Deepak Gangwar -2019

What education did you have before you took the Visual Effects for Film and Television course?

I did my Bachelors in animation from LPU back in India.  After which I worked for nearly 3 years as an FX artist.  During my tenure I mostly worked on kids' TV shows like Ninja Go, Shimmer and Shine, Mia and Me,  Alvin and the Chipmunks, Lego Scooby and few more. Most shows used Maya as the main package to do it all but with increasing complexity and demand for FX we started using Houdini to solve our needs. That's where my journey with Houdini began.

Tell us a bit about your experience at the college.

I had a very good experience studying at Seneca. I loved the fact that teachers are industry experts who teach in their spare time.  Software and techniques are up to date in accordance with industry standards. Teachers are readily available for all queries and can solve them in a timely manner.I learned everything I've been wanting since I stepped foot in this industry, I did lighting, built shaders, textures, and matchmoving. These skills are the most understated aspects of this course, as these things helped me build the demo reel needed to get in the VFX industry.Assignments given in first semester helped me build the skills needed to learn different aspects of the VFX pipeline and helped me in every way to tackle the issues I was going to face in my demo reel shots.  Plus, I got to see amazing people around me in the form of exceptionally talented and experienced folks who inspired and helped me through the journey.

How do you use the education you got at Seneca in your job today?

At Pixomondo we use Houdini as the main package for all FX. The knowledge I got at Seneca helps me with the shots I do at Pixo, the VEX topics covered in lectures helped me build a solid base for further learning. Concepts of Nuke I learned in this course changed the way I use Nuke now.  Lots of demos shown in class on real film shots helped me learn new ways of doing things in Nuke. There are a lot of things I can now plan and imagine in comp which gives me great flexibility about how I start my shots.  And I always loved additional tip & tricks videos by Joe.

What advice would you give potential students who are thinking of taking the course?

This is a full blown 2-year course shrunken down to 8 months like a highly compressed archive.  As someone familiar with some of the software taught here, things escalated quickly from basics to advance, so having an idea of any 3D or comp package prior will help you a lot.And be prepare to hear Joe's voice a lot, his lectures are always on repeat..... you can't escape.....lol. Don't hesitate to ask questions and be prepared for intense pressure.

(Written in 2020)