The Allan Mckay Podcast

Peter Chiang is co-founder of DNEG and a prolific and critically acclaimed Visual Effects Supervisor. He is one of the leaders in his field with over 30 years experience in the industry. Starting out as a graphic artist, animator and later visual effects art director, he moved quickly into visual effects supervision on films including Pitch Black (DNEG’s first project), Chronicles of Riddick, Flyboys, The Bourne Ultimatum, Green Zone, John Carter, Total Recall, Pacific Rim: Uprising, as well as Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings and Justin Lin’s Star Trek: Beyond. DNEG (www.dneg.com) is one of the world’s leading visual effects (VFX) and animation studios for the creation of feature film, television and multiplatform content. DNEG employs nearly 7,000 people with worldwide offices and studios across North America (Los Angeles, Montréal, Toronto, Vancouver), Europe (London) and Asia (Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Mumbai). DNEG’s critically acclaimed work has earned the company six Academy Awards® for Best

Knowing when to raise your rates is really critical. A lot of us get the resistance in the beginning. We’re afraid that if we raise our prices too high, we’ll lose our clients. But that’s kind of the idea!  A brand is our position in the market: How people perceive us and whether our clients are willing to pay higher rates. In the beginning, we’ll be taking on lower-paying clients because we’re desperate to get a job after job, after job. But to be profitable in that situation, we’ll have to take on a lot more work. The worst part about it is that cheaper clients are the ones that try to squeeze us for everything or to micromanage us. That goal changes over time, later in our career. The difference between being a successful artist versus an unsuccessful artist is that the artists without a brand are frustrated because they aren’t getting the result they want.  In this Podcast, Allan McKay talks about stages of an artist’s career: from the initial goal when starting out -- to creating a successful brand that

Imagine the world where the global space race never ended. For All Mankind is a thrilling “what if” take on history from Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Outlander) spotlights the high stakes lives of NASA astronauts and their families. Jay Redd is a VFX Supervisor on For All Mankind whose extensive resume also includes titles like Contact, Men in Black 3 and Monster House. Todd Sheridan Perry is an On-Set Supervisor on the show with a diverse background in video games, film and television. He’s worked on titles like Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers to Final Destination 5, The Immortals, Total Recall, Resident Evil 5 and Avengers: Age of Ultron. Todd has also worked as a CG Supervisor on Marvel’s Doctor Strange which was nominated for a Best Visual Effects Oscar. On this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisor Jay Redd and the On-Set Supervisor Todd Sheridan Perry about their work on For All Mankind, making smart decisions on set, balancing between artistry and tech skills, VFX in film versus te

Linus Tech Tips is a passionate team of professionally curious experts in consumer technology and video production which aims to inform and educate people of all ages through entertaining videos. They create product reviews, step-by-step computer build guides and a variety of other tech-focused projects. Taran Van Hemert is a Senior Video Editor at Linus Tech Tips. He is also a Writer, Host and Camera Operator. In this Podcast, Allan McKay and Taran Van Hemert talk about the art of being an efficient editor, the importance of scripting, automation and customized tools, and other tips for successful artists. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/316/.

A Technical Director handles the technical side, builds scripts, automates tasks or supports their team. Sometimes, they’re the ones handling tricky shots. Sometimes their job is about problem solving. Other times, a TD comes up with a solution when production hits a wall. At the same time, a TD is also an artist.  There’s a huge demand for TD’s because they’re the ones building solutions for projects. A programmer will build a tool thinking about how it should work. But a TD will be a tool knowing how an artist will want it to work. There is a massive difference there! Which is why TD’s are irreplaceable. They do their own job and help others with theirs.  TD’s allow for everyone to do their jobs much better. Which is why they get paid better and why they’re higher in demand. Most of what VFX artists do is problem solving, on budget and on schedule. Part of the reason TD’s are higher in demand is because there’ll always be productions that need a TD to solve a problem.  In this Podcast, Allan breaks down the

Wren Weichman is a VFX Artist and a YouTube Host at Corridor Digital.  Corridor Digital is a Visual Effects Studio based in Los Angeles. They’re best known for creative short-form viral videos, as well as producing and directing the web Series Rush and YouTube Red’s Lifeline. They company has also created tv commercials for companies like Google and Machine Zone. Founded in 2009 by Sam Gorski and Niko Pueringer, the company now produces five YouTube Channels, including VFX Artists React and the Corridor Crew which consists of behind-the-scenes content and has almost 5 million subscribers (as of 2021). In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews VFX Artist and YouTube Host at Corridor Digital Wren Weichman (AKA @sirwrender) about creating viral content for YouTube, perfectionism versus creativity, inspiration as a muscle and the importance of finding your creative community online. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/314/.

