Everyone here at WhiteMoon Dreams has something special to offer. From interns to executives, we believe that we’re a part of this team for a reason and that we all have something unique to contribute.
That’s why internships are a pillar of our studio. Yes, an internship is the chance for someone to gain work experience and a get taste of studio life – but in reality, it’s so much more.
We teach interns, but they also teach us. Our studio is at it’s best when there’s a wide range of perspective, skills and energy – and more often than not, the young people who are just getting started on their journey bring just as much value to our lives as we do theirs.
Many of our interns end up becoming full time employees here. Some of our interns have even started as early as high school, and eventually find their way back with us. That’s the ideal, to build a meaningful bridge into the industry.
This summer something interesting happened, a former intern Alyssa had graduated from school and accepted a full time design position with us – and a new intern, Noah was just getting started.
Now that summer is winding down, Alyssa is fully entrenched in her projects, and Noah returns to school – we wanted to take a moment to let one intern check in with another, and share that experience with us.
A conversation with Alyssa and Noah:
Alyssa:
How did you discover WhiteMoon Dreams and what motivated you to pursue an internship in game development?
Noah:
I discovered WhiteMoon Dreams through my best friend. Her dad is our very own Christian Phillips, so I had heard about the studio before I ever worked here.
My motivation for pursuing an internship in game development came from the overlap between two things I already cared a lot about: technical problem solving and video games. My background is in applied math, physics, and data science, so I was interested in seeing how those skills could translate into a real technical environment, especially one involving games.
Alyssa:
What did you work on? Were you able to apply your studies to it or was it all new? If new, what was the learning process like?
Noah:
Over the course of my internship and extension, I worked on a lot of different things centered around Unreal Engine 5, performance profiling, rendering, and optimization.
I spent a lot of time learning how to analyze CPU and GPU performance, working with tools such as Unreal Insights, CSV Profiler, and ProfileGPU, and eventually building Python tools to help automate the collection, analysis, and visualization of profiling data. I also got exposure to some of WhiteMoon’s internal capture and visualization tools.
I was definitely able to apply what I have learned in school, but almost everything was being applied in ways I had never seen before. Learning Unreal, rendering pipelines, CPU and GPU passes, optimization, and how to work with real, often messy data outside of a controlled classroom environment was challenging, but extremely rewarding.
A lot of the learning process was being given a problem, figuring out what I did not know, reading documentation, experimenting, asking questions, and then gradually turning that understanding into something useful.
There were definitely times where I had to learn how to swim after being thrown into the water a little bit, but those experiences ended up accelerating my learning the most.
Alyssa:
Our studio is set up with a large remote team, so how was your experience working remotely?
Noah:
My experience working remotely was great. I live in Oceanside, so not having to spend the time or gas commuting made a huge difference for me. It gave me a lot more flexibility when balancing work with school and my other responsibilities.
I also learned that remote work makes communication more intentional. You cannot always just turn around and ask somebody a question, so I had to get comfortable reaching out when I needed help, giving updates, and making sure I was not sitting on a problem for too long.
Alyssa:
During my internship, I learned to exercise taking initiative. What were some soft skills that you learned or challenges that pushed you to grow?
Noah:
Initiative and communication were probably the two biggest ones for me as well. I learned how important it is to reach out to people on your team when you need help or direction, but I also learned the value of going beyond exactly what was asked of me.
A lot of my favorite parts of the internship came from following my own curiosity, investigating something further, or trying to make a process better rather than stopping once the minimum requirement was complete.
That freedom pushed me to do things I did not necessarily think I was capable of when I started. It also taught me how to balance independence with knowing when it is time to ask someone more experienced for help.
Alyssa:
What did this internship teach you about what you value in a future career?
Noah:
This internship taught me a lot about game development and technical work, but it also taught me a lot about what I value from a workplace.
Having some freedom and creativity in how I approach a problem is a big one. I really enjoyed being able to work independently without feeling micromanaged, while still having a team I could rely on when I needed help. That trust made me want to do better work and made me more willing to explore ideas on my own.
I also realized how much I value respect and camaraderie between coworkers and leadership. At WhiteMoon, I felt comfortable talking to people regardless of their role or experience level, and that is something I would definitely want in a future career.
Alyssa:
What are your favorite games and activities?
Noah:
Some of my favorite games are World of Warcraft and the Halo and Gears of War franchises.
Outside of games, I enjoy spending time with friends, eating good food, being active, and finding new things to learn or work on.
Alyssa:
Any last words of advice for a future intern on how they can succeed at WhiteMoon?
Noah:
My first piece of advice would be to annoy Dave as much as possible. He is very smart, and I learned a ton from him during my time here.
More seriously, I would tell a future intern to go out of their way to interact with the people around them. Ask questions, reach out to people outside of whatever task you are currently working on, and take advantage of being surrounded by people with a lot of experience. Those relationships help with your immediate work, but they also make the internship much more valuable overall.
Be curious, take initiative, and do not be afraid to explore something beyond what was directly assigned to you. A lot of the best learning happens there.
Be curious, take initiative, and do not be afraid to explore something beyond what was directly assigned to you. A lot of the best learning happens there.
On behalf of the entire WhiteMoon family, we want to thank Noah for choosing to intern with us and we look forward to seeing where his journey goes next! Who knows, we might even be a part of that story too.
