Visual Effects

Offered in:

ATLANTA

SAVANNAH

Savannah

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  Bridget Gaynor
  Savannah
  B.F.A., M.A., William Paterson University.
  Show bio

  Bridget Gaynor began her career in visual effects in 1993 as a 3-D generalist in post-production at Post Effects in Chicago, Ill. In that role, she worked on graphics for broadcast, commercials, corporate video and video games. In 1995 she became senior technical director at Rhythm & Hues Studios in Los Angeles, where her duties included sequence and scene lighting, materials, textures, sequence supervising, lighting lead, compositing artist and more. She has worked on more than 16 films, as well as commercials and theme park attractions. Since 2004, she has taught courses in the SCAD animation and visual effects departments, as well as in the technical direction minor. Gaynor is an Autodesk-certified Maya instructor.
  
  Selected film credits:
  

  • "The Chronicles of Narnia," look development and fur grooming
  • "Garfield," sequence lighting lead and sequence supervisor
  • "The Cat in the Hat," sequence lighting lead and look development lead
  • "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," look development and lighting
  • "It's Tough to be a Bug," 3-D stereoscopic theme park attraction in Disney's Wild Animal Park, sequence superviosr
    

  Memberships:
  

  • SIGGRAPH Education Committee

  Courses:
  

  • Digital Lighting and Rendering
  • 3-D Color, Lighting and Rendering
  • Digital Materials and Textures
  • Compositing for Technical Direction
  • 3-D Collaborative Project
  • Character Look Development
  • Creature Look Development
  • Visual Effects Portfolio
    

  
  
  
  
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  Kenneth Huff
  Savannah
  
  
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  David Kaul
  Savannah
  B.F.A., Syracuse University; M.F.A., Ohio State University.
  Show bio

  Dave Kaul has produced entertainment for a variety of ages and in many media. He worked on the "Mask" CD-ROM, a commercial for Dodge that premiered during the 1995 Superbowl and digital toy models for Fisher-Price. His work has been exhibited at SIGGRAPH, and he has interned at Industrial Light and Magic. Kaul specializes in programming, motion capture and dynamic simulations. Kaul is an Autodesk-certified Maya instructor.
  
  Awards:
  

  • School of Visual Arts award for animated CGI movie "Secret Agent Athena," 1995
  • SIGGRAPH contributor for animated CGI movie "Power of Dreams," 1993

  Memberships:
  

  • Certified Alias Instructor in Maya Character Animation
  • Certified Alias Instructor in Maya Embedded Language (MEL) programming

  Classes:
  

  • Introduction to Visual Effects Programming
  • Motion Capture and Integration
  • Dynamic Simulation and Secondary Motion
  • Visual Effects M.F.A. Thesis

  
  
  
  
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  Malcolm Kesson
  Savannah
  Cert.Ed., Acad.Dip., M.A., University of London; M.A., Middlesex Polytechnic University.
  Show bio

  Malcolm Kesson began teaching at SCAD in January 1997. From 1997 - 2000, he was chair of the computer art department. During his 37-year career, he has taught in the United Kingdom, Africa, New Zealand and the United States. He specializes in teaching graphics programming and, during the last 12 years, he has developed a special interest in Pixar's RenderMan system.
  
  Selected presentations/lectures:
  RenderMan workshops and training at the following locations:

  • SOFA Studio, Taipei, Taiwan, 2007
  • TATA Elxsi Studio, Mumbai, India, on behalf of Pixar, 2007
  • CgTantra, Mumbai, India, on behalf of Pixar, 2006
  • The Digital Content Institute, Taipei, Taiwan, 2005.
  • Graphite conferences in Melbourne, Australia (2003); Singapore (2004); Dunedin, New Zealand (2005); Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2006); and Perth, Australia (2007)

  Publications:
  

  • www.fundza.com

  Memberships:
  

  • ACM SIGGRAPH. Served on the International Committee 2000-01 and the Papers Review Committee (English Language) 2002-04.

  Courses:
  

  • Programming Models and Shaders I and II
  • Programming Concepts for Visual Effects
  • Procedural 3-D and Shader Programming
  • Introduction to Programming
  • Proprietary Programming Languages
  • Programming Emergent Systems
  • 3-D Design and Interactive Environments
    

  
  
  
  
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  Harold Miles
  Savannah
  Show bio

  Hal Miles is an international award-winning animation and visual effects filmmaker who has taught at SCAD for six years. Prior to that, he spent 25 years in the motion picture, television animation and visual effects production industries in Hollywood. He worked on several films that won Academy Awards for visual effects, including "Titanic," "Terminator II" and "The Abyss." He also created the main, ending and segue titles for the electronic and animation theaters at the 30th anniversary SIGGRAPH conference in 2003. At SCAD, he served as special project supervisor and technical director for the first 24P stop-motion animation production, "Rick and Rocky" (2003), based on the children's book by SCAD President Paula S. Wallace. In addition to teaching, he continues to create animated short films, and also oversees his stop-motion animation and visual effects museum.
   
