Name: Johal Gow
Position: Art Outsourcing Manager

RR: You are from Australia, right? Tell us a little about yourself.

Johal: That's right. I'm from somewhere a lot warmer and sunnier than my current locale. I’m from Queensland in Australia which has been deemed ’The Sunshine State’. It’s one of the best places to be in the world if you love white sandy beaches and decent surf.

I started out doing 3d at the tender age of 14 when a friend of mine was into making guns for mods in 3dsmax 2.5 and showed me enough to get started. Eventually this hobby turned into a career choice and I set my sights on getting my foot in the door of the gaming industry.

RR: Did you have any background in video games sim racing before coming to SimBin?

Johal: I worked as a contract vehicle artist on Project Gotham Racing 3 and 4. I learned a lot and will forever thank Chris (the Managing Director of Virtual Mechanix) for giving me my first chance in the industry.

RR: How and why did you decide to join SimBin?

Johal: I had a huge passion for fast cars (culminating in me spending most of my first two years of career pay checks into an old car and making it way too fast for anyone’s good) which led me into vehicle design for games. It seemed like an exciting opportunity to work for a Swedish company and that was that.

RR: Tell us about your first contact/experience with the SimBin Studio?

Johal: My first in-person contact was an interesting one, but it requires some back story. Two days before I left Australia for Sweden I had a very large going away gathering and we were up until the wee hours of the morning, as usually happens at a going away bash.  When I woke the next day, I was left with a particularly nasty headache which stayed for quite a few days. Unfortunately this particular self inflicted headache followed me for the entire flight, and when I walked out of the plane feeling worse for wear, my SimBin point of contact (who was very aware of my love of a good beer) was waiting there with a six-pack of Swedish beer in hand for me. Beer being the last thing I wanted to see at that point.  It was a nice gesture and a warm welcome to the SimBin team, however.

RR: Tell us a little about what you do for SimBin.

Johal: As Art Outsourcing Manager and Lead Vehicle Artist I tackle many different tasks such as being the main point of contact for outsourcing companies and individual contractors, budgeting, rate discussions, planning, QA coordinating of agreements and contracts to designing systems to work in game, implementing art assets, creating art assets, writing design documents, milestone planning and finding ways to improve the pipeline amongst other duties.

RR: Tell us a story about your time working with the SimBin team.

Johal: We had our release party for one of the games at our head office in Vara, Sweden (now moved to Lidköping). I fell asleep on the return bus trip to Göteborg. At the time I was wearing a nice new white jumper.  The guys took it upon themselves to draw on my face with black nail polish and then try the old fly trick in the hope that I would smear it all over my face. Which I did. I woke up when we arrived in Göteborg to the laughs and excitement of the rest of the team who were all staring directly at me with large grins on their faces. A quick look at my reflection in the bus window revealed the new me. Black nail polish stuck to my face and a ruined jumper. I guess I am always the prankster in our office and I got what was coming to me.

RR: Are you a gamer? If so, what game are you playing right now? What games have you played before?

Johal: I think my gamer tendencies changes month by month. We play a game of four-player FIFA at the office every day and I play a bit of Starcraft and NBA 2k12 on the side.  Right now I’m in the process of writing a book, so the games have suffered. I’ll have to lock myself in a dungeon when I’m done to catch up.

RR: What do you do for fun in Gothenburg?

Johal: In winter I do what the Swedes do - try to find somewhere warmer for a holiday!. In summer…. I try and find somewhere warmer for a holiday. Just kidding. Although you might have noticed my affection for warm climates.  I love to catch up with friends, hanging out at the office for some FIFA after hours with the team, finding nice restaurants to have dinner and nice bars to have a few beers, wines or cocktails.  Travel is one of my real passions, so I try and jump on a plane whenever possible to see somewhere exciting and new.

RR: In terms of car groups, do you prefer GT, Touring, Rally, or Formula cars?

Johal: I love the GT cars. My driving style means I need to be able to overpower the rear wheels to pull the car straight again. Some call it a lack of talent and I agree with them.

RR: Do you take your race lines straight or sideways? Does this apply also to your life style?

Johal: I’m seriously competitive, so I’ll race seriously when against others, but sideways when I’m just driving for fun.  I guess that’s an accurate depiction of my lifestyle.

RR: Do you have a favorite race car driver?

Johal: I’m pretty mainstream with this one. I’ve always loved Michael Schumacher. Craig Lowndes is my favorite Aussie driver.

RR: What is your favorite road car to date, as an artist and/or as a driver?

Johal:  I absolutely love any of the Aston Martins. The day I can get my hands on one of my own will be the day I’m fully satisfied.

RR: You’ve been living in Sweden for a long time now. Have you learned to drink the Swedish snaps?

Johal: I was welcomed to Swedish Snaps at a Midsommar party. In Australia we have flavored schnapps (Butterscotch flavor, for example – and schnapps is how we spell it at home). I drank this with an opinion of snaps already formed in my mind. Unfortunately, Swedish snaps tasted nothing like I remember schnapps tasting like.  Either way, I’ve grown to enjoy it on particular Swedish holidays.

RR:  What other things you find cool and interesting about Sweden?

Johal:  I have a minor obsession with trying to see a moose up close in person. My girlfriend’s parents often call me to tell me about their latest moose sighting where they live, yet they apparently are anywhere but there when I come to visit.  They once woke me up at 4am and rushed me outside in the middle of a snowy and cold winter with promises of seeing a moose, but by the time I managed to get outside it was gone. Maybe they are playing with me.

RR: Have you learned to speak any Swedish?

Johal: Jag kan prata bara lite Svenska

RR: What are your plans for the future?

Johal:  I plan to keep on moving up the ladder to eventually become a CEO or similar in the gaming industry. I love the management and budgeting side of things.
Otherwise I might go a different direction and try and move into the film industry.  I’ll go whatever way the wind blows at that point in my life.

RR: What would you say to someone considering joining our family here at SimBin?

Johal: You’ll be proud of what we release next!