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BIOGRAPHY

I am a visual artist and recent graduate of the Gnomon School of VFX, Games, and Animation. I grew up in a small sleepy town in New Jersey, and spent a lot of my childhood exploring the woods and finding beauty in the peace of nature. After high school, I wanted to pursue art and visual storytelling in any way I could. This led me to the Art Academy in Hillsborough, New Jersey, where I studied traditional oil painting under professional illustrator Kevin Murphy in a year-long mentorship program.

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I studied classical portraiture and illustration in oil paints and charcoal drawings, and found that I enjoyed making pieces which captured moments of emotion the most. The look in a dog's eyes when it's reunited with its owner, or the moment of fiery tension that is sparked when a blade is drawn. I wanted to chase those feelings and pin them down, in whatever medium I could. Meanwhile, I pursued an Associate's Degree in Fine Arts from Raritan Valley Community College in New Jersey, where I became more familiar with other digital and traditional mediums such as pastels and colored pencils.

 

After graduating, I embarked on a journey to find a way that I could continue creating artwork that captured those moments of high emotion and storytelling, and it led me to the world of animation, games, and cinema. I transferred to Gnomon with the ambition of learning as much as I could, so that I could use a digital medium to tell fantastical stories to people all over the world.

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Since finishing Gnomon with a BFA, I have worked on the upcoming feature film, "Takeover", as well as the upcoming Half M.T. production, "The Threadlings". I've also done unannounced work for both Homer and Rideback.

Resume

Ethan is a 3D/CG Generalist; as well as a graduate of the Gnomon School of VFX, Games, and Animation. His specialties include Modeling, Texturing, Lighting, Look Development, Compositing, and Generalist work. Driven by a passion for storytelling, he would like to use his technical skills to bring life into the exciting worlds of our imaginations.

Work Experience

Asset Generalist

Digital Frontier FX

November 2024 - Present

• Full-time contractor hired to model and texture high resolution assets for V-Ray using Maya and Painter for unannounced project.
• Created photoreal assets to match real world existing assets from plate reference.

Rideback

June 2024 - Present

• Intermittently completing freelance assignments for an unannounced project by Rideback.

• Creating fully textured environments for Unreal using Maya and Substance Painter.
• Developing the project’s unique look while experimenting with different texturing styles and methods.

The Art Academy & Evolve

Jan. 2019 - March 2021

• Assisted in teaching children’s physical traditional drawing & painting classes along with head instructor/professional portraitist Piper Talladay.
• Moved into an instructor position at the studio’s online education program, Evolve Artist, grading student homework assignments twice a week and providing weekly lectures on digital art, teaching amateur and professional artists of all ages.

Homer

July 2024 - October 2024

• Full-time independent contractor hired to deliver 3D renders for an unannounced project.

• Utilized Rhino, Maya, Substance Painter, Unreal Engine, and Photoshop.
• Created photoreal assets as well as entire sets in both Rhino and Unreal Engine.

Half M.T. Studios

December 2023 - June 2024

• Part-time independent contractor for “The Threadlings” -- A 15-minute cinematic short film in Unreal Engine 5 by award-winning film makers Miguel Ortega & Tran Ma.
• Responsible for modeling, texturing, & lighting sets to look like they are made of cloth/fabric using Unreal Engine 5, Marvelous Designer, Maya, and Substance Painter.

CheckpointVFX

March 2023 - March 2024

• Independently shipped over 200 shots for stylized feature film "Takeover".
• Responsible for modeling, texturing, lighting, set assembly, rendering, render wrangling, and some animation.
• Sets created included realistic urban interior and exteriors -- city alleyways, streets, warehouses, and nightclubs.
• Proficiency with pre-made assets from the studio library + KitBash3D, as well as creating assets from scratch.
• Worked remotely as part of a team with two daily video meetings and ShotGrid collaboration.
• Used Clarisse, Maya, Substance Painter, Photoshop, and ShotGrid.

Medeo Fencing Club

2015 - 2021 (Intermittently)

• Independently instructed classes of 5-10 elementary to high school students in the sport of Epee fencing

• Designed lesson plans, demonstrated techniques, and taught class to help students improve both physical and mental proficiency

Education

BFA in Digital Production

2019 - 2022

High rigor accredited institute specializing in digital production & VFX for film & games industry; Achieved a BFA in Digital Production upon completion  in December 2022.

Unaccredited/Mentorship

2017 - 2019

Participated in a gap year/full-time mentorship under professional illustrator and portraitist Kevin Murphy, trained as a classical oil painter.

Raritan Valley Community College

AFA in Visual Arts

2017 - 2019

Received an AFA in Visual Arts, honored with 4.0 GPA, Dean’s List, President’s List, Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society.

Achievements

3D World

December 2023

Was featured in 3D World Magazine, Issue 305, for my "Adventure Boys" piece. Was given a full two-page spread showing my artwork in the gallery section of the magazine after being promoted by The Rookies.

The Rookies

Fall 2022

Was specifically asked to write an article for the Rookies blog detailing technical workflow and creative process for my piece, “Ambrosia”. Article titled: "Building a Stylized 3D Environment and Shot in Unreal Engine".

80.LV

Winter 2023

Was specifically asked to write an article for the 80 Level blog detailing technical workflow and creative process for my piece, “Palia House”. Article titled: "Creating a Dreamy Cottage with Maya, Substance 3D Painter & Houdini".

Gnomon School of VFX
Summer, Winter, Fall 2022

Awarded “Best of Term” - Quarterly award for exceptional student work, judged by Gnomon founder Alex Alvarez, under the categories of “Game-Props”, “Look Development”, "Environment - Stylized", and "Animation - Group Project".

The Rookies

July 2022, July 2023

Selected as a finalist for both the 2022 and 2023 Rookie Awards mentorship opportunity by ON Animation, after receiving a draft selection both years and a coveted excellence award in 2022.

Gnomon Best of Term - Summer 2022, "Look Development"
Rookies 2022 Draft Selection
Rookies 2022 Finalist - ON Animtion
Rookies 2022 Excellence Award
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Gnomon Best of Term - Winter 2022, "Game - Props"
Gnomon Best of Term - Fall 2022, "Environment - Stylized"
Gnomon Best of Term - Fall 2022, "Animation - Group Project"
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Skills

Software Skills

• Maya

• Unreal Engine

• ZBrush

• Nuke

• Substance Painter

• Mari

• Marvelous Designer

• Substance Designer

• Adobe Photoshop

• Adobe Premiere

• Marmoset Toolbag

• Houdini

• Gaea

• SpeedTree

• Yeti

• V-Ray

• Arnold

• Clarisse

• Rhino

Production Skills

Lighting
Modeling

• Sculpting

Texturing / Shading

• Look Dev / Look Development

• Compositing / Image Finaling

• Environment Creation

• Foliage Creation

• Procedural Scattering / Placement

• Game Engine Workflow

• Film Pipeline Workflow

Soft Skills

• Creative Problem Solving

• Adaptability

• Positive Attitude

• Takes Feedback Well

• Works Well in a Team

• Works Well Independently

• Capable of Learning New Software/Workflow

• Respectful/Conscientious of Others

Languages:

English (Native)

Spanish (Conversational)

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