Are animators and computer jocks becoming stars in their own right?
Absolutely. In the old days, the software didn’t exist; you basically had to write your own. Now you can buy everything. But what you can’t replace is the trained eye, and the heart, of the artist. As much as computers have democratised information and computing, software still can’t take the place of the artist’s mind. You need people who not only have the soul of artists but are trained as artists, not as technicians. You need people who understand perspective, understand lighting, understand composition. What I see is a few good ones and a lot of mediocre ones, who may have basic skills in Flame or this renderer or that one. You’ve got superstars, and then a lot of people who are being overpaid; there are more jobs than there are people. Two or three years from now that’s going to reverse, because the word is out and everybody knows they can get a job in Hollywood if they’re good at this stuff. You’re going to get a flood of university grads who are going to come knocking on our doo
