The Allan McKay Podcast (general)

Quick updates on many things happening in 2024 and on the Podcast! Resuming back to the normal Podcast starting next week but thought I would share views on AI, the industry as it is right now in Q1 of 2024 and more!

Direct download: ep446_IndustryUpdates.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:00am EDT

Eric Wachtman is a CG / VFX Supervisor and Art Director at LAIKA where he’s been working for nearly 20 years. Prior to that, he served as the Director of CG / Visual Effects and Art Director at the Cartoon Network.

LAIKA was founded in 2005 in Oregon and is guided by the vision of its President & CEO Travis Knight. Located just outside Portland, Oregon, LAIKA was awarded a Scientific and Technology Oscar® for its innovation in 3D printing in 2016. 

Its five films – MISSING LINK (2019); KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS (2016); THE BOXTROLLS (2014); PARANORMAN (2012), and CORALINE (2009) – were all nominated for Oscars® and PGA Awards as Outstanding Animated Film. 

MISSING LINK was the first LAIKA film to win the Golden Globe® for Best Animated Feature and was awarded two Visual Effects Society (VES) awards for Outstanding Visual Effects in an Animated Feature and Outstanding Animated Character, and received seven Annie Award nominations. KUBO received a second Oscar® nomination for Outstanding Visual Effects and won the BAFTA Award, as well as three Annie Awards, the National Board of Review's Best Animated Feature citation, and 19 regional and critics’ group awards. THE BOXTROLLS earned Critics’ Choice and Golden Globe Award nominations and 13 Annie Award nominations, more than any other film that year. PARANORMAN garnered BAFTA, Critics’ Choice, and GLAAD Media Award nominations, won two Annie Awards, and was cited as the year’s best animated film by 14 critics’ groups. CORALINE earned Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Critics’ Choice nominations and was named one of the year’s 10 Best Films by the American Film Institute (AFI). 

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews the CG / VFX Supervisor at LAIKA Eric Wachtman about his experience working on award-winning titles of CAROLINE and PARANORMAN, his leadership in founding the Portland Chapter of VES, how curiosity and passion drives one’s VFX career, the secret to winning reels and so much more!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/438.

 

Direct download: Ep.438_Eric_Wachtman.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:05am EDT

Ghost Robot is the creative studio of the future based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY. They work with a global community of artistic talent to create content for forward thinking clients.

Ghost Robot was founded in 2002 by Zachary Mortensen. The company derived its name from the theme of a music video Ghost Robot was producing at the time. The video was for the song "In The Waiting Line" by the band Zero7. "In The Waiting Line" was the first commercial use of machinima using the animation engine from the Quake video game.

In 2005 Mark DePace joined the company as a full partner and spearheaded the formation of the company's roster of directors for commercial representation. The addition of DePace repositioned the company within the industry and began their official move into advertising and commercial production.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Ghost Robot’s CEO Zach Mortensen and COO Mark DePace about the inspiration behind launching Ghost Robot and its name; how keeping track of latest innovations is imbedded into their foundation; working on indie films versus blockbusters; the value of giving yourself creative constraints when it comes to resources; how AI is getting integrated into artists’ workflow – and so much more!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/431.

 

Direct download: Ep431_GhostRobot.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:05am EDT

The most commonly asked questions that get asked are: 

  • “Should I go to school to study VFX?” 
  • “Should I study online?” 
  • “What school / online community should I join?”

Attending a school is a more traditional way of learning. However, because of the speed at which technology is changing, school is not always the best route. Throughout the history of this Podcast, Allan has interviewed many artists and VFX supervisors and they attest that: Learning on the job — is the best and the fastest route to learn!

The biggest myth in VFX is that you need a diploma in order to get a job. But in reality, the most important thing in getting hired is knowing that you can do that job, even if you were to get hired tomorrow. The only place where a diploma actually matters is when you’re applying for a work visa in a different country. Otherwise, the most important tool in getting hired – is your REEL!

