Get Schooled.
Sure, if you sign up for our weekly newsletter, you’ll get new episodes delivered straight to your inbox. You’ll also get my behind the scenes takeaway from the week’s chat. But there’s more.
In the creative industry your portfolio is your passport. It’s all it takes to unlock the opportunities you might not have right now. That’s why I want to send you my Epic Bucket List for Creatives. It’s full of wild destinations you can get to, if you just make the work.
39: Aaron Covrett -- 3D Designer, On Patience, Production Workflows & ManvsMachine
Frequent collaborator of designer’s favorite studios like ManVsMachine & Tendril, Aaron’s eye for materials and lighting is world class. That much is obvious from his work. Talking to him, it became clear he’s meditated deeply on optimizing the pains of production. He’s probably someone you want on your team.
38: Colorsponge -- CG Automotive Artist, On Alberto Mielgo, Self-Knowledge & Defying Doubt
Carlos Pecorino aka Colorsponge is known for his gorgeous automotive renderings. I can’t say enough nice things about him or his work. It’s rare you find someone so talented who’s this humble.
37: Cornelius Dämmrich -- CG Artist, On Rags To Riches, Working Slowly And The Universe Of Delpher
The industry knows Cornelius for creating some of the most detailed CG images in the world. His custom scenes are dense with secrets, designed to be admired for a long time. During our chat I learned what a painstaking, arduous process this entailed. He's a CG artist who defines the term "labor of love." (But also a really funny guy)
36: Stephy Fung -- Digital Fashion Designer, On Augmented Realities, Impossible Fashion & NFTs
Stephy Fung is a 3D designer who’s found herself a pioneer in the world of digital fashion. Learning Marvelous Designer has allowed her to participate in a space that’s poised to grow exponentially bigger as the metaverse intertwines with reality.
35: Debra Isaac -- Educator, On Founding Houdini School, Scientific Visualization & Human Connection
Debra Isaac absolutely loves Houdini. That’s why she founded the online learning platform Houdini School. There she invites instructors across the world to spread their love for Houdini through online education. A truly avid advocate, SideFX should really consider paying her at this point...
34: Nonotak -- Musicians & Visual Artists, On Light, Installation Art & International Touring
Visual artist Noemi Schipfer and musician Takami Nakamoto aren’t your typical artists. NONOTAK combines electronic music, installation art and optical illusion to create magical performances all over the globe.
33: Leo Esteves -- Art Director, On Working With Heroes, Daily Grinding & Venezuelan War Stories
Leo Esteves is a Venezuelan Art Director & 3D Designer who is known for his amazing automobile renders. He’s collaborated with industry heroes such as Ash Thorp & Hydro 74 on various car projects and is just as inspiring with his own aura of hard work, positivity and growth.
32: Pánico -- Branding Studio, On Destroying Bullsh*t Marketing, Global Business and Ecuador
Meet Marcelo and Paulina, the husband and wife founders of one of the fastest growing studios in Latin America. Pánico ditches the meaningless corporate marketing bullshit and shows clients what’s real.
31: Derek Elliott -- 3D Designer, On Blender, Business Strategies and Working Direct to Client
Derek Elliott is here to convert you to the gospel of 3D. He’s already taught over 100K of his Youtube subscribers how to communicate in 3D using Blender, an open source program that’s rapidly becoming one of the best. A talented artist and a business-savy designer, check this episode out if you want to turn your design hobby into a business.
30: Donnie Bauer -- Creative Director, On Hanging Loose, Leadership, and Making Pretty Pictures
One of the beloved Creative Directors of The Mill, Donnie's enthusiasm for art & design has earned him industry accolades with the likes of AICP and Promax BDA. As dangerous in a pitch room as he is on the box, Donnie is a force multiplier on any project and a master collaborator. Also, he's a nasty DJ.
29: Jessica Rossier & Bastien Grivet -- Concept Artists, On The Witness, Spiderverse and Success
Jessica Rossier & Bastien Grivet are a husband & wife team of concept artists behind the style for Into the Spiderverse and Love, Death and Robot's jaw-dropping short The Witness. Under their alias Wardenlight Studios they have worked with the best of the best across film and videogames. They are wonderful people and utterly passionate artists!
28: GMUNK -- Director & Designer, On Creative Adrenaline, Soul Extraction & Strobe Lights
GMUNK is a visionary whose creativity and innovation span a diverse range of mediums, and has established himself as one of the top visual design directors in the world.
27: Ben Lukas Boysen -- Composer, On Scoring Movies, Releasing Albums & Finding Collaborators
Ben is a talented composer who has done scores for brands such as Lexus, Nike, Google & Swarovski. He's a frequent collaborator with talent like Ash Thorp & GMUNK. He's done movies, TV shows and video-games and released self-titled albums under his own name. For anyone interested in what goes into scoring music, you got to check this out.
26: Niels Prayer -- Director & Designer, On Patrick Clair, Friday Night Jazz and Developing Movies
Niels Prayer was a former Technical Director at studios like Framestore & Illumination, but his taste lead him towards design and illustration. Incredibly talented, wise and humble, Niels shared his expertise on how to be extraordinary and happy at the same time.
25: Gustaf Fjelstrom -- Motion Designer, Opening for Dream Theater, Rebooting Careers & Title Design
Gustaf spent fifteen years in a band and twenty years as a Creative Director. He worked with acts like Dream Theater and people like Steve Jobs. Then he started his career all over to fulfill his dream of becoming a motion designer. It’s an episode with quite the story arc!
24: Diego Grimaldi -- Senior FX Artist, On Working for Disney, Weta & Into the Spiderverse
Diego is a Houdini artist who's worked on movies like Frozen II, Logan, Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Madness, Justice League and Into the Spiderverse. Studios like Walt Disney Animation Studios, Weta, and Buck think he's pretty good at his job.
23: Saad Moosajee -- Designer & Director, On Music Videos, Motion Capture and Pixar
Coming highly recommended by Sam Mason, Saad was already pre-determined to impress. I was familiar with his work for the legendary Thom Yorke of Radiohead and saw some incredibly impressive projects on his site. Then I found out he had worked for Pixar, Stefan Sagmeister and Google’s Innovation Lab…
21: Armin Lotfi -- 3D Designer, On Alien Plants, Teaching Houdini & Proceduralism
All the way from Iran, Armin runs an ambitious creative collective known as Microverse. Using Houdini, he makes gorgeous alien renders and amazing tutorials through his Youtube channel Simple & Procedural. A true asset to the community and a talented artist!
20: Urban Bradesko -- Creative Director & VFX Artist, On Houdini, VFX Salaries & Rebelway
Urban’s got crazy video experience, major VFX experience and co-founded online education platform Rebelway with Saber Jlassi of Blizzard fame. For anyone looking to break into the deep end of what CG can do, you’re in luck. Rebelway is just the place to look. (I signed up for a bunch)