1. My impression was that this was a 30-minute HR screening, but it turned out to be a full hour-plus interview, which my interviewer reported at the end, was the main interview. Something they seemed to take pleasure in reporting "surprises a lot of people." No kidding? 2. They weren't upfront about this being a contracted role, yet their expectations and job listing indicated this as a remote employment relationship. I'm fine with contracting, but they need to adjust their language and expectations for a contracted relationship. They are saying stuff like "vacation days aren't a thing here." That in itself is silly flex, but as a contractor, my responsibilities should be focused solely on the quality, quantity, and timeliness of my work outputs, not on adhering to a structured schedule or location. Their concern should be about the results I deliver, not how I manage my time to achieve them. If they do want to dictate to this degree, then we're talking about employment. They can't have their cake and eat it too. 3. The interviewer's style was very much the "here are some options, guess which one I think is most important" approach. Rather than simply saying "here, this is most important. What do you think about that?" I'm an honest person. I make no effort to disguise my feelings or to package my feedback or instruction in a particular way. I don't play games and I don't have time for them in work. 4. Maybe most importantly, none of this mattered because my asking was high enough they had to voice disapproval. I'm self sufficient in high volume tutorial production with a solid background in 3D texturing and game optimization software and pipelines. If my asking was too high, I suggest they put some indication of a range on the job listing, as well as being clear they're hiring for a contract. I even checked beforehand to make sure they were taking remote candidates from the US. This is a waste of time. They talked a whole lot about being a company that values "directness and transparency" but for the 4 points listed above, this was one of the least direct interview experiences I've had.