Industry News and Jobs Archives

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.

Congratulations Dhenzel Obeng, 2018 UbiSoft Toronto NXT Showcase Award & Internship Winner!

NXT Showcase Concept - by Dhenzel Obeng — NXT Showcase Concept – by Dhenzel Obeng

On Tuesday evening, May 15th, with excitement running high, UbiSoft Toronto held this year’s NXT Showcase awards presentation. The five finalists for each category were present along with faculty members from many Ontario university and college programs, some family, and UbiSoft employees. As usual, the atmosphere was warm, positive… and the food was great!

The pic below was taken before the announcements of winners. Dhenzel Obeng and close friend Zabi Hassan, also an MTM 2018 Concept Art grad, and a current concept artist at UbiSoft, joined Tina Seemann (she took the pic) and me in celebrating the fact that Dhenzel made it as a finalist, an honour in itself!

Maxine Schacker with Dhenzel Obeng and Zabi Hassan at Ubisoft Toronto NXT Showcase Awards 2018

This one was taken after the awards! HOORAY FOR DHENZEL !!!

Dhenzel has passion, drive, curiosity, and a generous spirit. He’s worked hard to develop the skills to create worlds and share his vision. We are all very, very happy for him!

Maxine Schacker

(Click on the link for info about 4 year program, unique in Canada)

Concept Art Diploma

Year End Open House at Max the Mutt! Graduate Work on View!

UbiSoft Toronto NXT Showcase Awards, An Inspiring Annual Event!

The UbiSoft Toronto NXT Showcase annual competition Awards this past Thursday evening was a gala event, well attended despite the rainy weather. The energy was high as students and faculty from an increasing number of colleges and universities filled the hall. (Photo above: Zabi Hassan, 3rd place; Steve Hong ,center, 1st place; and Jullius Granada, 2nd place for Concept Art)

Max the Mutt congratulates all the winners, their instructors and their programs! Canada needs as many excellent programs and excellent students as possible to keep our entertainment arts industries alive and thriving, and competition is healthy for all of us testtest testtest.

The 5 finalists in each category had already been announced. The 3rd place winner, then the 2nd place winner, and finally the first place winner in each category( first place winners will have a summer internship) was introduced to the crowd. The project of each person was projected on a screen behind them, as they were introduced.

Our congratulations to all, and especially the first place winners in all categories, Programmer, Modeller, Animation and Concept Art: David Arppe, David Kolodko, Rahim Rahimi, and Steve Hong!

We were also especially proud of Zabi Hassan, Max the Mutt 3rd year Concept Art student, for coming in third in the Concept Art category before he’s even gotten to his final year!

Max the Mutt Ranked One of The Best Illustration Schools Worldwide!

Max the Mutt has been rated one of the best Illustration Schools worldwide! “The Rookies” today announced the official rankings for the best creative schools in the world for 2017. The results were calculated based on the voting of 1,800 submissions of portfolios from students and recent graduates studying at over 500 international schools and training facilities.
Each school was awarded points based on data collected from the performance of submissions from students across nine of the Award categories: Architecture, Film Making, Graphic Design, Illustration, Motion Graphics, Next-Gen Gaming, Photography, Visual Effects & Animation, Web & Mobile.

Max the Mutt College of Animation, Art & Design has been chosen one of the Best Illustration Schools 2017 worldwide! What an honour! Congratulations to all our hard working students and the committed industry professionals who are instructing them

Max the Mutt offers a 4-year diploma program in Concept Art that includes traditional representational fine art training, as well as training in character design, environment and location design, prop design, and much, much more. We are a small community of dedicated students and instructors and feature small class size, mentoring, and working professionals instructing.

(Attention all you animation and sequential arts students: your work is great! Upload it to The Rookies and try for prizes, internships, and personal critiques of your work!)

Check it out on “The Rookies” website!

Contact us, admissions@maxthemutt.com, or check out this website, for more information about our programs and how to apply! Call us, toll free in North America, at 1-877-486-MUTT.

Dreamworks Directors & Family Channel Visit Max the Mutt!

Max the Mutt is honoured to be chosen as the only Toronto college visited by DreamWorks Director Mike Mitchell (left) & Co-Director Walt Dohrn (right), who are touring internationally to promote the new DreamWorks animated feature “Trolls.”

Director Mike Mitchell (left) & co-director Walt Dorhn. (Right) sharing students pre-production process with MtM students. — Director Mike Mitchell (left) & co-director Walt Dohrn. (Right) sharing students pre-production process with MtM students.