If you spend 4 years at a college, you could've spent that time getting experience in the industry. In addition, the price tag of getting a formal education (especially in the US) is so high, your student debt adds to the pressure of having to get a job right after school. In 4 years, you could’ve already built a reel and a network necessary for you to get that first job. Many studios offer internships and training on how to use their proprietary tools anyway. The more you’re self-taught, the more open you are to learning.

If you choose to study online, you often get to study with people who are already working in visual effects. That means that they will be teaching you the latest skills and technology. You can get access to those people through live reviews. You can also start building your community with other students – who are also going on to work in VFX. 

In this Podcast, Allan discusses the 3 CHOICES OF LEARNING – and the pros and cons of every choice:

  • Studying in college / at a university;
  • Studying online for free; 
  • Paying for online courses.

Learn just in time – not just in case. With VFX being a fast-paced and quickly changing industry, you have to keep learning all the time. You have to keep going back to the drawing board and getting new skills. No matter the route you take – you have to go all in!

In his answer to the most frequently asked question SHOULD I GO TO A VFX SCHOOL?, Allan McKay breaks down the pros and cons of studying at a 4-year university versus studying online and why a VFX artist must be constantly learning – no matter the route! – as well as the importance of going all in!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/389.

Direct download: 389_-_go_to_vfx_school-_Podcast_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:06am EDT

David Vickery is a VFX Supervisor at ILM, well known for his work on films such as Sherlock Holmes, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Parts 1 and 2, Fast & Furious 6 and Jupiter Ascending. His work has been recognized with an Academy Award® nomination and the 2012 BAFTA Award for Special Visual Effects for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 in addition to numerous Visual Effects Society Award nominations and wins.

Vickery joined ILM having spent the past 13 years at London effects house Double Negative where he worked his way up from CG Artist to Lead 3D artist then CG Supervisor on such films as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, The Bourne Ultimatum, Cloverfield and The Dark Knight.

Having strong ties to the visual effects community in London, Vickery formerly sat as Co-Chair on the UK board of the Visual Effects Society and is a member of BAFTA. After completing a Degree in Industrial Design at De-Montfort University, Vickery went on to receive an MA in Digital Moving Image from London Metropolitan University.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews ILM’s VFX Supervisor David Vickery about his journey from a VFX Artist to supervising on set, dealing with rejection, working at ILM, working on projects like Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Cloverfield, Die Another Day; communicating with creatives and the importance of mentoring younger artists.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/361.

Direct download: ep361_-_ILM_-_David_Vickery_Interview_3_corrected.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:05am EDT

Lotta (aka Charlotta) Forssman is a VFX supervisor based out of NYC. For nearly a decade, she has been part of Molecule VFX and has worked on shows like Ballers (HBO), The Good Cop, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Master of None (Netflix). She has been a Supervisor for Apple TV’s Dickinson since Season 1.

In this Podcast, Allan and Lotta talk about the path to becoming a VFX Supervisor, how to communicate with other creatives about visual effects; her experience as a woman artist in the industry and some of her projects, including DICKINSON for Apple TV+.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/294/.

Direct download: Ep294_-_Lotta_Forrsman.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

American author, game designer, graphic novelist and screenwriter Jordan Mechner is best known as a pioneer of cinematic storytelling in the video game industry and as the creator of Prince of Persia, one of the most successful and enduring video game franchises of all time. His other games include Karateka, The Last Express, Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time.

Mechner began his career as a video game creator in the 1980s in high school in Chappaqua, New York, on a 16K Apple II computer bought with his earnings producing and selling Mad Magazine-inspired comics and drawing caricatures at local fairs. He developed and programmed his first game Karateka, while a student at Yale University. Inspired by his film studies and vintage Disney animation, Mechner developed a rotoscoping process to capture Super 8 film footage of his friends and family members, a first step toward the motion capture technology widely used in today's video games. Karateka was published by Broderbund in 1984 and became a #1 bestseller. One of the first games to combine arcade action with realistic animation and cinematic storytelling, it created a new template that other early fighting games would follow

After graduating from Yale, Mechner upgraded from 8mm to VHS to create the rotoscoped animation for his next game Prince of Persia. Inspired by the 1,001 Nights tales he had known as a child, Mechner completed Prince of Persia for the Apple II in 1989. Published by Broderbund and subsequently adapted onto nearly every computer and console platform of the 1990s, Prince of Persia is recognized as a major influence in the development of the action-adventure video game genre.