In the beginning of our career, we just want traction: those quick wins that will validate us. When we get to that elite level, there are tidbits of advice from everyone else that sound stupid. But most of the things we think are stupid -- at the elite level -- are the biggest breakthrough of all. At the beginning of a VFX career, we all get technical. Instead, we should put our attention on that one thing that’s getting traction. Everything else is a distraction. Technical skills can only get you so far. We will be picking all kinds of new software when we go to work at different studios anyway. Most of us are missing out on the metrics. We need to look at the problem that the studio we want to work for is trying to solve: Is it explosions? Is it character rigging? The more micro we get into that problem solving, the more we’re going to stand out because our message will be more laser focused. In this Podcast, Allan McKay addresses the different advice artists need to hear at certain parts of their career, a

Dottie Starling is a Visual Effects Supervisor, CGI artist and digital modeler. Through both her freelance VFX career and her work with production houses such as Cinesite, Asylum, and Wildfire VFX, Dottie has worked on countless blockbuster motion pictures including Titanic, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, 007's Die Another Day, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Ocean’s Thirteen and Tropic Thunder. Dottie has also worked with digital effects on the Academy Award-winning 12 Years a Slave, Oldboy, Selma, and the New Orleans-filmed television series Scream Queens. She has recently finished supervising Amazon’s original series Underground Railroad directed by Barry Jenkins. In this Episode, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisor Dottie Starling about the path to becoming a Supervisor, the most crucial skill for the job, the challenge of creating visual effects that support the story (and the director’s vision), as well as her experience supervising Amazon’s original series Under

As artists, we all have a fear that if we do too much of the same thing, we’re going to be known as a one-trick pony and get pigeonholed. But the big mistake we make when we let our careers run its own course. Successful artists have their hands on that wheel so that they don’t fall into that trap because they choose how they want to position themselves and their messaging. The idea is not to tie ourselves to one niche. The idea is to eliminate competition. By niching down, we can attract clients and position ourselves as the go-to person. In addition, how we niche down -- is up to us! We don’t have to be the number one in the world. We don’t even have to be the number one in our city. We just have to be the go-to person in our clients’ rolodexes. In this Podcast, Allan talks about the difference between niching down and getting pigeonholed, how to continue evolving, how to create several niches in different markets -- and how to become the go-to person on your clients’ rolodexes. For more show notes, visit w

Sam Wickert is a director and VFX supervisor who has worked closely with many clients such as Epic Games, Google Daydream, AMD, BlackMagic Design, Universal Orlando Resorts, Redbull, and Discover.  The most exciting projects he has enjoyed working on is the content featured on his YouTube Channel, SOKRISPYMEDIA, which has accumulated over 1.6 Million subscribers and 400+ million views - most notably recognized from its web series, Chalk Warfare. In this Episode, Allan interviews Sam about his creative process for the Chalk Warfare franchise, the innovations he uses on the most recent installment and the challenges of making his own content. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/310/.

A lot of the time, we don’t care about building relationships. We just want instant results. We just want to get a response from the first person to whom we reach out. We don’t want to introduce ourselves to a client and make us the priority. We don’t even want to concern ourselves with the value we can give to them. This is called a transactional relationship. We don’t even realize how many people are doing the same thing: They fire out result oriented emails. There is that naivete about the job approach. A lot of us don’t think about other people. We’re so focused on our needs, we’re creating more space between us and that other person. The key thing here is: The more we build connections, the more we build relationships, the stronger they become. You become more favorable and dependable.  In this Podcast, Allan McKay deconstructs the main reason why you may not be getting the response you want -- from your clients or potential employers -- as well as how to avoid transactional conversations and how to stan

Stuart Lippincott is a motion graphics designer and NFT artist. He is known as @Stuz0r on social media.  In this Podcast, Allan McKay interviews motion graphics designer Stuart Lippincott about NFT’s as a side hustle, establishing the rates you’re worth, attracting better clients, working remotely and how your brand determines your prices. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/308/.

Clinton Jones is a Director, Content Creator, VFX Artist and Photographer. He has worked at Rocket Jump and at Corridor Digital. On his YouTube Channel, where he is known as Pwnisher, he launches challenges for his community, as well as creates tutorials. His YouTube Channel has a massive following of over 557K subscribers, while his Instagram has 110K followers. Currently, Clinton is working on co-writing his first feature film, creating content and making art. In this Podcast, Allan and Clinton talk about the importance of getting out of your comfort zone, how to know when to pursue new opportunities, how not to burn bridges; as well as answer the burning question: Is an official diploma important for an artist’s career? For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/307/.

