Mill Blog ♥

Another instalment from team talent

Friday, November 30, 2012

It's been a while since team talent updated us, so here is Tom Knight to talk us through where in the world he's been and what he's been up to in the latter part of 2012…

First up, adding to the French invasion in Soho, we have Michael Balthazart currently working for us who studied at ARTFX in Montpellier. Michael's graduation film Voile Noir is well worth a watch, he's definitely a rising star.

Two of our ex-runners, Marta Carbonell Amela and Ryan Smith, were given the chance to complete the Maya Core program at Escape Studios earlier this year. It was a fantastic opportunity for the guys and now they are working within our 3D commercials department. During the course they created a project each, a still from 'Boats' and 'The Pool Table' below. Both projects apparently involved a lot of long nights and massive amounts of hair pulling.

I caught up with them recently to get their feedback on the opportunity:

"If it wasn't for The Mill and Escape Studios I wouldn't of reached my dream of becoming a 3D artist, thank you to everyone for their support." - Ryan Smith

"From the start my ambition was to work in the commercials 3D team. The last two years have been a journey for me going from being a runner, to escape studios to being promoted into the 3D commercials department. I've learned so much and now my new ambition is to develop into an experienced and skilled 3d artist."  - Marta Carbonell Amela

Here they are, basking in their success:

In other news, the BBC have commissioned an educational series aimed at introducing computer programming to 8-11 year olds. The Mill offered to show how we use programming every day in our VFX work and to inspire children about the possibilities of technology. A pair of local Soho school children came in and met three of our VFX artists, Tom Raynor, Cat Harris and Rosemary Chester, to form part of the programme. Their definite highlight of the day was when they were composited into the Dalek coliseum from the first episode of the new series of Dr Who!

Finishing on a completely different note, life drawing is storming back on the scene! Our London employees enjoyed the previous classes so much that they demanded a return. Our first class is starting on January 10th so I'll update you in the new year with a link to the latest and greatest sketches.