Demo Reel

Animation Demo Reel

Reel Contents

Walt Disney’s - The Wild,  “Lion of the sea…”

Walt Disney’s - The Wild,  (Lioness’s, Kazar and  Ryan)

Insecticide: The Game:  (FMV’s and Character tests)
Vampyre Story: (in-game animation)

Dragon: (Cinematic Game animation)
Wrath Unleashed: (in-game animation)

M&M’s – China: (Commercial – Will Vinton Studios)

Rock ‘n’ Roll Mama’s:  (Intro, feature documentary film)

Experience

Laika Entertainment, Portland, OR.  04/2013 – Present.

Facial Animator - For “The Boxtrolls”.

        Facial Animation tasks include:  Lipsync and facial expressions for character performance according to dialogue track-read, transferred to rapid-prototype 3D printed faces used in final stop-motion animation.

Bent Image Labs,  Portland, OR.  02/2013 – 04/2013.

Character Animator - 3D Studio Max animation for commercial and TV productions. 

Rock ‘n’ Roll Mama’s.  Portland, OR. 01/2009 – 07/2013.

Animation Artist – Flash, Maya 3D character and effects animation for into and transitional segments for independent, live-action, feature length documentary.  Director; Jackie Weisseman

Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design,  Denver, CO. 1/2010 -  04/2013.

Department Chair - Animation & Game Art.  – Department management implementing growth and development. 

Achievements include:

         Course curriculum - Design and development for on-campus and online class delivery.

        Online – Designed curriculum, procedures and process, launching and maintaining online program for department.  

         Assessment – Active committee member, designing and implementing assessment procedure, protocol, departmental standards, and outcomes. 

         Topic Presenter - Assessment in the Arts Conference, Denver CO. July 2011.  “Documentation, Assessment, and Data-driven Practice: Comparing the on-campus and online class environments”

         Accreditation – Successfully completed review requirements for Higher Learning Commission (HLC)              and National Association of Schools of Arts and Design (NASAD).

Faculty – Teaching Online and On-campus, courses in Maya 3D computer, and traditional animation. 

Courses include:

         Business, Ethics and Copyright – Professional practices concerning the animation and film industry.

         3D Computer Animation Motion Studies – Maya computer character animation.

         3D Computer Animation Modeling – Maya modeling techniques.

         Stop-Motion Animation – Traditional stop-motion animation production techniques.

         Character Animation and Motion Studies – Traditional 2D drawn animation techniques.

         Creative Visualization – Cinematic pre-visualization, concept development and storyboarding

         3D Animation Collective – Studio environment, short film team production.

         Thesis – Instructing and overseeing individual senior student final thesis film projects.

The Art Institute of Portland, Portland, OR. 03/2005 – 12/2009.

Adjunct Faculty – Teaching courses for Media Art & Animation, Game Art & Design, and Digital Film & Video. 

Courses include:

         Foundation Portfolio – Sophomore portfolio development and professional practices.

         Intermediate Animation Techniques – Maya computer character animation.

         Stop-Motion Animation - Traditional stop-motion animation production techniques.

         3D Modeling and Animation II – Basic Maya modeling, texturing, and animation.

         Storyboarding - Cinematic storytelling, concept development, and storyboard creation.

Walt Disney Pictures / C.O.R.E. Feature Animation, Toronto, ON  Canada. 07/2003 – 12/2004.

Character Animator, Pre-Visualization Artist - For “Walt Disney’s The Wild”.

         Character Animation – Computer animation using Houdini software

         Pre-visualization – Story consultant, layout and animation concepts using Maya

Happy Hour Entertainment, Portland OR. 03/2003– 07/2003.

Animation Consultant, Animation Director - Crew trainer for R&D projects and game animation design.

Projects include:

         “Wrath Unleashed” - Slappy Pictures.  In-game character animation using Maya.  Released 2004.

         “Shards of Death”.  Animation Director, Character Animator for short independent film.

Pileated Pictures, Shelburn Falls, MA. 12/2004 – 12/2009.

Character Animator and Consultant - 3D Maya and Flash game content.  

