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Hi all, i made an interview of Stephano yesterday, you can aswell watch the vidéo, in french http://www.millenium.org/starcraft-2/accueil/videos/actualites/52720-eswc-2011-interview-de-stephano :
Split (interviewer): Hi everyone, it's Split for Millenium. We're back at the ESWC. 2nd day, 1st day of competition, we're with Stephano who's back from the United States; so Stephano are you a happy man, have you recovered from your emotions?
Stephano: I am a completely satisfied man yes, you can say my whole life is a success with what I've done; I can die peacefully now. Still everybody expects a lot from me for the ESWC, I hope I can meet those expectations.
Split: Let's talk about your trip to the US. How was it, in general, for you? What about the welcome of people over there, of your american supporters?
Stephano: Well at the start it was great with my victory at the IPL; then I performed a little less well at the MLG, because of the tiredness and of the length of the open bracket - you always need a good excuse! Also, I found the american supporters a more hysterical than in France; they are... poorly trained [in the "train an animal" sense], they attack, they force the player, etc... It's a lot better I think, it feels more like a sport than what we see in France.
Split: Your status has changed a bit, do you feel it? With the public, the press or the other players, do you realize it?
Stephano: Well I realized it at the MLG, where a lot of people asked me for autographs and stuff, I guess that if I hadn't won the IPL, only 1 or 2 people would have come to see me, not 200 or 300... Yeah, you can really see it. On the Internet too I receive a lot of supporting messages, of congratulations and of fanboys telling me they like my style and all that stuff. Apart from that, I don't live differently, I still play the same way and train the same way.
Split: So Stephano hasn't changed.
Stephano: Stephano hasn't changed, but Stephano in other people's eyes has changed, yes.
Split: So you won 30,000$, which is a pretty... interesting sum. We know you plan to finish this year and go back to your studies. Have you considered, if you win a lot of money, to change your mind? If you make 100,000$ for instance?
Stephano: Well I said that if I really make a lot of money, I would continue; but the probability that I do so is very very low. My objective is to make as much money as I can this year, so I can peacefully go on with my studies next year. But as you said, if I make, let's not say 100,000$ but maybe something like 300,000$, I would continue yes.
Split: It would be worth it, yeah. Let's talk about the tournament here, the ESWC, what do you think about the planning? We know it's very cold here, we can see that you're cold; apart from that, the planning, the players... How is it?
Stephano: Well for the moment I haven't played yet, I don't know how the planning is organized here. For what I've seen, the restroom is quite far, it's cold, we have to zigzag a lot because a lot of passages are forbidden, and the security guards, who are black, prevent us from using them [smiles]. Apart from that, it seems to be rather well planned for the games, I've immediately been told when my match has been determined, that I could leave and when I had to come back, and the computers are great. It's just the cold that is awful for a player; your fingers don't move...
Split: Let's talk about Korea now. We know you're gonna go to Korea 'cause you're invited to the Blizzard Cup, and you're gonna stay for a while; what do you expect from this experience, what do you want to come back to France with, from this trip in Korea?
Stephano: I've often been asked if I was gonna do the GSL and everything, I'm certainly gonna do it if I stay in Korea more than a month, but it's not my main objective. I mainly go there to train and become better so I can come back to Europe and win tournaments... let's say more often. For now I've reached a point where I don't get better in Europe anymore, because I always play against people of the same level, and... I need to go to the next level, I think, and the European ladder, I mean the Korean ladder, is ideal for that. I hope it's gonna go well.
Split: We know that the Korean players worried a bit when they saw you win the IPL, and huh... We've chatted with MarineKing notably, who studied your play quite a bit, so we know that Korean players studied your play. Are you good enough, quote unquote, to vary you strategies etc, and surprise your opponents today?
Stephano: Well... at some point you've gotta stop surprising your opponent. That's what I did at the start, I started to surprise some Koreans, mostly terrans, by goind ling-infestor, but once they know it there isn't really a surprise to do, you just need to... try to vary your builds and have a few tricks in your pocket; because most zergs will always play mutalisk banelings, whereas I can play mass zerglings with roach, I can play infestor roach and zergling, I can play mutalisk and... and ling baneling, I have a lot of options in my strategies and that prevents my opponent from really reading in my play. Apart from that... as I said I can't surprise my opponent anymore, I just try to get better at what I can do. I am not really looking for new strategies, I don't think there are new ones for the moment, we'll wait for the expansion to see what we can do with the new units I think.
Split: Before we finish, do the Stephano people know, who trash talks a bit etc, and annoy some people, is still the same? I mean, we're not gonna change to please more people, you still stay the same?
Stephano: I'm a good guy. (smiles)
Split: And we're gonna finish with a few words; do you have something to say to your fans, your family, or some specific people?
