Interview with an American UGA memberThe distinctive style of United Game Artists, which has subsequently become an integral part of Sonic Team’s work since merging with the developers in 2003, is often attributed to their Japanese origins. It is therefore somewhat surprising to learn that a single American member was present at the now disbanded development house. Jake Kazdal, who was an animator and designer for Rez, is the only American artist ever to have been employed by Sega Japan, even though he is unable to speak Japanese.
Kazdal recently retold his experiences in an interview with Gamasutra, where he briefly recalls some of the tensions that formed during the union of Sonic Team and UGA, which led both him and former UGA CEO, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, to resign from Sega.
Admittedly, the Sonic Team related references don’t reveal anything particularly new, but his account will fascinate any western Sega fan that has dreamed of working at the creative centre of the company.
A free registration is required to access Gamasutra content, but for your convenience, the article has been reproduced here, with the Sonic Team references highlighted in blue. The original page can be found here.
^ Despite not speaking Japanese, Jake Kazdal is the only non-Japanese artist to have been employed by SoJ and played a pivotal role in the creation of Rez.
