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S tarting out on a career path can be both exciting and scary. For many in the post production industry, their careers spun out of a personal interest in filmmaking, art, animation, music or design. Educators recognize the tremendous interest in the field, and are offering courses and programs that provide instruction in animation, production, sound and picture editing. For those looking for a formal education, there is no shortage of options, domestically, abroad and even online. But schooling isn't a guaranteed path to success, as this month's interview subjects will attest. Internships and networking also play a big part in landing paid work, be it as a staffer or a freelancer. This month, we spoke with a number of recent graduates who have gone on to work in the field. Each comes from a different background, with different interests and aspirations. Through formal studies, hard work and even a little luck, they have all been able to get their careers rolling. JIM MCKENZIE Jim McKenzie got his start with NYC's Nathan Love (www.nathanlove.com) right after graduating from the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. He studied computer arts, focusing on 3D and 2D VFX, and spent the last two years of his studies working on his thesis — a two-minute short that drew on a range of disciplines. King Killian, says McKenzie, has many meanings. The short centers around a child with cancer. In his dreams, he is brave and powerful. His quirky subjects all admire him and help celebrate his recent crowning. He even fights off an attack by invading insects, and frees their captive puppies. But, the dreams don't last, and the reality is he's fighting a very different battle, and is very much alone. The project called on McKenzie to create live action sets, 3D effects and clouds, and stylized 2D animated characters. It also gave him a chance to direct. (Search YouTube for King Killian) "Everyone was doing 3D," he says of his SVA days. "I wanted to do 3D, but I felt everyone was doing it. I also wanted to do Photoshop, which is what I mainly do now. I felt Photoshop could be used for post, so I went the 2D route. My thesis had a lot of 2D animation and live action, and 3D." Nathan Love's executive creative director Joe Burrascano saw the piece and was impressed. "He thought the clouds were really nice," McKenzie recalls. "They have a similar style to Nathan Love's, and he wanted me to start freelancing for them based on my thesis." That was two days after he graduated. King Killian went on to see success too. It's now an interactive storytelling app for the Windows Phone. (99 cents), with some proceeds going to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Vinyl toys are also being made based on the characters. His early work at Nathan Love included creating textures and backgrounds for a :60 spot promoting Nickelodeon's online multi-player videogame Monkey Quest. He also created concept art for the studio, as well as for Framestore in NYC, where he spent nine months before returning to Nathan Love. "I didn't know I was a concept artist until I got to Nathan Love, and they were like, 'Do some concept art for us,'" recalls McKenzie. "Before that, I was all about post production, rotoscoping and cleaning up stuff. Now I want to be on the front end instead of the back end. When you set the base for everything, it's a better experience." Finding a paying position right out of school is not always the norm, but McKenzie was confident he'd find something. "My dad was surprised," he says of his early success. "I had hoped it would be the case. I was working with all of my teachers and interning with them. After class, I would go to their studios and hang out and work on projects, do roto, so I had some freelance experience with all of those guys. Then I had to find it somewhere else." Today, McKenzie finds inspiration from many sources. He'll often pick up a guitar during a break at the studio, and has a number of artists whose careers he follows. "I love the pop-surrealist scene that is going on right now," he says. "And I love the low-brow art. Mark Ryden is great. He's the father of pop surrealism... Ron English, TO PRO Formal studies, internships and luck helped these grads kick off their careers. By Marc Loftus www.postmagazine.com Post • September 2013 25