Careers Archives - MTM College

Paris Alleyne Wins Award for Best Comic Book Colourist

Paris Alleyne thought he might eventually get an award in his career as a comic book artist, he just didn’t anticipate it happening so soon. In the summer of 2020, Paris received an Eisner Award for Best Colourist on a Comic Book Series for his work on Afterlift, written by Chip Zdarsky and Jason Loo.

Natalie Kauffman, MTM Director of Outreach, spoke with Paris, who graduated from Max the Mutt’s Illustration program in 2013, about being an award winning colourist, his work on other projects such as Crescent And Io by Marvel Comics, and Black Comix Returns, as well as his personal work.

Colouring takes thought and attention

When asked how he makes his choices for how he colours his projects, he says it varies greatly each time. “Every project is different…that’ll change what you’re trying to get across.” It depends what the mood and style is that you’re trying to get across working with the illustrator.

Veering away from comics, Paris was a colourist for a book called Deal with it, a graphic novel dealing with real issues experienced by teens, published by James Lorimer & Co. He speaks about how the work that you do for comics – like meeting deadlines, working with writers/illustrators, working independently and fulfilling creative requirements – is not just limited to the comic book world. “Comics really prepare you for other types of illustration.” If anything, working on a book project was easier as the deadlines weren’t as tight as they normally are for comics. It is a profession that has many applications – from freelancing for comics and graphic novels, to graphic design for advertising and film – all of which are covered in the curriculum in the four year diploma Illustration & Storytelling for Sequential Arts program at MTM.

MTM teaches more than art skills

Paris credits MTM with teaching him more than art skills. “It’s where I learned self-reliance.” He continues, “Working as a freelancer now, if I don’t respond to this email or I don’t get this work done today, it doesn’t get done.” Paris remembers overhearing an instructor during his first year in one of his classes say: “The point of this is to learn to see”. Paris admits that his youthful defiant self resisted that instruction at the time, but later it clicked with him, and it’s been pivotal term that he has found has made a difference in his career ever since. He admits these principles taught at MTM saved him a lot of time and agony, which otherwise would have come from trial and error over many years. “The fundamentals that were taught there (at MTM) have carried on with me.”

Contributing to Black Comix Returns is particularly meaningful to Paris

Black Comix Return is a project which holds particular significance to Paris. He remembers seeing the first book, Black Comix (published in 2010), and thought “I want to work on this!”, even though he knew he didn’t have the body of work to contribute anything at that time. Years later, he actively sought out to be part of the next publishing, which worked out well since the author was seeking Paris out to be part of the next book too. “I knew I wanted to be part of a book like this so that I could properly feel like I was part of this community.” Being part of this book is his way of both contributing to the legacy of Black comic book artists, and to his own identity as a Black artist making his mark in this industry, which has traditionally been a white dominated field.

Teaching is a way to give back… and to constantly learn

Something else significant for Paris is to give back to the artist community, which means he has become an instructor at Max the Mutt! Paris taught Digital Painting last year and is teaching Digital Media for our students this Winter semester. Every time he teaches, he says, he learns from his students, which keeps things fresh for him.

Congratulations again, Paris!

We look forward to see what other super interesting projects you will be involved with next.

Watch the full interview on Youtube

Learn more about Paris on Instagram

Learn more about our Illustration and Storytelling for Sequential Arts Program

Second time a charm for recipient of our first year Scholarship Award!

Taneikah Anderson could have given up after she got rejected the first time she applied for the Sean Michael Stewart Memorial Scholarship at Max the Mutt, but instead, she took it as a challenge to improve her portfolio and apply again. Good thing she did as the second time around was what made the difference! Here’s why Taneikah chose Max the Mutt to foster her skillsets towards building a creative freelance career.

Illustration & Storytelling for Sequential Arts Program

Taneikah is the recipient of this year’s scholarship which is awarded to a first-year student entering one of our diploma programs; she is going into the Illustration & Storytelling for Sequential Arts (ISSA) program. Taneikah took the time over the past year to improve on her skills and keep pushing herself, a quality that is necessary to have in this field if you are going to make it, especially if you want a creative freelance career. She took the time to develop herself as an artist, to get over some of her anxieties, and “focus on getting better as an artist”, she says in our video interview from her home in Toronto.

Thriving Environment and Catered Art Classes

Taneikah chose MTM because of the small class sizes and the environment that the school provides. “When I went there (for the Open House) I just really liked the environment, I liked the vibes; it just seemed like a really cool place to be”. She also did her background research and was impressed with the instructors who teach at MTM and the courses that are offered. “The programs they had were super specific”, Taneikah commented, as compared to other schools where there were many art skills combined into one class, much “too generalized” for her. She recognizes how this attention to honing distinct art skills is what will set you apart in your art career and better prepare you for success.

