Steven Wolff
Collins College Interns Interview Visual FX Artist
October 8, 2008 | by brett | Permalink
Steven Wolff is a recent graduate of Collins College in Tempe, AZ. He studied Film and Visual FX in the bachelor’s degree program and graduated in February 2008. Steven went to Collins College and got to try everything, from shooting, editing, visual fx, and post production. “I really hung on to the visual fx and post production. Really good teachers and I pursued that path because I really liked it. I liked the way the work flow worked, what you had to do.”
He started working for the Visual FX company out of Santa Monica, CA called Hydraulx just weeks before graduation. Steven has worked on various projects at Hydraulx including The Incredible Hulk, X-Men Origins:Wolverine, AVP:Requiem, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (not yet released), and many more.
He soon found out “It’s not all ice cream and candy out there.” His job as a rotoscope/paint artist is really demanding at the end of the production phase of a movie, with serious deadlines and extremely meticulous work, his job hours go from standard eight-hour days to twelve to fifteen-hour days. Great advice Steven learned early on in college is, “You’re not gonna be visual fx superviser when you walk through the door, you’re gonna be the grunt, you’re not gonna make any money and you gotta apply yourself.” Steven goes on to say, “You have to be motivated but you have to be really laid back but also have to be a good artist.” “You’ve gotta be able to take crap. If somebody yells at you, you can’t get upset and leave. You know they aren’t mad at you, they’re just under a lot of pressure. You have to be able to handle pressure.”
Steven wasn’t an overly experienced rotoscope artist when he got the job, he had a lot of tracking and a lot of matte painting on his demo reel, Hyrdraulx realized he wouldn’t be the best at it but gave him the opportunity of a two week trial. Steven proved to be a dedicated candidate and improved one-hundred percent. “I was asking other artist, there was a lot of communication going on, if you’re just sitting there failing and you’re not getting the work done or not talking to anyone they’re going to let you go. On the other side of it, if you’re asking questions constantly, you’re going to be an annoyance. So you just have to find a happy medium and then show you’re motivated.”
In the visual fx industry, like most industries, the position you want to start out in is often far more ambitious than where you will actually start out. Even with a four-year degree from an accredited college you’re still fighting for just entry-level positions. “You’ll probably get an entry-level job as something else, like you want to be a character rigger you get an entry level as a modeler and then move over.” Pipelines, hierarchy ladders, differ from company to company as well. You might need to start out in an entry-level position at one company where they train you to work on a particular software crossover to another company where they pay you as that type of artist. “You gotta build your way up so maybe that requires jumping different companies to get more pay.”
As with most entertainment based industries, “It’s not what you know its who you know, that is most definitely the case especially in LA, I got the job at Hydraulx from knowing the right people and people knowing the right people. It’s not like I walked in, did an interview, and they hired me. No, I was referred, that’s how ninety percent of the industry is out there. Yes, you gotta have good work but most of it is who you know and if you can make those contacts, network, get people to look at your stuff, have them send out your stuff, make friends, you’re all set.” Networking is key in the entertainment industry, Steven started Collins College as a shy guy and eventually with assistance from peers and teachers built the confidence to land an awesome job in the pursuit of passion for the career he loves.
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Steve Says:
October 9th, 2008
Very nice interview. I liked his wisdom for young people - “you don’t walk in the door and immediately make supervisor. You’ve got to the grunt.” Good stuff.
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