Ep-25: Colin Levy talking about SKYWATCH (Spoiler-ridden part 2)
Continuing where we left off in episode 19, Colin Levy dives into detail discussing his now-released SKYWATCH, a sci-fi proof-of-concept he’s been working on for the last 6 years. Make sure to watch the short before listening - and if you haven't yet, listen to the first part of the conversation where Colin and I chatted about his exciting professional journey thus far, and what drove him to take a break from animation and invest so much of his time in writing features and producing this short.
In time for the short's release, Colin also released two accompanying videos - a VFX breakdown, and a tongue-in-cheek "tutorial" describing how he managed to include a cameo by no other than Jude Lau:
Colin Levy may look and sound young, but his experience and portfolio are incredibly impressive. In fact, his professional journey so far sounds more like that of the visual effects pioneers of the 70s, who often stumbled into the top ranks of a VFX studio out of sheer necessity, rather than rise up the ranks like most current day artists do. Colin went from being an amateur filmmaker with a knack for CG, to being invited to direct the original short Sintel for the Blender foundation in Amsterdam while he was still a student. By the time he finished his college degree, he already had the demonstrable skills to get into Pixar and work as a Layout Artist on films such as Monsters University, Inside Out and Finding Dory. Four years later, he was invited back to direct yet another original short for the Blender foundation, Agent 327.
Photos from www.colinlevy.com
Apart for his work-for-hire, Colin has a long list of independent shorts and animation exercises he's made over the years - one of my personal favorites is his personal short My Grandfather’s Memory Book which was published as an Op-Doc by the New York Times in 2018.
In this episode I sat with Colin and talked about the unexpected twists and turns of his dynamic career so far, how he handled being given such tremendous responsibility at a fairly young age with minimal experience, and how he views his current state in the overarching trajectory he's envisioned for himself over the years.
Episode Links:
My Grandfather's memory book:
Agent 327:
Show notes:
Opening and closing song: "14 Days" by Akın Sevgör.
bg remover free was a really insightful listen, especially hearing Colin discuss the VFX breakdown and that cameo by Jude Law. It's amazing to think he was directing Sintel while still a student, his career path is definitely unique.
floor plan really highlights Colin's incredible journey, from amateur filmmaker to directing Sintel for the Blender Foundation while still a student. It's fascinating to hear how his experience mirrors those early VFX pioneers who rose through necessity rather than a traditional path.
Colin's insights about the challenges of VFX production on a budget in SKYWATCH are eye-opening. It really highlights how strategic planning and clear milestones can make a huge difference in project execution. As someone who often juggles various creative projects, I find that tools like AI Miniature Generator for creating AI miniature images can help visualize concepts more effectively. Excited to see where his journey leads next!
Colin's deep dive into the logistics of SKYWATCH's production is fascinating, especially his breakdown of how they managed VFX on a limited budget. For anyone working on visual storytelling and needing to organize images for social media promotion, an image splitter can be a handy tool to create cohesive grid layouts or teaser sequences.
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