The Allan McKay Podcast

I want to talk about the topic I get asked about all the time: The state of the industry in 2019 and is the industry stable? I want to dive into this subject because it’s pretty serious, at least for me. I want to answer this question and talk about all the scares we’ve had in the industry.

Some of you may take this Episode the wrong way. I’m okay with that! This is my outlook and my opinions. I will dive into the reasons why I started this Podcast in the first place, as well as some of the results that have happened when people have applied what I talk about -- to become successful. And I couldn’t be more proud of that! To me, this is a giant pay-off, so I’m going to continue giving back!

In this Podcast, I want to talk about the common and unnecessary fears about the state of the industry and how to bypass them by focusing on constant learning and evolving both as an artist and a business.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/192/.

Direct download: ep192_IsTheindustryStableIn2019_mixdown.mp3
Category:careers -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

In this Podcast, Allan is giving a peak into a Career Intensive Webinar. This is a session that Allan has done recently inside his FXTD Mentorship Course. Normally, these Webinars are private. This is a chance for you to be a fly on the wall -- and get some valuable information.

Usually, it’s a Q&A session, but this time, Allan had his students submit questions ahead of time. If you’re interested in the FXTD Mentorship, the enrollment will be opening soon for 2019. Either way, you will get a lot from this.

In this Live Career Intensive Webinar, Allan answers questions about negotiating, networking, setting impossible goals and the determination that it takes to become a successful VFX artist.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/191/.

Direct download: ep191_Careerintensive_mixdown.mp3
Category:careers -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Alessandro Ongaro is a CG Supervisor at Double Negative. With almost 20 years of experience, he is presently considered to be among the CG Industry's top professionals. 

Alessandro was born in Switzerland and holds a dual Italian and Swiss citizenship. While studying design at the School of Design in Milan, Italy, Alessandro first began using computers to create photo-realistic 3D renderings for the architecture industry. He began working in the feature films after moving back to Milan where he was recruited by Digitalia Graphics, the first Italian company to work with a film negative. It pioneered all the visual effects for the very first Italian sci fi movie, Nirvana.  

After 5 years at Digitalia Graphics, Alessandro was offered a position by ESC Entertainment where he began to work on Constantine. Soon after finishing work on Constantine, he was recruited by DreamWorks Animation where he worked on such films as Madagascar, Over The Hedge, Flushed Away, Bee Movie, Shrek: Forever After, Turbo and Kung Fu Panda 3.

Since joining Double Negative, Alessandro has worked on features Ant-Man and the Wasp, The Meg, Alpha and the upcoming Men in Black: International. Most recently, he’s produced and directed the highly acclaimed web series Hollywood Hitmen, and an animated teaser The Nine Lives of Claw which he also wrote.

In this Podcast, Alessandro talks about some of his favorite projects, the difference between VFX and animation, the importance of being a Generalist -- and the most crucial skill for visual effects artists.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/190/.

 

Direct download: Ep190_AlessandroOngaro_mixdown.mp3
Category:careers -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Sergio Paez is a Director and Story Designer who got his start working at companies such as Pixar, Lucasfilm, and Sony. He is also a founding member of Storyboard Art, an online visual story community, with both a content creation and educational focus to further techniques in visual storytelling. In 2012, Sergio authored the book Professional Storyboarding: Rules of Thumb which has become the go-to reference for story artists looking to enter the entertainment business.  

Mitch Bowler is the Founder of Pencil Kings, an online community that provides world class art education for artists, whether they’re trying to get back into art or are working professionals. Founded in 2010, Pencil Kings has established a library of courses on illustration, comics, digital media, entertainment art.

In this Round Table Podcast, Allan, Sergio and Mitch do a live feed on the subjects of traveling as an artist, working abroad, freelancing in other countries, global networking, visas and much more!   

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/189/.

 

Direct download: ep189_DigitalNomad_mixdown_v2.mp3
Category:careers -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

Mariana Acuña Acosta is an entrepreneur who is driven by her passion for new and emerging technologies. Over the past four years, her focus has been in VR, MR and AR workflows, cross-pollination of products; the changing landscape of entertainment and the new ways of creating content. She is the Founder of Jolt VR and a CPO and Co-Founder of Glassbox Technologies (previously known as Opaque Studios), a company that is pioneering gaming technology in Virtual Production, utilizing VR and AR by creating a framework for visualizing performances, environments, virtual collaboration, virtual location scouting, and much more for real time production. 

As a VFX Artist, Mariana has years of experience working as a Compositor on films like Invictus, Alice in Wonderland, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Green Lantern, The Rum Diary and the show Lost

In this Podcast, Mariana talks about her experience working in different companies around the world, the importance of knowing every part of the pipeline; the latest developments in VR / MR / AR -- and why it’s a great time for artists to get into the field. 

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/187/.

 

Direct download: Ep188_MarianaAcunaCosta_mixdown.mp3
Category:careers -- posted at: 3:00am EDT

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