  Selected filmography:
  

  • "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" (2001)
  • "Starship Troopers" (1997)
  • "As Good as it Gets" (1997)
  • "Twilight Zone, the Movie" (1983)

  Selected presentations and lectures:
  

  • 2007, Indie Film Jam, Orlando, Fla., "The Madness of Being"
  • 2007, Woods Hole Film Festival, Cape Cod, Mass., "The Madness of Being"
  • 2007, The Education Channel, Tampa, Fla., "The Madness of Being"
  • 2007, Savannah Film Festival, Savannnah, Ga., "The Madness of Being"
  • 2006, Center for Puppetry Arts, Atlanta, Ga., "Gumby" exhibition lecture

  Selected awards:
  

  • 2007, Best Animated Film at the Independents Film Festival, "The Madness of Being"
  • 2007, Special Jury Award for Most Outstanding Film, the Winnipeg International Film Festival, "The Madness of Being"

  Memberships:

  • President of the Savannah Chapter of the NFFC

  
  
  
  
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  Robert Mrozowski
  Savannah
  B.F.A., Pratt Institute.
  
  
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  Joe Pasquale
  Savannah
  B.Env.Des., North Carolina State University; M.F.A., Savannah College of Art and Design.
  Show bio

  As an undergraduate student, Joe Pasquale encoded Buckminster Fuller's handwritten notes of Cartesian coordinate polyhedral data onto computer punch cards, beginning an early exploration of digital visualization. As a result, he was hired by Digital Effects Inc. in New York to work on the movie "TRON." He subsequently worked as a session animator for companies in Boston, Mass.; Paris, France; Sydney, Australia; Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Copenhagen, Denmark. He served as one of the original animators in the computer graphics department at Industrial Light & Magic, and worked on Oscar-winning visual effects crews for "Terminator II," "Death Becomes Her" and "Jurassic Park." He has taught classes at the San Francisco Academy of Art, and worked as an animation director and manager for the CD-ROM game "Nine." He also developed production plans for musician Graham Nash's Broadway show, "Life Sighs." In addition to his courses at SCAD, he supervises graduate and undergraduate collaborative production projects.
  
  Selected filmography:
  

  • "Hook"
  • "The Mask"
  • "James and the Giant Peach"
  • "Air Force One
  • "The Truman Show"

  Exhibitions:
  

  • New York Museum of Modern Art, architectural simulation of architect Raphael Vinoly's Tokyo International Forum

  Selected presentations and lectures:
  

  • New York Institute of Technology in Manhattan
  • Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif.
  • Columbus College of Art and Design in Ohio
  • Hellenic Symposium in Athens, Greece

  Awards:
  

  • Who's Who Among American Teachers

  Courses:
  

  • Visual Effects Studio I and II (graduate and undergraduate)
  • Visual Effects Portfolio (graduate and undergraduate)

  
  
  
  
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  Patricia Perrone
  Savannah
  B.F.A., M.F.A., Carnegie-Mellon University.
  Show bio

  An artist, educator and lecturer, Pat Perrone earned both painting and computer graphics degrees from Carnegie-Mellon University, Perrone became one of CMU's first Master of Fine Arts graduates from its pioneering program in computer graphics/art. She teaches courses in the history of computer graphics/art and digital matte painting at SCAD. In addition, she has been actively involved in SIGGRAPH conventions, the SIGGRAPH Student Volunteer Program, undergraduate and graduate admissions, and efforts to market SCAD students and alumni in the computer graphics/visual effects industry. She was instrumental in founding the college's original computer art program, which has since grown into several different departments, each offering Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees. She also serves as visual program assessment coordinator.
  
  Memberships:
  

  • ACM
  • SIGGRAPH
  • CAA

  
  Awards:
  

  • Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities

  
  Workshops and Presentations:
  

  • Visiting faculty member
  • Art educators' workshops

  
  Classes:
  

  • 2-D Design
  • Drawing I, II and III
  • Computer Math
  • Introduction to Computers
  • Rising Star Computer Art
  • Electronic Imaging
  • Electronic Painting
  • History of Computer Art
  • Survey of Electronic Art
  • Off-campus program in New York City
  • Matte Painting
  • Concept Development for Visual Effects
  • Independent Study
  • Internship Supervisor
  • Graduate Teaching Assistant Supervisor

  
  
  
  
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  Stuart Robertson
  Chair
  Savannah
  B.A., University of Kentucky; M.F.A., School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
  Show bio

  Stuart Robertson brings vast professional experience as well as many awards and accolades to his position as chair of the visual effects department. Prior to joining SCAD, Robertson held supervisory positions at R/Greenberg Associates in New York and Los Angeles and at Industrial Light & Magic in San Rafael, Calif. He served as an independent visual effects supervisor in Los Angeles where his clients included Columbia Pictures, Paramount, New Line Cinema, MGM, ABC Television, Miramax Films and Centropolis FX.
  
