Find Aaron: https://www.aaronsimscreative.com/

Learn Virtual Production: https://www.cgspectrum.com/courses/virtual-production

This week, Justin sits down with industry legend Aaron Sims, VFX Concept Artist and founder/CEO of Aaron Sims Creative, to talk about the industry’s evolution from practical effects to visual effects, Aaron’s latest venture into virtual production, and practical tips for succeeding in the industry.

ASC is an award-winning Design, VFX, and Game Studio with over 30 years of experience working on some of the biggest titles in the business: Stranger Things, Wonder Woman, the Planet of the Apes trilogy, and more. Tune in to hear how Aaron transitioned from working as a practical makeup FX artist in the 80s, to working on iconic films like Gremlins 2, Batman Forever, Men In Black, and Artificial Intelligence: A.I. with industry greats like Steven Spielberg, Stan Winston, and Rick Baker, and now breaking boundaries by embracing Unreal Engine as the next great innovation in storytelling.

🔗 Episode notes: https://www.cgspectrum.com/podcast/aaron-sims-storytelling-virtual-production-vfx

00:00 Intro

01:18 Aaron’s start as a makeup FX artist in the 80s

03:04 Practical vs. Visual effects

5:42 Working with Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi

7:20 How the visual effects industry has evolved

10:10 What made Aaron get into VFX

13:14 Why certain movies effects hold up better than others

17:10 Inspiration from Jurassic Park, Planet of the Apes, Star Wars

19:12 Developing Stan Winston Digital

21:18 Designing robots for Steven Spielberg’s AI

24:53 Experimentation, innovation, and transitioning to Unreal

28:57 Learning Unreal and its applications for virtual production

30:25 Aaron’s short The Eye Calanthek

36:45 Metahumans and Realitycapture

42:22 Creature work on Gremlins 2 and Men in Black

44:45 Aaron’s favorite creatures he’s worked on

47:11 Practical tips for getting into the industry

53:49 Is new software and technology helpful or hurtful?

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Aaron:

📍 https://www.aaronsimscreative.com/

📍 https://www.instagram.com/aaronsimscreative/?hl=en

📍 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn12Sq3F4wgqEqYtkyVyJ5Q

📍 https://www.linkedin.com/company/aaron-sims-creative

📍 https://twitter.com/_ascreative?lang=en

📍 https://www.artstation.com/aaronsimscreative

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