The Allan McKay Podcast

Melinda Ozel is an Expression Scientist, Consultant and Educator of all things face related.

Before pioneering a career path in expression science, she worked as a Researcher at Meta and Affective where she used her expression expertise to advise the tracking and simulation of facial behavior. She now helps companies in film, game and tech create compelling animated characters and build high-fidelity face tracking technology.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Expression Scientist Melinda Ozel about neuroscience, neuro-marketing and psychology; her contribution to the FACS system and working as an educator; as well as tips for building your own consulting business and the importance of coding, SEO and social media.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/428.

Activision Blizzard's history goes back more than 40 years. Two incredible gaming brands Activision and Blizzard Entertainment merged, bringing together the best creative talent in gaming. The acquisition of King in 2016 further strengthened the company's vision to bring the world together through epic entertainment. Their professional gaming properties include the Overwatch League™, the Call of Duty League™, Hearthstone® Grandmasters, and the World of Warcraft® Arena World Championship, among others. Activision Blizzard Esports also operates Tespa™, the leader in collegiate esports.

In this Episode, Activision Blizzard King's Executive Principal Recruiter for Art in Animation and Creative Robin Alan Linn gives insider tips about what makes a successful reel, how to negotiate a salary, importance of relationships and reputation, why visual effects is always about storytelling – and why the most crucial question an interviewee can ask is: "What am I bringing to the table?"

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/427.

A veteran facilitator with over 25 years experience in VFX and animation, Jep Hill is an Executive Creative Director at Alkemy X, an award-winning global creative company at the intersection of advertising, brands and entertainment. The company is a creative partner for the biggest names in film and television, such as Fear of the Walking Dead, Wednesday, The Whale, Westworld, Power, Dear White People, Hunters, Mr. Robot, and many more.

Since 1981, Alkemy X has been a pioneer in a continuously evolving industry — entrusted with projects generating billions of dollars in revenue. With the craft and talent to take on any project, they're a vertically integrated creative company, offering strategy and execution with speed, quality and efficiency that always exceeds expectation.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews the Executive Creative Director of Alkemy X Jep Hill about leadership skills for artists, the age of AI in VFX — and how artists can take advantage of it; go-to tools and soft skills of a VFX Supervisor, four rules of management, how to win over clients; and the timeless question of: Is the magic of visual effects still alive?

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/426.

Todd Sheridan Perry is an On-Set Supervisor on the show with a diverse background in video games, film and television. He's worked on titles like Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers to Final Destination 5, The Immortals, Total Recall, Resident Evil 5 and Avengers: Age of Ultron. Todd has also worked as a CG Supervisor on Marvel's Doctor Strange which was nominated for a Best Visual Effects Oscar.

Scott Kirvan is a VFX and Virtual Production Supervisor, Tech Enthusiast and multidisciplinary creative. He is also the Co-Author of globally recognized Brazil Rendering System, a high performance production quality GI ray trace renderer. As a Virtual Production and Visual Effects Supervisor, Scott has over 20 years of leadership experience, including client-side supervisory roles and in-studio digital production work. He has a diverse background in filmmaking, VFX, business leadership, and engineering, making him a valuable asset to any production team.

In this Podcast, VFX Supervisors Todd Sheridan Perry and Scott Kirvan do a deep dive into the making of the Amazon comedy series I'M A VIRGO by Boots Riley, the practical effects and some of the technology used in the show, its challenges and how they resolved them.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/425.

With 10+ years of VFX industry experience, Digital Artist and VFX Sup Marco Baratto is more than ever interested in being an integral part of it through compositing and creative leadership. An understanding of light, color and composition are essential to his approach. His additional interests include photography, concept art, cinema and mathematics.

His most recent credit is the role of a Digital Artist in Christopher Nolan's OPPENHEIMER. His other credits include EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS and GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY.

In this Podcast, Digital Artist Marco Baratto talks about his work on OPPENHEIMER and how much CGI should or should not be utilized is storytelling; as well as the pros and cons of working remotely, the benefit of getting a degree in VFX and the importance of doing your personal work as a VFX artist.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/424.

Curious Refuge is a home for unlocking your inner artist using the latest tools.

Founded by Caleb and Shelby Ward, the company believes in giving back to the creative community with their videos, blog content and interactive courses. They develop compelling and innovative video and blog content for free and have a blast with every video.

They also work with world-class clients and storytellers to bring their creative visions to life. Self described as a bunch of goofballs who have a love for life and creativity, they love to share content and inspiration.

Caleb Ward has led marketing teams for startups, Fortune-500 companies and creative brands around the world. His background in filmmaking and marketing has led him to develop keen intuition about what it takes to launch a successful idea.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Caleb Ward, the Co-Founder of Curious Refuge, a community for artists that tackles the latest tools including AI, about his starting the company as a positive change, going viral on YouTube, the profound change of AI and its future; as well as the timely question of: Should one embrace AI or fear it?

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/423.

Grant Miller is a Partner and an Executive VFX Supervisor at Ingenuity Studios.

Grant brings a deep level of technical and artistic acumen to his role as Executive VFX Supervisor at Ingenuity Studios. He oversees the studio's CG, FX, and Pipeline teams, ensuring that final results meet the exacting demands of sophisticated clients. Working closely with directors and creative decision-makers, Grant provides guidance and methodology during preproduction, supervision on set, and ensures seamless collaboration and high-quality results through post.

Over the years, Grant has supervised visual effects for a long list of notable clients, including episodic television shows such as The Night Agent, The Orville, The Boys, and Westworld; films such as Get Out and A Star is Born; music videos for Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Lady Gaga; and Super Bowl commercials for Fox Sports. Grant got his start working in video games in 2007, a background that he pulls from as the industry moves toward real-time VFX.