In 2001, Mechner joined forces with Ubisoft to reinvent his decade-old, best-known classic for a new generation of console gamers. Developed at Ubisoft's Montreal studio with Mechner as game designer, writer, and creative consultant, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time was a breakout hit of 2003. Its success relaunched Prince of Persia as a global franchise including toys, graphic novels, LEGO sets, and over 20 million games sold to date

In 2010, Mechner became the first game creator to successfully adapt his own work as a feature film screenwriter with Disney’s Prince of Persia produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, and Ben Kingsley. Mechner received screen story and executive producer credit. With box-office receipts of $335 million worldwide, Prince of Persia set the record for the world's highest-grossing video game film adaptation until 2016.

A lifelong journal-keeper, Mechner has published his game development diaries from the 1980s -- The Making of Karateka and The Making of Prince of Persia -- along with Prince of Persia's Apple II source code — lost for 20 years, then found in 2012 on a set of 3.5" floppy disks. Mechner's books include the 2013 New York Times best-selling, Eisner Award-nominated graphic novel Templar, a swashbuckling adventure about the historical Knights Templar, illustrated by LeUyen Pham and Alex Puvilland.

Mechner's work as an author, screenwriter, and filmmaker, along with his video games, reflects his passion for deep historical research and world-building, and interest in time and memory. In this Podcast, game designer, graphic novelist and screenwriter Jordan Mechner shares his experience as a multihyphenate, the ups and downs of the creative process, how to make production constraints work in your favor -- and his experience creating Karateka, Prince of Persia and other projects.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/244.

Direct download: Ep244_JordanMechner_PUB_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

The mission of Monsters Aliens Robots Zombies (MARZ) is to deliver feature-film quality visual effects on television timelines by harnessing GPU clusters, game engine technology, AI and senior industry talent. Leveraging these pillars allows us to consistently execute with both speed and quality for our premium television projects.

Lon Molnar is the Co-President of MARZ. With more than 20 years of experience, Lon has contributed a vast amount of visual effects to film and television as an artist, VFX Supervisor, and former CEO of the award winning VFX company Intelligent Creatures.

Inspired by the magic of Toy Story, Lon attended the Vancouver Film School with the single goal of opening up his own VFX studio. As he built his resume, he became dissatisfied with working on VFX for tv, and set his sights on feature films. He became a VFX generalist, working in animation, lighting, compositing and modelling, while using a vast array of software. After serving as the CG Supervisor on the groundbreaking films Chicago and The Cell, he fulfilled his earlier dream and opened up Intelligent Creatures in 2002. Working with talented creators like Mark Forster, Darren Aronofsky, Alejandro González Iñárritu, David Tattersall, Oliver Stone and others, Lon quickly built the Toronto-based VFX house into an award-winning studio.

Intelligent Creatures lent its creativity to dozens of projects such as Mr and Mrs Smith, The Witch, and Babel. They built robust pipelines to tackle critically-acclaimed projects, such as the Watchmen's famous Rorschach mask of moving inkblots. Some of their later work, such as the award-winning series Orphan Black and the Emmy-nominated Curiosity: Battlefield Cell pushed the boundaries of visual effects on TV

Fifteen years after the formation of Intelligent Creatures, Lon recognized that unlike when he had started in the industry, TV was no longer the "lesser" medium for VFX. When he spoke to Jonathan Bronfman, the two found themselves sharing symbiotic ideas. They saw a gap that others didn't. What if, they asked, we can build a company that focuses on serving only one market, and defines the standard of excellence in that market? That was the beginning of MARZ. the boundaries of visual effects on TV.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Lon about the history of MARZ and the company’s commitment to technology and talent, a philosophy that ensures high quality effects for television timelines.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/234/.