Projects include:

         “Insecticide: The Game” - Crackpot Entertainment. Lead Maya 3D character animator for cinematic cutscenes and in-game animation for all characters.  Released 2008.

         “A Vampyre Story” - Autumn Moon Entertainment.  In-game character animator using Maya 3D. Released 2008.

         Trivial Pursuit DVD for Kids - Hasbro / Parker Bros.  Flash Character Animator for video elements for board game.  Released 2005.

         “Planet Cazmo” – Online virtual world, interactive Flash animation.

         FurReal Pets – Hasbro.  Interactive Flash animation for online game.

         Transformers Game - Hasbro.  Interactive Flash animation for online game.

Flying Rhinoceros, Portland, OR. 02/2005 – 04/2010.

Freelance Flash Animator - For direct-to-video educational productions.

Projects include:

         “On the Farm, with Farmer Bob” series – Produced and performed by Randy Travis, Amy Grant & Vince Gill. Flash Animator.

         “Gigi, God’s Little Princess” – Tommy Nelson Publications.  Flash Animator.

         “Really Woolly” - Tommy Nelson Publications.  Flash Animator.

         “Precious Girls Club” - Tommy Nelson Publications.  Flash Animator.

         “Horned Avenger: The Battle Against Von Boredom”.  Flash Animator.

Nick Digital Labs, New York, NY. 12/2002 – 03/2003.

Crew Lead, Key Animator – Lightwave 3D character animation for Jimmy Neutron ride attraction, Universal Studios Theme Parks.

Will Vinton Studios (now Laika), Portland OR. 01/1996 – 10/2002.

Episode Director - For network TV production.  Staff commercial Director and Animator.  

Major projects include:

         “The PJ’s “– Stop-Motion, prime-time TV series for FOX Network. Episode Director on three episodes for       seasons 2 and 3. Stop-Motion Character Animator, Assistant Director, season 1.

         M&M Guys - M&M’s/Mars. Director, Animation Director, Animator, for various nationally broadcast TV commercials and advertising campaigns.

         “Gary and Mike” -  Episode Director on Stop-Motion, prime-time TV series for UPN Network

         “Dark Void” - Airtight Games / Laika.  Cinematic, cutscene, and in-game character animator using Maya. Released 2010.

Walt Disney Animation / Skellington Productions, San Francisco, CA. 10/1995 – 01/1996.

Stop-Motion Character and Effects Animator - For “James and the Giant Peach”.

Danger Productions, San Francisco, CA. 07/1995 – 10/1995.

Stop-Motion Animator - For “Bump in the Night”, Saturday morning TV production for ABC Network.

Olive Jar Animation.  Boston, MA. 06/1984 – 06/1995.

Department Supervisor, Director, Animator, Cinematographer. 

Notable projects and clients include:

         MTV  – Animation, fabrication, and cinematography for promotional spots and music video content

         Nickelodeon – Animation, fabrication, and cinematography for promotional spots.

         McDonalds – Directed and animated a series of 20, one-minute stop-motion PSA’s for Saturday morning TV broadcast

         Riders in the Sky: “Gila Monster” – Directed and animated 7 animated cartoons for a Saturday morning series.

         7-11 – Animation Director, Animator for “Brain Freeze” TV advertising campaign, and animated segments for corporate video.

         “Francis and Bob” – Animator, cinematographer, set and character fabrication for independent short film.

EDUCATION

University of Phoenix.  Masters of Business Administration    10/2006

Concentration in E-Commerce

Emerson College, Boston, MA.  Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Communications.    05/1985

Concentrations in Film Production, Animation and Cinematography

SOFTWARE PROFIENCY

3D Graphics and Animation:

         Maya 2013

         3D Studio Max

         Lightwave 7.5

         Unity Game Engine

         Houdini.

 2D Graphics, Animation and Design:

         Adobe Flash CS3 –CS5

         Adobe Photoshop

         Adobe Premier

         Adobe After Effects

Other Software:

         MS Office applications: Word, PowerPoint and Excel.

         Windows, Mac and experience with LINUX operating systems.