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3DTotal: Could you tell us what you’re currently working on?
Toni:I am working on environment modeling for one game cinematic.... that's all I can say. :) I am in charge of modelling, texturing and lighting complete environment, but I will probably do the scene assembly later on... which actually means I will be doing character integration in scene, setting up render passes, and finally compositing. The stuff that's not under my hood is animation and character modelling. The work that I am doing is actually a work of 3D generalist... which sometimes can be overwhelming but in most cases it is really interesting to get over all phases and do the whole sequence from start to end. |
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3DTotal: In my opinion, “It Was You” and “Experiment Chamber” are some of the best pieces of work that you have produced - the detail and the texturing are really great. How much work went into creating these scenes?
Toni: Both scenes took about four weeks to finish. I worked around two hours per day on them, so it was a little bit hard to get everything done on time. Sometimes I just don’t have the energy and inspiration after I come home after my job, so I usually work around 3-4 days per week. But, since these are my private projects which don’t have any deadlines, I don’t care too much about the time they will take - all that matters is that they must be high quality projects. After working for around three weeks on an image, I have the habit of leaving it for 2-3 weeks, mainly because most of the time I get a little saturated with the image. Then after some time has passed I check the image again, get some fresh ideas, and work on it for another week until it is finished. |
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3DTotal: Who or what are the major influences behind your work?
Toni: There aren’t any particular people that inspire my work. I always try to create something new and not stick to one particular area. But if you ask who are my favourite artists, then I’m a big fan of the 3D Environment Artists such as Stefan Morrell (http://stefan-morrell.cgsociety.org/gallery/), Marek Denko (http://marekdenko.net), Gilles Tran (http://www.oyonale.com), and Concept Artists such as Thierry Doizon (http://www.barontieri.com/), Levente Peterffy (http://www.leventep.com/) and Bruno Gentile (http://www.hydropix.com/). I can’t really remember all of them at this moment, but the Internet and CG community is full of great artists who inspire me every day. |
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3DTotal: If you had the choice of collaborating on a project, whether it was a scene or an animated short, which artist would you like to work with and what subject matter would you base it on?
Toni: I like to work with all the people that I mentioned before, but on the other hand I just want to work with creative people that have a strong imagination, a clean idea of what they are doing, with people that can inspire me to become better at what I do. As for the subject, my favourite areas are science-fiction and fantasy, so I think I would be at home in those areas.
3DTotal: What sort of things do you like to do when you’re not sat at a computer screen?
Toni: I usually go outside to walk or drive bicycles with my wife. Since we are new in LA we like to explore the city. It's a huge area with a lot to see, there is something for everyone over here. Except that, I like to go to cinema. I am a big fan of animated movies, specially the ones from Pixar. My favorite sports are Formula 1 and Basketball. I also like computer games but I am not a big fan of FPS games like most people today, so I usually take some adventure/RTS/RPG games... for example lately I am having a great fun playing old adventure games, specially LucasArts adventures... oh I miss those old days!
3DTotal: Well it has been a real pleasure talking with you Toni, but I have one more question before we finish up. What has been the most beneficial piece of advice that you have been given, and from whom?
Toni: I think the best piece of advice came from a bunch of successful people saying that hard work will pay out one day. You just have to work for many years to get recognised and to get to the level where others need you, and not the other way round.
3DTotal: Thanks very much for talking to us, and good luck for the future. |
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