Milestones

My road in life took a while to figure out.
I was always artistic, but I didn't do well in high school at all; I barely graduated.
I asked myself, "What's going to get me a high-paying career I'll love for the rest of my life?"
I didn't know how I'd get to that career, but I decided to take a big first step towards animation.
I went to Collins College; it wasn't challenging, but I learned from amazing, old-school animators.
At my first job, my boss told me, "If someone better than you comes along, they'll get your chair."
I worked there for eight years and no one took my chair; that trial by fire defined my work ethic.
Keep following my journey

Education

High School
Bachelor
Animation
Collins College School of Design and Technology

Career

Chief Creative Officer

I create innovative and futuristic 3D architectural visualizations for my clients.

Career Roadmap

Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Art
Design
Helping People

Day to Day

I work from home exclusively, so they'd see me communicating with my partner and getting my tasks for the day. Then I'd work on 3D modeling, design, lighting, texturing, etc. on a wide variety of different software platforms. Basically, they'd see the overall process of me taking flat, 2D files of construction drawings (and/or drone footage of a construction site) and building these 3D models out of essentially nothing; I bring my clients' visions to life.

Skills & Qualities Beyond School

98% of my training came from real-world experience. I subscribe to a lot of online programs and resources (by top visualization names like Peter Guthrie, Ronen Bekerman, Grant Warwick, etc.) Those can teach you theories and techniques, and then it's up to you to put them into practice through experience.

Advice for Getting Started

Here's the first step for high school students

1. Know your artists; there's always going to be someone better than you that can inspire you. Look at professional work and get inspired to work hard and someday beat those guys out for jobs. 2. Go to a school where you'll be challenged, especially if you already know that design is something you want to pursue. You want to have peers who align with your way of thinking and will push you to get better. 3. Know your programs. Find the outlet you want to focus on (for me, it was animation).

Recommended Education

My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:

undergrad
Bachelor
Animation

Hurdles

The Noise I Shed

From Peers:

"You don't deserve respect or credit for this work."

Challenges I Overcame

Unemployment