Taking pride in your work and in your process is so critical! You want to have people want to work with you again. If you don’t get it -- if you still don’t care -- that is an issue for any Supervisor. This seems like simple stuff. It goes back to the idea of self-management. You have to anticipate the notes. You have to know how to evaluate if the shot is good enough before you show it to the rest of the team. The more you take pride in your work, the more you’re able to take an initiative, the more wins you get.  In this Podcast, Allan shares his experience working with junior artists as a Supervisor and the initiative that was missing in their work -- potentially costing them jobs -- and gives advice on how to get the wins you want! For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/306/.

Tarsier is an independent game studio situated in Malmö, Sweden. They are the developers of Statik and the award winning Little Nightmares franchise.  Founded in 2004 as Team Tarsier, the team eventually changed their name to Tarsier Studios when they released their first two projects involving SCE properties in 2009. They’ve shipped the following games: Little Big Planet (1, 2 and 3), Rag Doll Kung Fu, Tearaway Unfolded, Little Nightmares (1 and 2), Statik, The Stretchers. In this Podcast, Tarsier’s creative team talks about the inspiration behind their award winning Little Nightmares franchise, adapting production to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the future of games in VR. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/305/.

Wes Ball is a Director, VFX and graphic artist. He’s directed The Maze Runner trilogy and currently has several projects in development, including the next installment of the Planet of the Apes franchise. Wes graduated from the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts. In 2003, his short film A Work in Progress won a Student Academy Award  from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. His animated short Ruin got the attention of executives at 20th Century Fox and earned him his first feature directing job: The Maze Runner. After the success of the film, Ball started his own production company OddBall Entertainment. In this Podcast, Allan interviews Wes about the passion, perseverance and courage that it takes to be an artist, the importance of building and maintaining authentic relationships, and offers an inside look into his creative process and the vision for the future of filmmaking. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/304/.

Dottie Starling is a Visual Effects Supervisor, CGI artist and digital modeler. Through both her freelance VFX career and her work with production houses such as Cinesite, Asylum, and Wildfire VFX, Dottie has worked on countless blockbuster motion pictures including Titanic, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, 007's Die Another Day, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Ocean’s Thirteen and Tropic Thunder. Dottie has also worked with digital effects on the Academy Award-winning 12 Years a Slave, Oldboy, Selma, and the New Orleans-filmed television series Scream Queens. She has recently finished supervising Amazon’s original series Underground Railroad directed by Barry Jenkins. In this Episode, Allan McKay interviews VFX Supervisor Dottie Starling about the path to becoming a Supervisor, the most crucial skill for the job, the challenge of creating visual effects that support the story (and the director’s vision), as well as her experience supervising Amazon’s original series Under

Kode Abdo -- AKA BossLogic -- is a graphic artist from Melbourne, Australia. He first started drawing when he was 6 years old. After transferring his skills to a digital platform, BossLogic was able to expose his work to a wider audience, a move that came with great success. As an artist, he has his own style of visual stories. His thirst for knowledge is something that never goes away, so he keeps challenging himself and building the building blocks to get to where he needs to be. He loves doing collaborations with other talented people, learning from their take on design. BossLogic has created official posters for some of the biggest blockbusters like Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far from Home and Aladdin; for studios like Marvel, Disney and Warner Bros. He has collaborated with the Russo brothers, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Jim Lee. After a shoutout by Jake Gylenhall on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, he ended up creating a poster for Gylenhall’s Broadway Play Sea Wall / A Life. In this Podcast,

Matthew Encina is a content creator, educator and creative director with over 15 years of experience of directing, designing and animating.  He previously served as the Chief Content Officer at The Futur and a Creative Director at Blind. He has taught through video content, articles interactive workshops, and as well as speaking engagements, helping grow The Futur YouTube channel to over 1 million subscribers. He focuses on the subjects of creativity, organization and process. Matthew studied Graphic Design at the Art Center College in Pasadena, CA. In this Podcast, Allan and Matthew talk about embracing growing pains, leaning into your fears and surrounding yourself with mentors that challenge you to get out of your comfort zone. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/302/.

How do you land your dream job at your dream studio? You start by having a killer reel. The more you look at the history of the studio, the more you can understand who they’re looking to hire. If you look at what this studio does a lot of, that’s going to dictate what their needs may be. Your reel needs to reflect that. Be the one person that’s 100% aligned with the type of work that your dream studio does, so you can stand out. When you put yourself in the shoes of the person hiring, you make yourself memorable. So research the place you want to work for. If this is your dream job -- you have to align your work with them 100%. In this Podcast, Allan McKay breaks down the science behind a great reel that can land you your dream job, at your dream studio. For more show notes, visit www.allanmckay.com/301/.