adobe Suite, Clip Studio Paint, Maya, Microsoft Suite, Google Workspace​

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Professional Experience

​Storm8 Jul 2012 – Apr 2025

Lead Artist (Jan 2022 – Apr 2025)

Directed art production for long-running Live Operations division, aligning visual direction, timelines, and budgets with cross-functional leaders to support consistently revenue-generating mobile games. Elevated icon, character, prop, and background assets across multiple titles by overseeing up to four outsourcing vendors simultaneously, optimizing studio selection per project, and enhancing clarity by creating color concept sketches, drawing and painting over submitted work, and refining animations that resulted in consistent on-brand visuals. Strengthened user acquisition efforts by creating promotional assets, including platform-optimized video ads for Google Play and Apple App Store, contributing to increased app visibility and downloads.

Key Accomplishments:

• Reduced monthly vendor costs by 5-10% by proactively streamlining asset production through reuse strategies, supplemental material support, and clearer visual guidelines through color concept sketches.

• Eliminated external art costs for two legacy titles by shifting production to internal teams, designing and creating 2D and 3D assets in-house bi-weekly and reallocating budget to support high-performing titles, increasing production agility.

• Created and delivered to Art Director event-ready character, prop, and gameboard art for a crime-themed game on accelerated timeline by coordinating with cross-functional teams, prioritizing game asset creation, and leveraging internal resources to meet critical release deadlines. 

• Accelerated new hire ramp-up time and vendor consistency by updating style guides, technical documents, and onboarding materials; improved workflow continuity by maintaining file structures and process documentation.

• Supported international transition of Live Operations by delivering training in technical, artistic, and outsourcing processes to successor teams, ensuring seamless knowledge transfer prior to department restructuring.

 

Senior Artist (Aug 2016 – Jan 2022)

Produced and delegated 2D and 3D assets across Casual, Invest Express, and Hidden Object genres, delivering visually cohesive characters, props, backgrounds, maps, and game boards aligned to varied thematic requirements. Developed visual targets and style guides to establish art direction across multiple titles, enhancing visual consistency and onboarding efficiency for new and junior artists. Led art production on two Live Operations games, providing visual feedback and direction to three external vendors, ensuring quality asset delivery through draw-overs, paint-overs, and animation refinement.

Key Accomplishments:

• Worked with external IP to create new monthly content for mobile game that adhered to brand’s specifications and guidelines.

• Maintained uninterrupted content delivery during the 2020 pandemic by reprioritizing event schedules, leveraging backlog assets, and coordinating cross-team efforts to meet all artwork deadlines despite vendor unavailability.

• Built and integrated game scenes and maps in Unity, supporting cross-functional teams with rapid asset deployment and gameplay readiness.

• Directed the visual identity of promotional materials for five titles, contributing to increased player engagement and brand recognition across marketing channels.

 

Artist (Jul 2012 – Aug 2016)

Collaborated with Leads and Game Designers to conceptualize and define visual direction for new Casual and Hidden Object games, contributing to successful product launches across diverse themes. Produced high-quality 2D and 3D assets, including characters, props, backgrounds, maps, and game board pieces—ensuring visual consistency and gameplay clarity across multiple titles. Delivered art assets in alignment with evolving design goals and production schedules, supporting rapid development cycles and cross-functional team needs.

Key Accomplishments:

• Earned promotions from Junior Artist to Artist within 6 months for delivering exceptional services.

 

National Science Foundation (Apr 2011 – Aug 2014)

Visual Development Lead

Established rigorous quality control processes and managed animation timelines, contributing to smooth project execution and timely completion. Coordinated artist schedules to optimize productivity and resource allocation, resulting in efficient workflow management. Crafted detailed color scripts and background art that enriched narrative tone and atmosphere across multiple webisodes.

Key Accomplishments:

• Directed production and animation teams to confirm delivery of high-quality content on schedule for the "Green Ninja: Footprint Renovations" webisode.

• Directed production and background illustration team to confirm delivery of high-quality content on schedule for the "Green Ninja: Footprint Renovations" webisode.

• Designed character concepts, props, and environments that aligned with brand vision, supporting cohesive visual identity for “Green Ninja: The Crude, The Bad, and The Ugly.”

• Created strategic color scripts and background designs that reinforced thematic elements and maintained artistic consistency in "Green Ninja: The Baiting Game" and “Green Ninja: Foam on the Range.”

• Ensured background and animation art consistency by leading regular review sessions, reinforcing style guidelines, and performing corrective paint-overs to maintain visual cohesion across projects.

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Additional Experience

Visual Development Lead, San Jose State University (Oct 2011)

Visual Development Lead and Animator, House of Chai (Aug 2010 – Aug 2011)

Animator, Cinequest (Nov 2010)

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Education

Bachelor of Fine Arts in Animation and Illustration

San Jose State University

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