Building a Creative Freelance Career

Asked about where she envisions herself after she graduates? “I want to be making my own comics…I want to have my own store where I’ll be selling my own prints”. Taneikah sees herself as an entrepreneur. Which was another reason why she chose MTM as her first choice of college, as one of the courses that are taught to ISSA students is Freelancing and Self Promotion.

Taneikah knows that she has a lot to learn and explore as a young art student, but she is clear about two things: “I love to tell stories and I love to draw”. Well, we can’t wait to see where she will take this passion of hers.

Congrats Taneikah and welcome to MTM!

Watch the full interview:

Do you see yourself as a freelance illustrator or are you looking towards building a creative freelance career? A comic book or graphic book artist? Do you love telling stories with your images? Then check out our ISSA diploma program or contact our admissions counsellor to learn more about how you could become a student who, like Taneikah, follows their passions to pursue the career of their dreams.

Aaron Long of BoJack Horseman fame, says his “terrible” drawing skills were what made him choose MTM

Max the Mutt’s animation diploma program graduate, Aaron Long, knew from an early age that he wanted to animate and make films. “I made my first animated film when I was nine”, says Aaron in my video interview with him from his home in Los Angeles. The film was called Hot Rod and Stinker, and he taught himself a lot from that point on how to create animated films.

It was drawing where he needed help. That’s where Max the Mutt came in.

“My drawing abilities were terrible” Aaron says reminiscing back on what led him to art college. Aaron recognized that being a good animator takes knowing how to draw well, something that is a significant part of the curriculum at MTM.

Drawing skills are key to being successful as an animator

It’s Aaron’s passion for animation that brought him to MTM, but he knew that he needed much more than just knowing how to animate. “They really pushed me to learn how to draw”, Aaron says of the instructors at MTM. Aaron wasn’t too keen on learning still life and painting, but later in his career, he understood how important that all was. It was also learning the History of Animation in year 1 that gave him his inspiration for Fester Fish, his animation series that caught the attention of the producer that hired him to work on his first studio production, TripTank, which was the reason for him moving to LA.

He’s been working consistently ever since graduating from MTM in 2013. After TripTank, he was hired to work on Bojack Horseman (starring Will Arnett), then Tuca and Bertie (which Aaron claims is the most fun show to work on!). He also finds time to visit his alma mater whenever he’s back in Toronto. Aaron was last at MTM in Nov 2019 to speak with current students and his fans about his journey as an animator and to offer some tips.

Personal work key to standing out in the animation biz

“Always work on your personal stuff; it’s what makes you stand out from the crowd”. Aaron still finds time, even as a busy director/animator, to work on his own projects, which since 2015 has been the show Sublo and Tangy Mustard, set in his hometown of Toronto. The show, based on his frequenting subway sandwich shops as a student, and observing store mascots wearing their outfits performing daily mundane activities like arguing with their girlfriend over their cell phone.

Several years later, he’s still making personal projects, just like that nine-year-old.

So, always find time to work on your passion projects; it can really pay off in the long run.

To see more of Aarons’ work check out his website AaronLongCartoons.com

Interested in a career as an animator? Check out our Animation Diploma Program. Want to try out a workshop? We’ve got a full range of workshops for you to choose from.

Love painting? Consider being a Concept Artist like Tiffani Brown

Tiffani Brown always knew that she loved art. So when she decided that she wanted to pursue a career as an artist, she thought that animation was the only way to go. “I thought Concept Art was for Video Games, I didn’t know!” Once Tiffani was enrolled at MTM, that’s when she discovered that a concept artist can do much more than video games. And so, her concept art training began!

A Career As A Concept Artist

Tiffani works as a background painter for the hit show Esme and Roy, season 2, at Nelvana Studio in Toronto. “I get to paint the world that they run around in!” she says of what she does for her job. “The company wasn’t even on my radar”, explained Tiffani in our interview with her. She thought she would have to start off small and work her way up. To her surprise, she was hired straight out of graduation. Proving that her concept art training was a success!

How did MTM help her achieve her dream of being a concept artist at a company that she loves?

“I love Max the Mutt because of how they push you into art.” It is this focus on traditional art skills, coupled with instructors who push you to do better that got her to the point where she was making art without even thinking about it; it helped build her confidence as an artist.

