This week’s podcast guest, Scott Meadows, is the crown prince of previz. After graduating in architecture from Texas A&M University, Scott found his way into VFX as part of a two-man team working on the previz of Michael Bay’s Bad Boys II in 2002 — and he’s now Head of Visualization and Virtual Production at Digital Domain. 

In this fascinating interview, Scott shares tales and tips from previz on movies including The Chronicles of Narnia series, Tron: Legacy, Ender’s Game, Black Panther, Ready Player One and the upcoming West Side Story. He talks about how he works with directors such as Steven Spielberg and Joe Kosinski, what post-viz is, and how real-time is revolutionizing the way movies are made — via Xbox controllers and iPhones.

If you’re a big Japan-fan, you’ll love this podcast. Joining Chris is Shuzo Shiota, CEO of Polygon Pictures, the long-lived and prolific Tokyo-based digital animation studio behind movies and TV series including Godzilla, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Transformers: Prime and Big Hero 6: The Series.

Shuzo and Chris discuss the impact of Japanese art on the west, from its breakthrough at a Parisian exposition in the 1800s, to movies such as Akira, Manga graphic novels and now Netflix’s vast array of anime titles. Shuzo also talks about Polygon Pictures’ origins, why it can be hard to create authentic anime in 3D, and the future of cinema, gaming and subscription-based services.

Recently released on Netflix, The Babysitter: Killer Queen is director McG’s gory follow-up to his equally bloody 2017 comedy-horror, The Babysitter. Assisting with the blood, guts and mayhem this time is Crafty Apes, a rising studio that’s crafted effects for movies and TV series including Stranger Things, Thor: Ragnarok and Birds of Prey.

Joining Chris are Crafty Apes’ Executive VFX Producer Matt Akey and VFX Supervisor Aldo Ruggiero. As well as talking about working with McG on The Babysitter: Killer Queen’s invisible and very visible effects, they discuss where Crafty Apes fit into the overall scheme of effects houses, photogrammetry versus LIDAR, why they love working for streaming services and how they’re integrating virtual production into their future plans.

Want to be a more successful CG artist? In this podcast, returning guest Allan McKay shares crucial tips on how to market yourself, sell your products and boost your income. He takes down the myth of the starving artist, highlights the big mistakes people make on their showreels and even delves into the psychology of pricing strategies.

That's not all: Allan also predicts the VFX areas to focus on for future success, explains why struggling can be a good thing and talks about his recent CG work. Just like Allan's last podcast, this one is packed with great advice and essential tips for the VFX industry and beyond.