The VFX Artists Podcast

In this conversation with Desiree, a VFX executive at Amazon MGM Studios, we speak about her journey from FX artist to industry expert, insights into VFX production, vendor management, and industry trends including AI and industry shifts post-COVID and the strikes. Topics covered:  - Career progression in VFX from artist to executive. - Vendor selection and management in VFX projects. - Impact of...

The Art of Observation in Animation & VFX, with Jahirul Amin, founder of CAVE Academy | TVAP EP63 Summary In this conversation, Jahirul Amin emphasizes the significance of real-world observation in the field of animation. He advocates for practical experiences, such as watching people walk or observing natural light and shadows, to enhance understanding and skills in animation. This approach e...

In this episode of the VFX Artists Podcast, Kofi interviews Freefolk VFX supervisor Rob Sheridan, about his journey in the visual effects industry, the importance of internships, and the evolving landscape of VFX jobs. Rob shares insights on how he progressed from a runner to a supervisor, the significance of the Futurefolk internship program, and advice for aspiring VFX artists.  The conversation...

B-corp and sustainability in VFX, with Robin Chowdhury, COO of Dupe VFX | TVAP EP61 Join us for an insightful discussion on what it means to be sustainable in post production. B Corp Certification is a designation that a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and...

In this conversation, Kofi interviews Richard Clark, the head of visualisation and VFX supervisor at Cinesite, to discuss the role of visualisation in the industry. We explore the origins and evolution of visualisation, the use of real-time tools like Unreal Engine, and the impact of virtual production. Richard emphasizes the importance of quick workflows and the ability to think visually in the v...

In this episode, I chat to VFX Comp Supervisor Ruth Meridjen about the state of the VFX industry in 2024 and the impact of the pandemic on production. The slow ramp-up of production and the greenlighting of projects are discussed. The future of the industry and the role of AI in filmmaking are examined, with a focus on the limitations and regulations surrounding AI. The importance of storytelling...

Exploitation of VFX Artists - With Senior CG Generalist Mark Woodcock | TVAP EP58 In this episode, I chat to senior CG Generalist Mark Woodcock about the exploitation of Artists in the VFX industry, following his recent and ongoing dispute with IXOR Visual FX. Mark joins the podcast to enlighten us, for the purpose of informing and educating other artists in order to be aware and avoid similar sit...

The health of the VFX industry in 2024, with foudner of MOTUS Kurt Maclachlan | TVAP EP57 In this episode, I chat to Kurt Maclachlan about the status of the VFX in 2024. We discuss where things are at currently, what needs to be done for a better future of the VFX industry and more! 00:00 Introduction and Background 02:48 Causes of the Strikes 04:29 Key Concerns for Actors and Writers 04:59 Impact...

The Man Who Wrote The Book on Compositing with Ron Brinkman | TVAP EP56 When I embarked on my compositing journey, Ron Brinkmann's book, "The Art and Science of Digital Compositing," proved to be an invaluable resource. It provided a wealth of visual information and included a DVD with footage for hands-on practice. Even today, this book remains a seminal work and continues to be re...

This week's guest is co-founder of FXGuide, arguably the first and foremost podcast and blog in our field. He also co-founded FXPhd which was my route into the industry so this was a massive honor for me. We dive deep into Neural Rendering (which Mike has been involved with since 1999) machine learning and practical applications within visual effects and filmmaking. We then discuss the ethics...

In this episode with Matt Merkovich of The Matchmoving Company, we talk about the importance of 3D tracking/matchmove in the VFX industry and what it means to be a matchmove artist. Matt is an expert user of Syntheyes and has been a great influencer in getting it where it is today.  He also uses it for almost all of his work, spiralling almost three decades in the VFX industry. Matt believes #Synt...

Inside VFX Recruitment with Melissa Blakey, Global Head of Talent at Crafty Apes | TVAP EP53 (P-1) For many VFX Recruitment is a bit of a black box - we send off our reels and CV and then hope for the best. This week we go behind the curtain with Crafty Apes, Global Head of talent, Melissa Blakey. We cover Melissa's own fascinating career - she started working on-set before moving into post a...

This is a hot topic with "No AI" trending on Artstation and pending court cases we spoke to Director, Filmmaker and Game Designer Alvaro García Martínezwho has been heavily engaged with this topic. Alvaro worked as VFX Artist for 10 years at London's top studios before founding Mayhem Mirror , his own Game Design studio. So he has experience as an employee an independent creator and...