For the full interview and to see some of Tiffani’s work, see her website: tiffanibrown.myporfolio.com

Interested in pursuing a career in Concept Art? Check out our Diploma program! Want to getter better at painting skills? We have a series of Traditional and Digital Painting workshops that anyone can enjoy!

Goran Bukvic, Internationally Known Concept Artist, on Career Training in Concept Art

When Max the Mutt College first decided to develop a Concept Art Diploma Program, we sought advice from top Concept Artists within Canada and the USA about how we should structure the program, and what they felt we should include in our curriculum. We wanted to ensure we were preparing people for not just a job, but a full Career in Concept Art.

Meet Goran Bukvic

Goran Bukvic is an internationally recognized Senior Concept artist who has worked on major AAA titles as well as animation and film projects, including:

- - - Jurassic World 2 – 2018
    - The Legend Of Tarzan – 2016
    - X-Men: Days of Future Past – 2014
    - Guardians of the Galaxy – 2014
    - Gears Of War 5 – 2019
    - Gears Of War 4 – 2016
    - Halo 4 – 2012
    - Tron: Evolution – 2010
    - Tomb Raider

Character by Goran Bukvic

He has supported Max the Mutt from the start, including a visit earlier this year to speak with Max the Mutt Concept Art students about the industry and how he built his career in concept art.

He was part of our original consultation process in 2009. As part of our conversation, I asked how much our Concept Art students would need to learn about animation to be successful. Curious about whether he thought things had changed since then, I recently sent Goran a copy of the advice he gave me back in 2009 – and he confirmed that it is still exactly what he would say today! Check out Max the Mutt’s Concept Art Curriculum, and you’ll find that our program is still firmly rooted in traditional representational art skills.

Here’s my candid conversation with Goran. I hope you enjoy reading along and find it as insightful as I did!

What would you want a Concept Artist to understand about animation for classical, 2D computer & 3D animation?

It’s all about motion. Chances are that, if you are hired as a Concept Artist on a project, you will be involved in the very beginning, bringing ideas to the table; however, your work will not be the final product. The final product will be something that’s moving, one way or the other. In other words, your conceptual designs should inspire the animators down the pipeline, making sure that it stays consistent throughout the whole process.

Concept Art and Animation have a lot in common, especially when it comes to Character Design. A Concept Artist’s job is to take a particular character through a range of poses and emotions that best describe their personality and their role in the story/gameplay. In animation, “key poses” play a crucial role in “selling” the character, much the same as when designing it. You will want to make sure that it is as expressive as possible in the early stage, so the more familiar with animation you are, the more fluid and believable your designs will be.

Are there special concerns Concept Artists should consider when designing for 2D/3D games?

Not really. It’s more about the idea and concept, no matter what medium will be used for the final product.

How about when designing for animation versus designing for a game?

Animation is “set” and a game is interactive, however, the design approach is the same. They both contain animated assets as a final product. You will want to provide modellers, texture artists and animators with as much information as possible so that, when the initial design is approved, it will be easier for them to follow through and stay on the right track.

Anything to consider when designing for 2D versus designing for 3D?

Again, it is about the idea and concept first and foremost, however, designing for 2D may require a simplified design philosophy because each frame has to be drawn over and over by hand. This is in order to save production time and cost. In 3D, this process is much easier and more effective due to being able to build the model only once and have it rigged, textured and ready to be animated in any way needed.

The importance of storyboarding skills for Concept Art

Other than the above, I think it might be difficult to incorporate a “bit” of animation into the Concept Art program. As you know, learning to animate is a very long and hard process, and it probably should be exclusive. It starts with animating a simple bouncing ball, through flower sack and so on. By the time students get to learn something, the focus will shift away from Concept Art.

In terms of being trained as a concept artist and keeping the focus on that, I think Storyboarding courses would be much more fitting. They may actually have to do storyboarding at some point on a job. It can be structured so that exercises contain some principles of animation that are important in design, like key posing, heavy action scenes, exaggeration and so on.

What should Concept Art training focus on?

The most important part of Concept Art training is focusing on realistic drawing and painting, anatomy, architecture and colour theory.

Cool and original ideas won’t come until students acquire the skill to seamlessly project from the brain to the image. This will take a long time. I feel that the focus should strongly remain on that so that once they graduate, they can show enough “specific” potential to get hired in the industry.

Character design by Goran Bukvic

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The 2D Animation Artist is definitely not a thing of the past – Interview with Josh Hill

An Interview with Animator and MTM Graduate Josh Hill by MTM Outreach Director, Natalie Kauffman

It’s a good thing Josh Hill didn’t listen to people’s advice when he was considering what kind of animation to focus on when he started at Max the Mutt (MTM) in 2014. At that time, a lot of people outside of MTM were saying 2D animation also known as traditional hand-drawn animation, was dead. Well, they were wrong.

