Words of Wisdom

Jake morrison and Victoria Alonso give advice to set you on your visual effects career path

“Things that inform what I do on a daily basis are things that I’ve learned over the years,” says Marvel Studios’ VFX supervisor Jake Morrison. “I don’t think it would have been sensible for me to have done what I’m doing now 10 years ago.

Being proactive is critical for those wanting to have a career in the visual effects industry. Don’t wait around for someone to hand you a job, start doing things for yourself.

“Get a camera, go out, and shoot a bunch of stuff. It is important to learn about lenses, depth of field and photography. You can’t make photoreal if you don’t know what a photo is. There are a couple of programs like Maya and Nuke for doing 3D and 2D,” Jake notes, “I would enforce the fact that you have to go to a facility.”

The big desire for Marvel Studios’ executive vice president of physical production, Victoria Alonso, is to narrow the gender gap.

“There are a lot of phenomenal ladies out there, but not enough have made a mark, not because of a lack of talent,” she says, before adding: “It’s because people have to open the doors and allow them in. My message is to keep on knocking because somebody’s ‘no’ will become a ‘yes’ some day. Just don’t lose faith. It’s a better world when we are in it too. We’re 51 per cent of the population and I think that we have something to offer.”