Stephano: If you want, yeah. I thank all my french fans, and foreign ones too; I really appreciate their support and their, let's say cries of joy, watching me play; I also thank my family who supported me a lot, my mother and my brother - Goma, if you want his nick [not sure of the spelling]; I thank Millenium's sponsors: [no publicity will be done!  ], and that's it I think. Lots of love!
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nice read, could maybe try bolding the names so its a bit easier on the eyes to follow!
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Thanks for translation in the post, i click on the link to play video for interviews without reading and found out it wasn't in English.
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Stephano made me laugh when he sais to the interviewer "I don't need you" when talking about sponsors :D
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Didn't know he will stop playing competitively next year. That's sad to hear 
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If he wins the ESWC he has already made about 50'000-60'000 i about one month. So he might likely hit his goal and continue.
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Nice interview, thanks a lot!
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Didnt he say if he makes 50k he will consider being progamer for more than 1 year ? now he wants 300k , which is huge for sc2 pros.. especially considering he said he trains for 3 hours/day.
What kind of job does he think he will get for that much.
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On October 23 2011 20:56 Drey wrote:
Didnt he say if he makes 50k he will consider being progamer for more than 1 year ? now he wants 300k , which is huge for sc2 pros.. especially considering he said he trains for 3 hours/day.
What kind of job does he think he will get for that much.
No he said he wants to make 50k in a year, not that he continues if he makes that amount. If he makes 50k he consideres this year sucessful, but will not add a second one.
And he plans to go to med school after he finishes progaming. (as a doctor he will also earn a decent amount of money)
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Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth.
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Maybe he is pulling a SanZenith and is trolling us all with the one year thing? Just wishful thinking...
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He's probably serious about the 300K $ in one year...
On October 23 2011 21:09 Sandermatt wrote:Show nested quote +On October 23 2011 20:56 Drey wrote:
Didnt he say if he makes 50k he will consider being progamer for more than 1 year ? now he wants 300k , which is huge for sc2 pros.. especially considering he said he trains for 3 hours/day.
What kind of job does he think he will get for that much. No he said he wants to make 50k in a year, not that he continues if he makes that amount. If he makes 50k he consideres this year sucessful, but will not add a second one. And he plans to go to med school after he finishes progaming. (as a doctor he will also earn a decent amount of money)
Well he has already made 50k so...
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On October 23 2011 23:19 Elean wrote:He's probably serious about the 300K $ in one year... Show nested quote +On October 23 2011 21:09 Sandermatt wrote:On October 23 2011 20:56 Drey wrote:
Didnt he say if he makes 50k he will consider being progamer for more than 1 year ? now he wants 300k , which is huge for sc2 pros.. especially considering he said he trains for 3 hours/day.
What kind of job does he think he will get for that much. No he said he wants to make 50k in a year, not that he continues if he makes that amount. If he makes 50k he consideres this year sucessful, but will not add a second one. And he plans to go to med school after he finishes progaming. (as a doctor he will also earn a decent amount of money) Well he has already made 50k so...
+salary and online tournaments
how much have he earned...
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On October 23 2011 21:16 WhiteDog wrote:
Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth.
I really don't agree with your point. He is very young and we know how fame comes and goes in e-sport. If he was that greedy he would extract as most juice as he can from sponsors, etc. He would not think of stopping playing to go back to studies. He has more a long term view of his life/career rather than the one of the short term "easy" money he can make.
I would say he is actually so very mature for his age.
Daoud.
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On October 24 2011 16:50 da0ud wrote:Show nested quote +On October 23 2011 21:16 WhiteDog wrote:
Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth. I really don't agree with your point. He is very young and we know how fame comes and goes in e-sport. If he was that greedy he would extract as most juice as he can from sponsors, etc. He would not think of stopping playing to go back to studies. He has more a long term view of his life/career rather than the one of the short term "easy" money he can make. I would say he is actually so very mature for his age. Daoud.
You have a point. While it baffles me that someone of his calibre play is considering of leaving the scene in a year, I think he has a expectation that if he commits to the progaming scene, he better damn well get paid well to make up for any other alternatives he may have in the future. The problem with progaming is, what will a progamer do after they retire? Not all of them can land jobs as commentators/analysts or coaches. He's looking at the long term goal, what can sustain and support his needs in his 30s and beyond.
Of course I am a little sceptical about him being fully mature with the whole Complexity contract, but whatever.
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On October 24 2011 16:57 Meteora.GB wrote:Show nested quote +On October 24 2011 16:50 da0ud wrote:On October 23 2011 21:16 WhiteDog wrote:
Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth. I really don't agree with your point. He is very young and we know how fame comes and goes in e-sport. If he was that greedy he would extract as most juice as he can from sponsors, etc. He would not think of stopping playing to go back to studies. He has more a long term view of his life/career rather than the one of the short term "easy" money he can make. I would say he is actually so very mature for his age. Daoud. You have a point. While it baffles me that someone of his calibre play is considering of leaving the scene in a year, I think he has a expectation that if he commits to the progaming scene, he better damn well get paid well to make up for any other alternatives he may have in the future. The problem with progaming is, what will a progamer do after they retire? Not all of them can land jobs as commentators/analysts or coaches. He's looking at the long term goal, what can sustain and support his needs in his 30s and beyond. Of course I am a little sceptical about him being fully mature with the whole Complexity contract, but whatever.