Direct download: Ep234_MARZ_Content_v2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Michael Janda is an executive level creative leader with more than 20 years of experience in both in-house creative departments and agencies working with some of the greatest brands in the world.

In 2002, he founded the creative agency Riser, a nationally recognized agency creating high-profile work for clients including Disney, Google, ABC, Fox, Warner Bros., NBC, TV Guide and numerous other notable companies. The company’s 3 year growth rate of 235% in 2013 resulted in a ranking on Inc. 5000 (#1657). Riser’s work quality and successful business practices yielded some of the most coveted awards in the industry including Webbys, FWA, Awwwards, AIGA and Addys.

After selling Riser in 2015 and becoming its Chief Creative Officer, Michael orchestrated a rebrand of the agency as EKR. In collaboration with the other partners, he successfully migrated Riser’s clients and acquired new notable clients including Google, National Geographic, ABC, Intel and Netflix.

In addition to his robust experience managing creative and marketing teams, Michael is the author of the book Burn Your Portfolio: Stuff They Don’t Teach You in Design School, but Should. Since its publication in 2013, Burn Your Portfolio has been one of the top selling books in the industry and has been published in English, Russian, Chinese Traditional and Chinese Simplified. Burn Your Portfolio’s success has resulted in opportunities for Michael to be a keynote speaker at AIGA, Advertising Federation and University events across the nation, as well as at other events.

His work and business has been featured by Print Magazine, HOW Magazine, Utah Business Magazine and BusinessQ Magazine, where he donned the cover of the December 2012 issue highlighting their article for Utah’s Coolest Entrepreneurs.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Creative Leader and Author Michael Janda about marketing and powerful branding for artists, the how-to’s of social media and the importance of soft skills in building a successful business.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/221.

Direct download: ep221_MikeJanda_mixdown.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Tony Giglio is a writer, director and producer. He worked his way up from a production assistant to become one of Hollywood's most versatile multi-hyphenates. Universal's 1440 has tapped Tony to write and direct a reboot of Doom: Annihilation. Previously, Tony directed feature films S.W.A.T.: Under Siege, 2nd Unit on Resident Evil, Timber Falls. In 2005, Giglio wrote and directed his best known work, the action-thriller Chaos, starring Jason Statham, Ryan Phillippe and Wesley Snipes. He also wrote, produced and directed Sony Crackle's first ever made for new media feature Extraction; and co-wrote and directed the WWII drama In Enemy Hands, starring William H. Macy.

Nina Bergman is an actress, singer, songwriter and model. She was born in Denmark and is the granddaughter of Russian actor Pavel Kadochnikov (Ivan The Terrible). Nina spent her early childhood traveling around Europe with her Russian Gypsy grandparents. At 14, she received a scholarship to the musical theater school Urdang Academy in London. A year later she found herself in Moscow attending the Bolshoi Theater. From there she went to the NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Her credits include The Car: Road to Revenge, Lost ‘n’ Found and many others.

In this Episode, Allan McKay interviews Tony and Nina about their experience on the feature film Doom: Annihilation that premiered in October 2019.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/220/.

 

 

Direct download: ep220_Doom_mixdown.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Rob Bredow is a strategic and visionary leader with a unique understanding of how media and innovation can join forces to tell great stories and create groundbreaking experiences. As SVP, Executive Creative Director and Head of Industrial Light & Magic, he is responsible for the company’s overall creative strategy and global operations.

Most recently Bredow was the Visual Effects Supervisor and Co-Producer on Solo: A Star Wars Story. He served as a creative partner to the filmmakers throughout the production, from the earliest story meetings to the final frames of visual effects. He leveraged his background in innovative technology to help tell the story of the film, creating grounded images with a unique shooting style designed for the movie.

In his former role as Lucasfilm Chief Technology Officer, Bredow oversaw all technology development for Lucasfilm and ILM. Bredow joined Lucasfilm in 2014 as Vice President of New Media and Head of Lucasfilm’s Advanced Development Group. He helped launch ILMxLAB in 2015 and co-wrote and directed Trials on Tatooine, a story-based virtual reality experiment created in collaboration with Lucasfilm’s Story Group, ILMxLAB and Skywalker Sound.

