Every now and then, things are awesome. (Warning: bragging ahead!)

Discussion in 'Miscellaneous' started by Gepard, Aug 12, 2010.

  1. Gepard

    Gepard Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 20, 2007
    Sometimes I feel like my life sucks, but every now and then something cool happens. So:

    At the beginning of this year I moved down to Los Angeles to intern at the visual effects company Zoic Studios -- the guys who did effects for nuBSG, Firefly, T:TSCC, and now work on V, CSI, Tru Blood and a ton of other shows. Now, I'd been out of a job since the middle of 2009, after I'd gotten laid off from the art division of a small a software company thanks to the economy, and I'd always wanted to work doing visual effects, having grown up addicted to shows like "Movie Magic,"and that episode of Reading Rainbow where LeVar Burton showed off behind-the-scenes on TNG. So when I was down in LA for unrelated matters the month after I lost my job, I decided to waltz into the Zoic building and start waving my portfolio around and asking to talk to somebody important. Not because I knew what the hell I was doing but because Zoic had been on my radar for years due to BSG and Firefly and I'd always sort of hoped I'd work there doing coll sci-fi stuff. They were also the first and only company I talked to while I was there, so needless to say I was surprised and pretty pleased when they liked my work and accepted me to an intern program I didn't even know they'd had. Long story short, it took the rest of the year for to get everything order and get moved down -- including buying my first car (used, and cheap), as there's no way to bike to LA from another state ;)-- so it definitely felt like putting all my eggs in one basket.

    Anyhow, as part of the program, they'd have interns group into teams to work on a mini-visual effects project of some kind over the four-month duration of the internship, to sort of test our mettle and see who had the chops to work in the industry. I ended up as a producer, writer and visual effects lead on our team's project, and cooked up a faux car ad with a robot panther (it was really just an excuse to do a robot, but I knew that one of the guys heading up the intern program really liked car commercials). The team ended up dwindling down over the course of the term to me and about two other people, but we kept grinding away on it and finished the project about a month-and-a-half ago. My co-producer and I got pretty famous at the company during this time for always being there at all hours working on stuff, and people were always asking about our progress because the other employees really seemed to love what we were doing. The really cool part is that higher-ups at Zoic ended up liking it so much that they put together a screening and showed our work to the whole facility, and -- and this is where you all come in-- added it to the company's website.

    You can watch the whole thing here.

    So. Yeah. That's my robot, that I modeled, textured, lit and rendered, on their site, in a project that I wrote and co-directed. Which is motherfucking awesome.

    Also -- and this is just a bonus really, hardly worth mentioning -- I got hired and am currently part of the team working on the second season of V. As I write, I just clocked out after a day building one of the new virtual sets that will appear in the first episode of the season. (And if you guys scroll up a bit on the homepage and play the Kingdoms of Alamur: Reckoning trailer, I built the helmet and neck armor for the hero character. But he's not a spaceship, so it's not as cool.)

    Like I said, sometimes things are awesome. :D
     
  2. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 14, 2000
    Location:
    QC, IL, USA
    Okay, yeah, that is pretty awesome. I am both happy for you and extremely jealous.

    I need to find a job doing something with sci-fi.
     
  3. JonathonWally

    JonathonWally Admiral Admiral

    Dude, awesome!
     
  4. SVD

    SVD Captain Captain

    Joined:
    May 30, 2009
    Location:
    The beautiful Sacramento Valley near Chico, CA
    *hat tip and a bow*

    Impressive work and what good fortune!

    *High Five's Gep*

    Congrats! :techman:
     
  5. scotpens

    scotpens Professional Geek Premium Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2009
    Location:
    City of the Fallen Angels
    Well, you lucked out. Congratulations! Sometimes putting all your eggs in one basket pays off.

    And yes, you definitely need a car to get around in Tinseltown.
     
  6. Australis

    Australis Writer - Australis Admiral

    Joined:
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    Location:
    The Edge of Reality
    This,. Both point.

    Well done, really well done.

    <skulks away in ennnnnnnnnvvyyyyyyyyyy...>
     
  7. kes7

    kes7 Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Sector 001
    Yay, you! :bolian:
     
  8. M'Sharak

    M'Sharak Definitely Herbert. Maybe. Moderator

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    Awesome. :techman:
     
  9. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    Just around the bend.
    Well this explains your absence in the fan art forum!
     
  10. Locutus of Bored

    Locutus of Bored Yo, Dawg! I Heard You Like Avatars... In Memoriam

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    Gep, it's great to hear that things are going so well for you and that all your hard work is starting to pay off. Congratulations, and I look forward to seeing your work in the next season of 'V.' :techman:
     
  11. Naira

    Naira Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    That is awesome indeed. I am really glad that you are doing something you enjoy and it works out just fine. :-)
     
  12. TheBrew

    TheBrew Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Location:
    Fox Lady
    Fucking A, man. Fucking A.

    That is awesome. If you are ever out by D.C., I'll buy you a beer (or drink of your choice) as congrats.

    EDIT: I watched the short. That was simply amazing. Great concept, great execution. You have incredibly talented and have a bright future ahead of you in VFX.
     
  13. Misfit Toy

    Misfit Toy Caped Trek Mod Admiral

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    Awesome, Gep - just awesome!!
     
  14. Robert Maxwell

    Robert Maxwell memelord Premium Member

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    That's really cool, man! I want one of those cars now. :lol:

    I look forward to seeing your V work this season. :techman:
     
  15. Yeoman Randi

    Yeoman Randi Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Exciting and awesome! :bolian: That's so cool!! ~ and now i've got another person i can live vicariously through! w00t!
     
  16. Kestra

    Kestra Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jul 6, 2005
    That's amazing! Totally proud of you. Glad things have worked out so well for you. Congrats!!!
     
  17. propita

    propita Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Location:
    fresno, ca, us
    Ok, that was a cool ad.

    Very happy that you stepped up and saw everything through on the internship program. Best of luck to you!
     
  18. milo bloom

    milo bloom Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    The varied and beautiful Chicagoland suburbs.
    Very cool!
     
  19. captcalhoun

    captcalhoun Admiral Admiral

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    everywhere
  20. John Clark

    John Clark Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    That sounds like excellent news:)

    Congratulations.:bolian: