May 2018 | Animation Panel

Come join us as we pick the brains of several local animators working in both games and film. Find out what it is like and what it takes to work at a professional studio. For our May free A Bunch of Short Guys (ABOSG) meeting we will be hosting a panel of animators and asking them all the questions you want to know. If you are interested in switching careers or breaking into the industry as an animator, this is where you want to be!

May 19, 2018
10:00 am – Noon
Collin College, Spring Creek Campus
Room C-104
2800 E. Spring Creek Parkway
Plano, TX 7507
*This event is free to the public

Animator Panelist Bios

Kent Alfred, Gearbox
Kent is a currently Lead Animator at Gearbox Software in Frisco, TX, and has been with Gearbox for three years, and shipped his first title there, Battleborn. Previously, he was Lead Animator at Reel FX Animation Studios for over 8 years working on many projects ranging from commercials to feature films. His projects there included Rock Dog, Book of Life, Free Birds, Looney Tunes, Kung Fu Panda Secrets of the Furious 5, Open Season 2 & 3, Chuck E Cheese, and many more.
Demo Reel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eaYPahkNvM&feature=youtu.be

Don Dixon, Reel FX
Don Dixon attended the Interlochen Arts Academy followed up by attending the College College For Creative Studies BFA in Animation and Digital Media 2001. His father created toys for a living, products like Laser tag and Teddy Ruxpin. Has worked in studios all over the country, Chicago, Dallas, Hawaii to name a few. Projects he has worked on include, THE BOOK OF LIFE, FREE BIRDS, DESPICABLE ME: MINION MAYHEM 3D (Video short), DINOTASIA, VEGGIETALES, IT’S A MEANINGFUL LIFE and VEGGIETALES: SWEETPEA BEAUTY ROCK DOG and most recently SHERLOCK GNOMES

Seth Gordon, Cyanide and Happiness
Seth Gordon is a 2015 graduate from Savannah College of Art and Design. Being inspired by a family member who worked at Pixar, Seth took it upon himself to pursue a career in animation. He has worked for Brazen Animation, Microsoft Game Studios, and is currently working for Explosm Entertainment. Projects he has worked on include, Brazen Animation’s “Tempest”, Actiongram: HoloLens, and the Cyanide and Happiness show.
Demo Reel
https://vimeo.com/264921533

Sam Shafik, Playful
Demo Reel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rwp_3IRcmWM

Dorian Soto, Reel FX
Dorian Soto graduated from both The Art Institute of D.C and AnimationMentor.com and has been an animator for about 8 years. In that time he has worked for Sony, Blue Sky, Meindbender and most currently Reel FX Studios in Dallas, Texas. Dorian worked in commercial, video games and film. Some films of those films include “Green Lantern”, “Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas”, “Ice Age: Continentales Drift”, “Free Birds”, “Book of Life”, “Rock Dog” and most recently “Sherlock Gnomes”.
Demo Reels
https://vimeo.com/114636818
https://vimeo.com/263514945

Christopher Street, Reel FX
Chris Street graduated from both East Tennessee State University and AnimationMentor.com. This year marks his 10 year anniversary as an animator in the industry. Half of that time was spent in Los Angeles, California at Rhythm & Hues Studios while the other half was spent at Reel FX in Dallas, Texas. A few of the projects he has contributed to are “Life of Pi”, “X-Men: First Class”, “Free Birds”, “Book of Life”, “Alvin & the Chipmunks” (2 & 3), the VR short “Son of Jaguar” and most recently “Sherlock Gnomes”.
Demo Reel
https://vimeo.com/218396148

Charles Tinney, Robot
Principal Animator and, in 2009, one of the founding employees at Robot Entertainment, Charles leads the animation vision and team for the studio’s video game projects. Charles has trained, mentored, and directed animators to grow and develop Robot’s animation talent. Across Charles’ 16 year career, he has previously worked as an animator in the TV, film, and video game industries. Credits include Counter-Strike, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, The Ant Bully, Age of Empires, Halo Wars, Orcs Must Die!, and Hero Academy. In 2012, Orcs Must Die! won Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year, and in 2013, Hero Academy won Mobile Game of the Year. Both awarded from the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. @chazamation
Demo Reel
https://vimeo.com/115955145

Natalie Zusman, Janimation
Originally from Ukraine, Natalie spent fifteen years living in Israel where she studied at the prestigious Bezalel Academy of Arts and later at Tel-Aviv’s Israeli Animation College. As a 2D animator and illustrator, Natalie worked with a wide variety of clients at Pil Animation, one of Israel’s top animation studios. After moving to Texas three years ago, Natalie continued animating and illustrating full time at Janimation as well as freelancing for clients including Cyanide & Happiness. She is married and has a nine month old daughter. She loves mint chocolate, tomatoes, and listening to Harry Potter audiobooks and animation podcasts while she works.
Demo Reel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzgNshVgvPo