Location: South Central Vermont
Website: WilliW.com
About Animation Guide: Tell us a little about who you are. Who do you work for? What job do you do?
Willi: I do freelance 3D computer graphics and animation, with a whole lot of multimedia thrown in to round things out. Although I've worked for other people in the past, I'm primarily my own boss these days. Originally, when I started out, I had plans on doing the usual big-blockbuster animated features thing, but eventually found my own niche.
My stuff tends to be more down-to-earth, not as "artsy," creating animations and graphics for TV commercials, TV shows and other video productions, as well as visualization stuff, such as in the medical or architectural areas. A lot of my work ends up as elements in print and web design, too. As a freelancer, I found it limiting to make a freelance career out of just 3d animation, so I became an expert on all sorts of multimedia skills. Flash animation, web design, CD authoring, etc.--I find it extremely rewarding.
About Animation Guide: How long have you been working in the animation industry?
Willi: That's an interesting question. The movie, "Tron" is as far back as I can remember that I first considered getting involved with 3D. It just blew me away.
I first started actually dabbling with 3D in the early 90's with the release of 3D Studio, Version 2 (before it became 3D Studio Max). A friend of mine owned it and I got him sick and tired of me asking to borrow it.
But, it was actually in the Spring of 2000 that I got a "real" job as an animator, a month out of school, doing broadcast graphics. It just snow-balled from there.
About Animation Guide: Name a few of the projects you've worked on in the past.
Willi: Between my freelance work and my work for television production facilities, that's really hard to say. I know I can document over 900 television commercials, television shows and infomercials that I've done graphics for (3D or otherwise). I've also done print and web elements, as well as animations for corporate projects.
Besides animations, I've also created 3D virtual sets for television, such as one I did for a show called "Power Play." This show featured new and upcoming computer game releases, with the host interviewing game programmers and such. The show took place in space, in a space ship that looked very much like a game controller (of course), which I modeled and animated in 3D. The interview set was also done in 3D. Talent was shot in front of a green screen and chroma-keyed into the room that I had built.
I loved doing that show. It was heavily 3D graphics oriented and kept me really busy. It was filled with 3D rooms, animations, bumpers, elements, etc.
Another project I did was a 5-animation contract for a high-definition movie projector company for their company/product demo reel. These animations were transitions between segments in the demo and featured a roller coaster ride on top of movie film strips. It was all done in high-def, which is the first time I played with the format.
I could go on and on.
About Animation Guide: Do you have any future projects planned?
Willi: I have a bunch of things planned, mostly multimedia oriented, but I do have a large-scale (30-foot X 35-foot) 3D print graphics project in the works, for the educational department of a big utility company. I'm also trying to develop a web-based interactive 3D world as my own pet project.
About Animation Guide: What prompted you to move into a career in animation? How did you go about pursuing it?
Willi: Actually, I came by way of television. Behind-the-scenes stuff such as television production, master control, stuff like that. I loved doing the work, having spent almost twenty years doing it. But, it started running its course with me. I found myself in a rut. This was the late 1990's and by that time, I had fallen completely in love with 3D graphics.
My wife suggested I go back to school full time for 3D animation and we moved to South Florida (from New Jersey), where I attended art school. Being a bit older than the other students, I worked really hard to make myself stand out. At the time, I thought I needed to graduate with as much talent as if I had been in the industry all along, just to compete with everyone else. I probably tortured myself a bit too much, but I loved the subject and it worked for me. My wife was also earning the income for the two of us and I felt I owed it to her to succeed.
When I graduated, I thought I was getting out of the television racket, but a month later I got a job in...you guessed it...television. This time in broadcast graphics. I loved the job but in 2002, the lousy economy forced me to become a freelancer. The rest is history.