Josh’s Journey Through Traditional Hand-Drawn Animation

We caught up with Josh, a 2018 Animation Program grad, who discusses getting his first job at YOWZA! Animation for the Netflix Series, Green Eggs and Ham, as a 2D animator. He landed this job while still completing his last year of school. He found out about the job from one of his instructors at MTM who knew that he loved traditional hand-drawn animation. Josh applied for the job by submitting a demo reel, and he got it! “I was on a high kinda after that…’cause I scored my dream job!”. It’s this kind of small community where instructors, who are working professionals, really help our grads to land the job of their dreams, that makes MTM special.

Take a listen to hear Josh’s story and find how he’s adjusting to working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and other interesting anecdotes. Images of Josh’s drawings and video clips are also played throughout the interview so you can get a good glimpse into what he does. For any students currently in or considering a career in animation, particularly 2D animation or traditional hand-drawn animation, this is a great interview of someone who pursued what he loved doing and made it work!

Interested in pursuing a career in Animation? Check out our Diploma program! Just want to give Animation a try? We have a series of Traditional and Digital Animation workshops that anyone can enjoy!

You can also view the video on Instagram, in Part 1 and Part 2.

Thanks Josh! We look forward to hearing what’s next for you!

Interested in hearing what our other alumni are up to? Read some of their amazing stories or check out a selection of their artwork from their time at MTM.

A Visit from YOWZA! Animation

Recently, Max the Mutt (MTM) was pleased to welcome Kat Curwin (Production Manager) and Jack Carr (Creative Producer) of YOWZA! Animation for a visit.

Kat and Jack gave a presentation on life at YOWZA and working in the industry to our Fourth Year Animation and Concept Art students. Students then got the chance to pepper our visitors with questions, which they took full advantage of! Since Kat graduated from MTM four years ago, it was exciting to catch up with her and hear about her career journey since then. It was also pretty neat to hear how many of her YOWZA Animation colleagues are former MTM students as well.

After the presentation, all the students in attendance were offered the opportunity to have one-on-one interviews with Kat and Jack, to show them their work, and get individual feedback and advice. We heard from several of them about what a valuable experience this interview was, and we’re grateful to Kat and Jack for all the time they spent with us.

YOWZA visit — Animation student Kate Reid sharing her demo reel with Jack Carr (upper photo) and Concept Art student Jayesh Naidu sharing his work with Kat Curwin (lower photo).

We have to say that YOWZA sounds like a wonderful place to work! Since they are a smaller studio, there is a lot of room to showcase your individual talents, and the company works hard to ensure there is are opportunities for artistic growth. In some cases, this environment might mean you get to explore career opportunities you never expected!

One of the important elements to career success stressed by both Kat and Jack was having a great attitude and being a good team player. How you work with others can have a big impact on how well you and your team do, and how far you go in your career in the creative industries. It was a great message for everyone to hear, and something we all should strive towards, regardless of where we are in our careers!

Thank you so much, Kat and Jack for taking time to meet with us!

Tina Seemann and David Huynh with Kat Kurwin and Jack Carr from YOWZA! Animation.

2013 Graduate Aaron Long Visits Max the Mutt

Director of BoJack Horseman offers valuable advice to MTM students

Aaron Long, Canadian animator and filmmaker, well known as a director on BoJack Horseman (Netflix), was in Toronto in early November to make an appearance at TAAFI INDUSTRY 2019‘s 2-day event, which offers exclusive talks from top animation artists and creators.

TAAFI INDUSTRY 2019

At TAAFI, Aaron spoke about his career starting as an intern for the Chuck Grammage studio with little experience and a ton of passion, through to his current work as a director for Bojack Horseman and Tuca & Bertie with Netflix. He also discussed how animation isn’t just for cartoons, as new streaming services start to take animation seriously. And the ins and outs on crafting your ideas for a primetime world. And lastly was the judge on a pitching competition.

Aaron Long’s Alma Mater

Aaron Long is a 2013 Max the Mutt (MTM) graduate. We were thrilled when he reached out to say he’d love to drop by to say hi, and talk to the students about his work!

As part of his presentation, Aaron showed fascinating behind-the-scene clips from BoJack Horseman and other programs he’s worked on (like the fabulous Tuca & Bertie) and gave students insight into what working on these productions was like. He shared the story of how his career in animation launched. And he emphasized the importance (and challenges) of continuing to develop his personal work while working on other projects.

