| View Conference 8. |
| Speakers ---- Official Website |
Paul Topolos
Digital Matte Painter
Pixar Animation Studios
I grew up in a small Northern California town. It was the same place where George Lucas filmed American Graffiti, which seemed fitting since a few years later Star Wars was released and changed my life. I was still a little kid, but I could see how people's imagination and technical artistry created worlds that were utterly believable. My parents bought me and my brother "The Art of Star Wars" books and reproductions of Ralph McQuarrie's concept paintings. I stared at them for hours and tried not very well to draw space ships and landscapes. I learned from these art books that a lot of the epic scenes that I liked were not built on a set, but were just paintings with the actors projected into them. My favourite scenes in movies were always the ones with the big vista shots, whether it's ancient Rome or another planet. I loved being transported emotionally and
visually to another time and place and have it feel real. I couldn't imagine a better kind of work, the only problem was that I had no idea how to do it.
By the time I went to university to study art I thought little of science fiction and blockbuster movies. I was more interested in drawing and painting people and liked foreign films and period movies. I studied in California and Great Britain and expected to make a career in children's books or commercial illustration. I'm not a very confident person and wasn't sure how easy it would be to find work, and it wasn't. Most of the time you feel like an actor
having to go to auditions and face constant rejection. Showing your work and having someone trust you enough to hire you is hard when you've had no professional experience. I did have the good luck of meeting a very talented artist in the film and illustration industry named Iain McCaig. His work was an inspiration to me and showed a level of beauty and intelligence that I wanted to strive for. He
liked my drawings and I started working for him as an apprentice on several projects. Through him I got a job at the Lucas companies. I was there for several years, mainly in the video game division as a storyboard artist, concept designer, art director, painter, and 3D modeler. I drew storyboards for Star Wars Episode I and did Matte Paintings for the innovative Anamitcs group at Skywalker Ranch for
Episode II.
I did my first real matte paintings for an animated film called Titan AE. I was still working full time for Lucas and would stay up all night to get shots done. While I was waiting for Episode III to begin pre-production I found out through a friend that Pixar was looking to hire its first full-time matte painter. I had always loved Pixar's films but never thought they'd hire someone like me. I thought they built everything in 3D and just didn't need a matte
painter. The decision to join was made easier when I found out that the film was "The Incredibles" and would be written and directed by Brad Bird who had made The Iron Giant.
I've been at Pixar since 2002 and have worked on every film since Finding Nemo. It is a very creative or nurturing place to work. It feels like being back at University again with it's camaraderie and opportunities to learn. At Pixar the technical people have to think artistically and the artistic people have think technically.
We are always collaborating because shots in movies are never straight forward. A lot of the time we don't know how they will be achieved. We meet, throw around ideas and try and agree on a plan. Each shot has different emotions, story purposes, and technical hurdles that have to be overcome. It is a true partneship between the smart people and the art people that gets things done here. It's what keeps me interested and happy going to work everyday. I feel
lucky. I get to do all sorts of things from landscapes to concept paintings, colour studies, photographic paintings, storyboards and model paintings. It is a place where every department takes pride in their work, from the directors to story, art, technical, and animation. No one wants to let down the film.
I'm very honoured to be coming to such a great event as the View conference. Everytime I come to Europe I meet artists and see work that is of such high calibre and that is telling stories we don't get to see in the United States. I always come back inspired.
VIEW Conference 8
http://www.viewconference.it/