  Selected awards:
  

  • Academy Award for Achievement in Visual Effects, "What Dreams May Come," 1999
  • BAFTA Award nomination, Special Visual Effects, "Zelig," 1984
  • Visual Effects Society Awards nomination, Best Visual Effects in a Television Miniseries, Movie, or a Special, "Stephen King's Rose Red," 2003

  Selected film credits:
  

  • "Zelig" (1983)
  • "Predator" (1987)
  • "The Abyss" (1989)
  • "Back to the Future, Part II"(1989)
  • "Ghost" (1990)
  • "Last Action Hero" (1993)
  • "The Shadow" (1994)
  • "Immortal Beloved" (1994)
  • "The Ghost and the Darkness" (1996)
  • "Volcano" (1997)
  • "What Dreams May Come" (1998)
  • "The Patriot" (2000)
  • "Stephen King's Rose Red" (TV mini-series, 2002)
  • "Willard" (2003)
  • "Scary Movie 3" (2003)

  Memberships:
  

  • Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (executive committee 2005-06)
  • Visual Effects Society (executive board, 2003-04, 2007-present)

  
  
  
  
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  Kirt Witte
  Savannah
  B.S., Sam Houston State University; M.F.A., Savannah College of Art and Design.
  Show bio

  Kirt Witte's background in photography eventually led to his career in 3-D animation and modeling. He worked on the PlayStation 2 video game "Spy Hunter" and has worked in advertising, multimedia and photography in the freelance, corporate and Internet arenas.
  
  Selected publications:
  

  • 2007, "Color Imaging: Fundamentals and Applications by Erik Reinhard" (cover image), A K Peters Ltd., Wellesley, Mass.
    
  • 2006, Commissioned 2007 calender, "The Other Savannah," Hilb, Rogel, & Hobbs, Savannah, Ga.
  • 2006, Commissioned interactive kiosk, "Building with Light," Telfair Museum of Art, Jepson Center for the Arts, Savannah, Ga.
  • 2005, Book acknowledgement, "High Dynamic Range Imaging: Acquisition, Display, and Image-Based Lighting" by Erik Reinhard, Greg Ward, Sumanta Pattanaik, and Paul Debevec
    
  • 2005, Southern Living Magazine, February
    

  Selected exhibitions:
  

  • 2006-07, "More of 'The Other Savannah,'" Moon River Brewery Gallery, Savannah, Ga.
  • 2006, Masters of Photography International Charity Exhibition, Curitaba, Brazil
  • 2006, "Day on the Island," Isle of Hope United Methodist Church, Savannah, Ga.
  • 2005, "Arts on the Island," Savannah, Ga.
  • 2004, "Ossabaw," The Gallery, Savannah, Ga.
    

  Selected presentations and lectures:
  

  • 2007, "High Dynamic Range Imaging," Tamkang University, Danshui, Taiwan, and Yuan Ze University, Taipei, Taiwan
  • 2006, "High Dynamic Range Imaging," Asia International Education Center, Taipei, Taiwan
    
  • 2005, "High Dynamic Range Imaging," Annual 3December Alias|wavefront 3D User Group Meeting, Atlanta, Ga.
  • 2005, "The Other Savannah," The Landings Art Association, Savannah, Ga.

  Selected awards:
  

  • 2006-07, Who's Who Among American Teachers
  • 2006, International Color Awards/Masters of Color Photography, first place, abstract
  • 2005, Sierra Club Award, honorable mention, University of Georgia Marine Science Center's "Coast Week 2005"
  • Award of Merit No. 1
    
  • Award of Merit No. 2
    
  • 2004, first place, wildlife, University of Georgia Marine Science Center "Coast Week 2004"
    

  Memberships:
  

  • International VR Photography Association, professional member

  Courses:
  

  • Digital 3-D Visual Effects
  • High Dynamic Range Imaging
  • Modeling for Visual Effects
  • Matte Painting
  • Visual Effects Studio I and II
    
  • Advanced Survey of Computer Art Applications

  
  
  
  

Atlanta

• 
  John Rauh
  Atlanta
  B.A., University of Maryland; M.F.A., California Institute of the Arts.
  
  
  
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  Clarke Stallworth
  Atlanta
  B.F.A., Birmingham - Southern College; M.F.A, Syracuse University; M.F.A., The Ohio State University.
  
  
  
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  Tan Tascioglu
  Atlanta
  B.S., Istanbul Technical University; M.F.A., Savannah College of Art and Design.
  Show bio

  Originally an architect, Tan Tascioglu holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Istanbul Technical University's School of Architecture. After completing his Master of Fine Arts degree in computer art at SCAD in 1995, he began teaching full-time at the college. Tascioglu has taught numerous computer graphics courses in the animation, broadcast design and motion graphics, and visual effects departments and is the former track leader for 3-D animation. He has been featured in the 2004, 2005 and 2006 issues of Who's Who Among Faculty in American Universities and Colleges. Tascioglu is also an Adobe-certified expert with Adobe Systems Inc. He is a consultant and trainer for professionals using industry-standard computer graphics software by Apple, Adobe, Avid, Autodesk and NewTek.

  
  
  
  
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  Virginia Bowman Wissler
  Atlanta
  B.A., Pepperdine University.