Their presentation included a look at pre-production development and it was a riveting, inspiring account of the development of their initial idea for the film and the entire film making process. Following this presentation, Family Channel host Deeprah, took the stage and interviewed the two Trolls Directors, and then turned to our students and asked for questions. Following this, Max the Mutt Directors, Maxine Schacker and Tina Seemann, were interviewed about our unique college and the programs we offer.

The Family Channel program will be aired November 7th on Family Channel.

Family Channel host Deeprah with Trolls Directors, on the stage at Max the Mutt

Trolls Characters as they appear in the film... — 2 Trolls Characters as they appear in the film…

It was, indeed, an honour for Max the Mutt to be chosen for this visit. The students are still discussing all the great information that was shared with them! On behalf of all the students and faculty who were so energized by this incredible experience, we thank you Mike and Walt for sharing your excitement about Trolls with us. This is a beautifully conceived and executed animated feature film aimed at both children and adults and filled with positive energy. We also thank 20th century Fox, and we thank the Family Channel.

Students and faculty were all invited to a preview of the film held at TIFF last night and a great time was had by all!

Come and visit us to find out more about Max the Mutt and our programs. Please email us at admissions@maxthemutt.com, phone us at 416-703-6877 (toll free in North America 1-877-486-MUTT), or fill out a contact request on the website….and we hope you all get to see Trolls for a great, uplifting experience.

Visits and Portfolio Reviews with DHX Media & Portfolio Entertainment !

There was lots of excitement at Max the Mutt last week, as two more top animation companies asked to visit us, speak with students and hold portfolio reviews! Max the Mutt hosts an “Industry Event” every May, but this year there is so much need for qualified graduates that companies are visiting early, doing portfolio reviews, and sometimes offering jobs!

Waiting for portfolio reviews... — Waiting for portfolio reviews…

On Wednesday Portfolio Entertainment Head of Studio Operations Sonya Carey and Julie Stall of the creative team, visited the school…

Sonya Carey speaking to Max the Mutt students... — Sonya Carey speaking to Max the Mutt students…

(https://www.facebook.com/portfolioent/ http://portfolioentertainment.com/)…. addressed concept art and and animation students, and then stayed on to hold one on one portfolio reviews. Sonya emailed us the next day, commenting on the continuing excellence and professionalism of our students, and requesting follow up interviews at the studio with some of them.

On Thursday, DHXMedia visited. Here is Animation Director Tina Seemann’s report:

DHX Media has studios in Vancouver and Halifax, and interviewed for both locations.

Five representatives from DHX Media came to visit: 3 from Vancouver- Jezebel Pimentel* (*HR, recruiter ), Robin Shea & Craig Roberts; and from Halifax: Andrew Anningson, and Mike Pascucci (originally from Toronto)

Students with Robin and Jezebel from DHX Studios

They are producing ‘Peabody & Sherman’, ‘Inspector Gadget and several other series for TV simultaneously, and are interested in hiring people who are passionate about what they do, and will even provide training in software. (http://www.dhxmedia.com/)

We were happy to hear them stress that being able to draw is more important than knowing the software! Robin told everyone that the ‘bouncing ball ‘ is a good test for a new animator!

Like Portfolio Entertainment, the DHX business model is reminiscent of the old days when companies mentored new employees. This is a real and positive change. DHX
was pleased to say that they have retained the original 75 people they started out with 5 years ago. These people have simply progressed within the company. DHX wants a stable work force of people who they know and who have worked with each other, and they hope to continue to keep having enough work to keep everyone steadily employed.

They showed a short film portraying studio life- everyone agreed that DHX has plenty of appeal on either coast!

After the presentation the reps were generous with their time, talking to all the senior students at length and having a look at their websites.
They were very impressed by our students work, and happy to find a school with a real sense of community.

Everyone had a great time visiting with DHX! Thank you so much for coming !

Max the Mutt Industry Event and Year End Open House!

Esteemed Toronto college holds annual ‘Industry Event’ (animation, gaming and publishing) – with a special remembrance for Canadian animation instructor Jim Macaulay – on May 27, and celebrates its 2015 graduates and students with an exhibit and weekend open house,

May 29 to May 31

“I think there is some tremendous work in the show tonight! I came last year and was equally impressed, and I actually hired one of your graduates, who is working with me on a feature film project.” – Clive Smith, founder Nelvana.