Aaron Long Animator and Director, visits student at Alma Mater, Max the Mutt — MTM students express their happiness at getting to meet Aaron Long during his November 6 visit.

Our students were inspired by his humility, the information he shared, and his love of traditional animation. He spoke about the inspiration he got from History of Animation, a first-year course at MTM, and his love of using physical movement, attitude, and timing to tell a story. He also highlighted the importance of life-drawing and other fundamental drawing skills he learned at MTM to his work.

Aaron Long created “Fester Fish” while still a student at Max the Mutt College of Animation, Art, and Design. A producer in LA who saw his YouTube channel discovered and contacted him.

Aaron Long speaking at Max the Mutt College — A standing-room-only audience during Aaron Long’s visit to Max the Mutt.

Aaron Long with Co-Directors Tina Seemann and Maxine Schacker — Aaron Long enjoyed catching up with MTM Co-Directors Tina Seemann and Maxine Schacker during his November 6 visit.

Thanks for the visit, Aaron! Please come back soon.

Aaron Long is an animator and filmmaker from Toronto. He currently lives in Los Angeles, and has directed for Bojack Horseman, Tuca & Bertie, Triptank and more. He also creates independent cartoons Sublo & Tangy Mustard and Fester Fish which appear online and in festivals around the world.

Want to learn more about Aaron Long? Check out his work here, or visit his IMBD page.

Brown Bag Films Visits, Hires Summer Interns, Endorses Max the Mutt’s Animation Program!

As seen in the above photo taken at Brown Bag Films – from left to right:
Erik Segriff – MTM Animation Intern, Kevin Seto – Recruitment Coordinator, Christine Huot – Recruitment & Resourcing Manager, Jana Kosanavich – MTM Rigging Intern, and Ryan Persaud – Recruitment Administrator

Max the Mutt has had many graduates hired by 9 Story over the years. They have enjoyed steady employment as animators, layout artists, storyboard artists, while working in all aspects of pre-production and animation. Now, as Brown Bag Films, there are even more opportunities for working on top quality projects.

Brown Bag Films is one of the world’s most exciting, original and successful creative-led animation studios. With studio locations in Dublin, Toronto, Manchester and an office in LA, Brown Bag Films creates cutting-edge animation for the international market. It was acquired and merged with 9 Story Animation, which is now 9 Story Media Group, in 2015.

Brown Bag Films, is a creatively-driven studio with a focus on producing the highest quality, cross-platform animation with strong stories and engaging characters. It produces both 2D and 3D animation, and is known for its high-end work on series such as Doc McStuffins, Octonauts, Nella The Princess Knight and Peter Rabbit. 9 Story’s Toronto studio has been known for its popular 2D series, such as Daniel Tiger’s Neighbourhood, Peg + Cat, Wild Kratts, 3 Amigonauts and the The Magic School Bus: Rides Again.

Erik Segriff, after his second year in the Animation Program at Max the Mutt, was hired at Brown Bag Films as a summer intern in 2018, and has been asked back again to work as a full fledged animator on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.

Erik Segriff at Brown Bag Films, graduates hired — Erik Segriff at Brown Bag Films, Summer 2018 intern

We were delighted to have recruiting and resource manager Christine Huot visit us this spring, accompanied by several animation and pre-production directors. They looked at demo reels and interviewed this year’s concept art and animation graduates weeks before our Industry Event.

Why is Brown Bag Films interested in Max the Mutt graduates and students?

“Brown Bag Films has had tremendous success finding very strong talent from the classes at Max the Mutt. Many of our very successful long-term employees are graduates of the Animation program. When I attend recruitment events I have been very pleased with how the students professionally present their work and themselves. With the staff we have hired from this program have very well honed artistic skills and they are very employment ready when they come into the workplace. These past 2 summers we have been highly successful with hiring students from the Animation program for summer internships. Erik Segriff has joined us for his second summer in a row this year and he is a very valued addition to the team, his teammates and supervisors were thrilled he could join us again this year. We also have Jana Kosanavich joining us this summer as a Rigging Intern. We are very happy to support the Animation Program at Max the Mutt and will continue to have them at the top of our list for Campus recruitment.”

Christine Huot
Recruitment & Resourcing Manager
www.brownbagfilms.com

Contact us for more information about Max the Mutt’s 4 year Classical & Computer Animation & Production and Concept Art Diploma Programs!

Book a tour today! Or email us at admissions@maxthemutt.com

And if you are considering an Art-based career, check out our eBook to help you decide.