Based in Los Angeles, Grant is a member of the Visual Effects Society and Film Independent. He received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Sports Promotional in 2017, and is frequently called upon to share insights at industry events and conferences.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisor and Partner at Ingenuity Studios Grant Miller about how up-and-coming Artists can launch their career: the importance of following your dreams, how to train your eye in visual effects, why keeping it simple always wins and some job interview red flags.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/422.

With a passion for storytelling and a flare for the visual, Matt Whelan has been making short films and commercials for over 10 years. Training as a classical animator at Sheridan College, Whelan's experience spans live-action and digital Directing, storyboarding, CG animation, and VFX supervision, where he has received international nominations for multiple film/television works. His current focus is on live action narrative. Whelan received a 2023 Emmy® nomination for his work on Apple TV+ series FIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL.

Eric Durst is a Visual Effects Supervisor known for his work on GODS OF EGYPT (2016), SNOWPIERCER (2013), and BATMAN FOREVER (1995). Durst received a 2023 Emmy® nomination for his work on Apple TV+ series FIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL. He was previously nominated for an Emmy® in 2017 for his work on National Geographic's GENIUS.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisors Eric Durst and Matt Whelan about their work on FIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL for Apple TV+, the most memorable and challenging sequences on the show, doing previs in Unreal Engine, photorealism in an historic project, as well as the innovation of AI and its influence on visual effects.

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/421.

James MacLachlan is a London-based VFX Supervisor and Director with a career spanning 19 years.He has worked for studios in New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom.

James has worked at a number of London VFX houses including Glassworks and The Mill and is currently a Freelance On-set VFX Supervisor, Flame and Nuke Artist. He offers secure remote artistry on both Flame and Nuke in his London studio. Over the years he has completed high end VFX on TV Commercials, TV Series effects and design, Channel Idents, Feature Films, Music Videos, Virals and Interactive Online Video projects. He is also known for his work on 28 WEEKS LATER (2007), WICKED SCIENCE (2004) and TED LASSO which has been nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Special Visual Effects, in 2023.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisor James MacLachlan about his work on the 2023 Emmy-nominated Episode of TED LASSO, the preparation and improvisation of VFX supervision, the tools used on set, how to fast track your career as a VFX Supervisor and so much more!

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/420.

Jim Morris is President of Pixar Animation Studios, where he oversees all of the company's productions and operations. Morris began working at Pixar in 2005. Films under his supervision include RATATOUILLE, UP, TOY STORY 3, CARS 2, BRAVE, MONSTERS UNIVERSITY, INSIDE OUT, THE GOOD DINOSAUR, FINDING DORY, CARS 3, COCO and INCREDIBLES 2. As a producer, Morris most recently made the live-action Disney feature JOHN CARTER with director Andrew Stanton. He also produced Pixar's WALL•E, which won the Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature. Morris was also awarded Producer of the Year in Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures from the Producers Guild of America, the AFI Award, the Golden Globe and the Visual Effects Society Best Animated Feature Award for WALL•E.

Prior to joining Pixar, Morris held a range of key positions for 17 years in various divisions of Lucasfilm Ltd. He served as President of Lucas Digital Ltd., and managed its three divisions, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Skywalker Sound and Lucasfilm Animation. As ILM's General Manager for more than 13 years, he supervised a staff of over 1,400 artists and technicians, and guided the largest visual effects facility in the entertainment industry.

With Morris' oversight, ILM created the groundbreaking and Academy Award®-winning visual effects in JURASSIC PARK, DEATH BECOMES HER, TERMINATOR 2 and FORREST GUMP. Other notable projects completed under his management include MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, TWISTER, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, STAR WARS: EPISODE I, STAR WARS: EPISODE II, THE PERFECT STORM, PEARL HARBOR, MINORITY REPORT, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, MASTER AND COMMANDER, and three films in the HARRY POTTER series.

Morris joined ILM in 1987 as a Producer of visual effects for films and commercials. Among Morris' producing credits are James Cameron's THE ABYSS (which earned the Academy Award® for Best Achievement in Visual Effects), and Steven Spielberg's ALWAYS.

Before joining ILM, Morris was Executive Producer at Arnold & Associates, where he oversaw the company's three offices and produced commercials for clients such as Atari, Chevron and Mattel. Prior to that, Morris was Executive Producer at One Pass, where he headed the commercial production division. He also served in the production departments at advertising agencies J. Walter Thompson, and Foote, Cone & Belding in San Francisco. Morris worked as a producer and director for PBS, and began his career as a cameraman and editor at NBC.

Morris is the recipient of the Producers Guild Digital 50 Award, the Visual Effects Society Board of Directors Award and the Visual Effects Society Founders Award. He has also been named a VES Fellow. Morris served for many years as President of the San Francisco Film Commission, and is Founding Chair of the VES. He is a member of AMPAS, PGA, BAFTA, VES and ASIFA, and currently serves as a member of Motion Picture Academy's Finance Committee. Morris earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Film and a Master of Science degree in Television/Radio from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University.

In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews Pixar's President Jim Morris about his career both at ILM and Pixar; working with legendary Directors such as James Cameron, Steven Spielberg, Andrew Stanton and Robert Zemeckis; behind-the-scenes and Innovations of JURASSIC PARK and FORREST GUMP; the unpredictable magic of live action projects; how limitations inspire VFX inventions; and why "Problems aren't an impediment to the job. Solving problems IS the job."

For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/419.