He wants 300k a year. Lolzzzzzzzz. I mean sure he could potentially get that amount, but I do believe he said he was going to school to become a doctor. Now, I don't know how smart he is, but the average doctor in the US (overpriced) makes only 110k a year. Seems like a high expectation for a video game. Now, your point about something that can sustain him in the long run is a good one, but with his winnings he should be able to not only go to college, but not have to work while being in college from the winnings. The life of a progamer is relatively cheap. His mind seems fucked a bit -_-
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On October 24 2011 17:24 NoobSkills wrote:Show nested quote +On October 24 2011 16:57 Meteora.GB wrote:On October 24 2011 16:50 da0ud wrote:On October 23 2011 21:16 WhiteDog wrote:
Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth. I really don't agree with your point. He is very young and we know how fame comes and goes in e-sport. If he was that greedy he would extract as most juice as he can from sponsors, etc. He would not think of stopping playing to go back to studies. He has more a long term view of his life/career rather than the one of the short term "easy" money he can make. I would say he is actually so very mature for his age. Daoud. You have a point. While it baffles me that someone of his calibre play is considering of leaving the scene in a year, I think he has a expectation that if he commits to the progaming scene, he better damn well get paid well to make up for any other alternatives he may have in the future. The problem with progaming is, what will a progamer do after they retire? Not all of them can land jobs as commentators/analysts or coaches. He's looking at the long term goal, what can sustain and support his needs in his 30s and beyond. Of course I am a little sceptical about him being fully mature with the whole Complexity contract, but whatever. He wants 300k a year. Lolzzzzzzzz. I mean sure he could potentially get that amount, but I do believe he said he was going to school to become a doctor. Now, I don't know how smart he is, but the average doctor in the US (overpriced) makes only 110k a year. Seems like a high expectation for a video game. Now, your point about something that can sustain him in the long run is a good one, but with his winnings he should be able to not only go to college, but not have to work while being in college from the winnings. The life of a progamer is relatively cheap. His mind seems fucked a bit -_-
Im curious where you got your average earnings for a Doctor in the US...because it should be a lot more than 110k. His head is in the right place, he's earned more than enough to pay for several years of school for a job that will be much more sustainable for the long-term. I think you're a little confused.
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My old college roommate is now a doctor and manages to play SC2 4+ hours a day. (Supposedly Stephano only needs 3 hours to win major tournaments) He makes about $250k a year before taxes and he's not some special doctor, just your ordinary E.R guy.
He's also the leader of our city's gaming scene, soon he'll be opening up an Arcade/Lan center
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On October 24 2011 17:24 NoobSkills wrote:Show nested quote +On October 24 2011 16:57 Meteora.GB wrote:On October 24 2011 16:50 da0ud wrote:On October 23 2011 21:16 WhiteDog wrote:
Stephano is the golden boy of e-sport.
His play style is amazing, he is french, but damn his fixation on money make me wonder about his growth. I really don't agree with your point. He is very young and we know how fame comes and goes in e-sport. If he was that greedy he would extract as most juice as he can from sponsors, etc. He would not think of stopping playing to go back to studies. He has more a long term view of his life/career rather than the one of the short term "easy" money he can make. I would say he is actually so very mature for his age. Daoud. You have a point. While it baffles me that someone of his calibre play is considering of leaving the scene in a year, I think he has a expectation that if he commits to the progaming scene, he better damn well get paid well to make up for any other alternatives he may have in the future. The problem with progaming is, what will a progamer do after they retire? Not all of them can land jobs as commentators/analysts or coaches. He's looking at the long term goal, what can sustain and support his needs in his 30s and beyond. Of course I am a little sceptical about him being fully mature with the whole Complexity contract, but whatever. He wants 300k a year. Lolzzzzzzzz. I mean sure he could potentially get that amount, but I do believe he said he was going to school to become a doctor. Now, I don't know how smart he is, but the average doctor in the US (overpriced) makes only 110k a year. Seems like a high expectation for a video game. Now, your point about something that can sustain him in the long run is a good one, but with his winnings he should be able to not only go to college, but not have to work while being in college from the winnings. The life of a progamer is relatively cheap. His mind seems fucked a bit -_-
The issue is it's not likely for him to realistically place high enough in every single tournament he enters to net sizeable tournament winnings, and he knows that (i.e MLG).
If he's really interested in a stable income, concentrating on being a successful doctor (massive cut down on playing) sounds like a much more sensible option.
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EPT
