Surfacing Supervisor and Look Development Technical Supervisor with 18+ years of experience across feature animation and VFX. Equally artistic and technical, with a strong ability to translate complex art direction into production-ready 3D assets. Proven track record designing scalable surfacing and asset workflows, leading multi-disciplinary build teams, and supporting studios through pipeline evolution. Proficiency in Supervising Surfacing teams and capable of spearheading Build departments across characters and environments.
Designed, planned, and tested studio-wide surfacing and asset workflows to support current and future productions
Drove cross-department initiatives around: -Asset workflows -QC standards -Material libraries -Tooling improvements -Documentation and training
Oversaw maintenance and evolution of: -Katana surfacing toolkits -Generics / crowds surfacing system -Eye shader and related shading frameworks -Surfacing QC workflows
Supported all running shows from both a technical and artistic standpoint, helping teams interpret stylized and PBR looks within pipeline constraints
Worked extensively with Modeling, Grooming, Rigging, Lighting, Pipeline, and Production to align expectations and requirements
Co-developed a cross-training curriculum allowing: -Surfacers to learn Grooming fundamentals -Groom artists to understand Surfacing workflows -Increased team flexibility, resilience, and growth opportunities
Actively supported and co-managed the Groom department during a period of limited leadership coverage
Involved in show planning, bidding, recruitment, crewing, documentation, and training
Acted as a bridge between Surfacing, Pipeline, Lighting, Modeling, Grooming, Rigging, and Production
Directly supervised one dedicated TD and provided technical leadership to a department of 50+ surfacing artists