Toronto, ON, May 18, 2015 – Toronto’s Max the Mutt College of Animation, Art and Design (at 2944 Danforth Avenue) holds well-attended annual ‘Industry Event’ on Wednesday, May 27 (2:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.) and year-end open house exhibition (free weekend workshops with top industry pros) from Friday, May 29 to Sunday, May 31, 2015 (detailed schedule below).

Max the Mutt’s industry only event, much anticipated by the animation, gaming and publishing world in Canada (represented by top companies such as Corus Entertainment, Toon Box, Arc Entertainment, UbiSoft and Nelvana), gives the opportunity to students and graduates from each diploma program to display their work, and for industry pros to scout for new recruits. On view throughout the college; children’s books by illustration graduates, animation reels and slide shows from animation and concept art graduates, prop and character design, comic book pages, figurative and portrait painting and more. Note: Hors d’oeuvres and refreshments follow in the evening.

This year Jim Macaulay passed away at the age of 91. Macaulay was a revered animation instructor at Sheridan College (1974-1988) in Toronto and Max the Mutt’s mentor. During the industry event, a special remembrance – complete with champagne toast and a video of Jim in his workshop – of his life will be held at 6:30 p.m. to honour his contribution to the school and Canadian animation. All the models he built and animal skeletons he assembled and mounted for the school will be on display.

Industry testimonials: https://mtmcollege.ca/why-mtm/industry-employer-testimonials/

VIDEO (Industry Event 2014): https://youtu.be/dEuiGW7uSHw

FACEBOOK EVENT (Industry): https://www.facebook.com/events/889301787804296

FACEBOOK EVENT (Open House): https://www.facebook.com/events/370282393174786

OPEN HOUSE SCHEDULE:

Friday, May 29 through Sunday, May 31; open to the public, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The main reception is on the second floor. Year one, two and three student and graduate exhibition, curriculum information, school tours and two free one-hour workshops (Saturday and Sunday).

Saturday, May 30:

10:00 a.m. – Information Session; school philosophy, the curriculum for the three diploma programs, workshops and development programs. Followed by a school tour.

11:00 a.m. – Free workshop; ‘Introduction to Cartooning’ with Toronto-based cartoonist and illustrator Megan Kearney. Learn the basics of cartooning including exaggeration, appeal and structure. Kearney manages Comic Book Embassy (co-work studio in Chinatown), and hosts High Tea at the Embassy (monthly mixer for women in creative fields). Her most recent works include Valor, and a graphic novel adaptation of Beauty and The Beast.

1:00 p.m. – Free workshop; ‘Introduction to Freehand Figure Drawing’ with comic book artist, author and instructor Dave Ross. An outline of the methodology (straight from the mind to the page) behind freehand figure drawing. Dave Ross has mainly published in the USA; working on the series Rai at Valiant and such Marvel titles as Avengers West Coast and Marvel Knights: Daredevil and Inhumans. At DC Comic, he worked on JLA and Birds of Prey. He has a book coming out soon titled ‘Freehand Figure Drawing for Illustrators’.

Sunday, May 31:

10:00 a.m. – School tours all day.

11:00 a.m. – Free workshop; ‘The Loomis head’ with head of Max the Mutt’s Illustration for Sequential Arts diploma program Kent Burles. Andrew Loomis, the famed American illustrator, developed this system of drawing the head from life, reference or imagination.

1:00 p.m. – Free workshop; ‘Introduction to Cinematic Layout for Comics’ with head of Illustration for Sequential Arts Diploma program Kent Burles.

MORE INFO: https://mtm-college.com.

/director Maxine Schacker states, “Our first year-end events at 2944 Danforth Avenue are almost here! We’re happy to hear from so many companies that they will attend our Industry Event and look forward to welcoming everyone to our weekend Open House, where this year, we’re providing two free workshops on both Saturday and Sunday! We invite everyone to see the amazing work all our students have created…a school filled with art!”

2015 graduate images enclosed: Concept art students, left, Marion Manzo (lava rock monster) and right, Alessandro Constantini (dragon cove).

ABOUT:

Founded in 1996 in Toronto, Max the Mutt College of Animation, Art and Design provides in-depth training via workshops and three programs of study; Classical and Computer Animation and Production diploma, Concept Art for Animation and Video Games diploma (only of its kind in Canada) and Illustration for Sequential Arts: Comic Books and Graphic Novels diploma (only of its kind in Canada). Max the Mutt prepares students for careers in animation, concept design, advertising, art direction, comic books and graphic novels.

For media information, interviews, media tours and images please contact:

Laurie Lockhart

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MaxtheMutt.com

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