Previously, Bredow was CTO and Visual Effects Supervisor at Sony Pictures Imageworks. He has contributed as a supervisor on films such as Independence Day, Godzilla, Stuart Little, Cast Away, Surf’s Up, Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, and others.

Bredow is a member of the VFX Branch of Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences and the AMPAS Science and Technology Council.* 

In this Podcast Allan McKay interviews SVP, Executive Creative Director and Head of Industrial Light & Magic Rob Bredow about his career in as a VFX Artist and Supervisor and his experience with launching the ILM location in Sydney, Australia. 

*Bio by www.ILM.com

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/219/.

Direct download: ep219_RobBredow_mixdown.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

The key two things with everything Instagram related are: relevance and consistency with everything you post. It’s about consistency, seeing it through and nurturing it. There is good content and bad content; but you have to have our finger on the pulse to see what’s working -- and double down on that. There are certain subjects that people want to consume. When you give value to others -- that’s when it changes everything!

In this Podcast, Allan McKay talks about how to build an Instagram following, how to translate that into your own brand -- as well as how to get traction, jobs and opportunities out of it!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/217/.

Direct download: Ep217_InstagramForArtists_v3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

The biggest pain point for a lot of us -- is not having enough time. But what would you be able to do if you had an extra 10 hours per week? And if the excuse is “I don’t have enough time", then the question is: Where are your priorities? Most of us want to grow in our careers, and we want to get the most out of what we are doing.

On the other hand, we don’t always have time. We’re exhausted from work and other commitments. You’re always going to have distractions. Part of what this Podcast focuses on is how to handle your distractions and be in control of your time; and gives you actionable productivity hacks.

This Podcast by Allan McKay is around the subject on How to Win the Day: How to get the most out of your day -- whether it be for your freelance job or your work -- by creating more time for yourself.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/214/.

Direct download: 214_How_to_Win_the_Day_-_updated.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Enrique Torres is an Emmy Award winning artist with an expertise in VFX, character design and concept design. He has a Bachelors Degree from the Art Institute in Media Arts and Animation. In the past 10 years, he utilized his talents by working within the movie, television and game industries.

Enrique has worked on films such as Twilight, The Day The Earth Stood Still, Sport Science, Thor, Captain America, Avengers and more. Since 2006, he has worked on over 300 projects that vary from commercials, music videos, games, ads, print, web development, to film. He is currently a Creative Director at BOND, one of the leading Hollywood-based studios responsible for creating film posters.

In this Podcast, Enrique talks about his background as a generalist, the importance of understanding the pipeline and the biggest mistake that all junior VFX artists must avoid making!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/194/.

 

Direct download: ep194_EnriqueTorress_mixdown_v2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Christopher Nichols has an impressive resume of working for many of the leading studios, from The Day After Tomorrow, I, Robot, Stealth, Tron: Legacy, Oblivion, Maleficent and The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo to photo real cars and photo real humans.

Chris works with Chaos Group - the developers of V-Ray as one of the main people behind Chaos Group Labs, an experimental outpost based in Los Angeles. Where Chris has been involved with many high profile projects and pushing tech in new directions, being involved in projects ranging from the upcoming 'Construct' short film to photoreal human projects - there's such a wide range of subjects covered in this episode from getting a job in the industry to what it takes to make things photoreal, to more the backstory of so many really 'really' cool projects - check it out!

http://www.allanmckay.com/28/

 

CG Garage Podcast: https://labs.chaosgroup.com/index.php/category/cg-garage-podcast/

Chaos Group Labs: https://labs.chaosgroup.com

Pixel Perfect Article: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/04/28/pixel-perfect-2

Construct Teaser: https://vimeo.com/90509568

Christopher Nichols website: http://www.redeyetales.com/

V-Ray in Real Life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9rgG2vPAvQ

 

 

Direct download: ep28_ChrisNichols_mixdown.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:38am EDT

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