In the first episode of 2023, we felt it quite important to start the year right, by bringing you some much necessary tips from a VFX recruiter, should you be looking to take on a new role. We are therefore pleased to have Sophie Maydon, former VFX Global Head of HR, Recruitment and PR at DNEG (Double Negative), and Director, VFX Talent & Recruitment Consultant  at her firm PXL Talent Sophie h...

 This week we catch up with a rising star in the industry, Rishabh Laheja, a Junior Digital Compositor at MPC.  Realizing that a career in IT was not for him. Rishabh began studying nights and eventually putting together a compositing showreel with the help of working industry teachers and mentors he reached out to via Linkedin. Launching his new career exactly in the middle of the Covid lockdowns...

What does it take to be a lighting artist? with Jasmine Katatikarn | TVAP EP49 This week we catch up with Jasmine Katatikarn, lighting artist and co-founder of the Academy of Animated Art. We discuss finding your career path at any stage in life, what it takes to be a lighting artist, what makes a successful lighting application to top VFX, and animation studios, working in the VFX and animation a...

This week we caught up with Courtney Pryce. The industry veterans know him from his years as a Creative Specialist at Foundry. We cover a lot of ground, beginning in the "Rock&Roll" years of London VFX in the early 2000s. Also covering the role of the Creative Specialist and the secrets of financial stability as a Compositor. Courtney worked with UK Film and TV industry Union, BECTU,...

Behind The Desk with Hugo Guerra | TVAP EP47 Hugo Guerra, Director,  VFX supervisor, and creator of Hugo's Desk. In this episode, Kofi chats to Hugo about his career in the VFX industry. Uncovering decisions and steps that have made Hugo the Director and Supervisor he is today. With an incredible industry footprint, Hugo has a huge voice across the VFX industry, and I felt it quite relevant t...

I Sold Gum. Now I Blow Things Up! With Action VFX Founder and CEO Rodolphe Pierre-Louis | TVAP EP46 I am pretty sure you've heard of Action VFX, I've used them in my own shots! So we managed to get the Founder and CEO on the show to talk about his career. It's a success story that very nearly wasn't! This is a great one for any artists or filmmakers who are thinking of starting...

AI in the VFX & Creative Industry: Impact, Issues & Solutions | TVAP EP45  Join us, as we discuss the impact of AI in the VFX & Creative industry.  With the rise of platforms such as Midjourney, Dalle-2, and Stable Diffusion influencing artists, we bring forth this open discussion about what the impact could be for our industries if certain laws and rules aren't put into place to...

This week it's been a real pleasure to meet Paul Miller and Marco Paolini - Software Developer and Product Manager behind the Oscar winning software, Boris Silhouette. Despite advances in AI, manual rotoscoping and invisible paintouts are still an essential bullwark of the VFX industry and not going away anytime soon. We begin our discussion  with their work on Elastic Reality (used on classi...

In this episode, we chat to María Carriedo, CG Lead at Freefolk and former colleague of Daniel's at The Mill. Born in Mexico, María studied VFX at the prestigious Gnomon School in LA before working at Psyops on commercials. Since then she moved to London to work at The Mill before her current role. In this interview we learn about María's journey into VFX and her approach to continuous l...

Jörundur Rafn Arnarson  returns after exchanging the frozen mountains of Iceland for the Deserts for his recent VFX Supervisor role on "Rise of The Witches". We talk about how extreme environments influence filmmakers, the route from Compositing to VFX Supervision, "bad CGI", helicopters and much much more. With a Supervisor whose body of work ranges from Icelandic indie films...

In this episode, we chat to Rebecca Holdstock, senior matchmove and rotomation artist at Cinesite London about her VFX career, spiralling over a decade in some of London's well known and biggest studios, through to becoming a mother of two and the change that comes with being a working mother. I had the privilege of working with Rebecca at Cinesite on The Witcher season 2, and for the first t...

In this episode, I had the biggest opportunity to chat to Rolf Schneider, owner of Science-D-Visions,  about how he Created 3DEqualizer For The VFX Industry. Looking back at the evolving digital scene in the 80's and 90's, we discuss working on the Commodore 64 and Amiga, to creating the first version of 3DEqualizer in 1996, to MPC and ILM purchasing their first licenses in 1996 and &apo...