Summary

As an animation industry expert, academic and researcher, Mark’s interests are in computer animation techniques including synthetic sculpture, motion and related forms in popular culture. His research interests are in characterization and storytelling with real-time and rendered imagery exploring visual and behavioral representation in the animated form; looking to develop seemingly intelligent animated forms with richness in personality and emotive evocative states that are flexible enough to respond to the viewer within a predetermined simulated performance. He is currently working on a large scale interactive LED based public art installation.

Industry

2014 — current

Giant Monster Pte Ltd, Singapore

Entrepreneur: Public Art Design & Installation, Educational Game Design, Animation Design

2005 — 2015

Nanyang Technological University

Educator, Researcher: Founding faculty for the Animation area, taught Computer Animation and Production, and Game Design

2002 — 2005

CLONE3D LLC, United States of America

Entrepreneur: Simulated personalities on the web

2002 — 2005

Rhythm and Hues, United States of America

Freelance Digital Artist, Modeller: worked on numerous Award winning feature films

1995 — 2002

DreamWorks Feature Animation, United States of America

Digital Artist, Crowd Animation Lead Animator, Lead Modeller: worked on numerous Award winning feature films

1994 — 1995

Acclaim Entertainment, United States of America

Digital Art Lead/Supervisor, Supervised digital art production and storyboard for Alien Trilogy, the first PlayStation I computer game to use Motion Capture

1991— 1993

Digital Artist and Art Director, Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) Vision, various television broadcast projects

1991

Kroyer Films, United States of America

Animator on Fern Gully

1988— 1990

Phillips Interactive, United States of America

Character Animator, Interactive Designer, early interactive media development on Compact Disc Interactive (CDi)

1987 — 1988

Freelance Digital Artist / Animator, United States of America, various projects, (rock videos, commercials, trade show motion-graphics artist)

1980 — 86

LaserMedia, Inc

Supervisor, art director and animator: Pioneered the technique of laser-animation,

Projects: Motion billboards – the Sunset Strip Playboy building 1980; Broadway: Sandy Duncan’s Peter Pan; Rock Concerts: Neil Diamond’s ‘84 world tour, Earth, Wind and Fire’s world tour ‘83, and ‘84 and Ozzy Osbourne’s “Ozzy Bat” Concert Tour and other special venues. Supervised and art directed animation and digitization of graphics for the largest projected animation in the world 50 minutes projected on a huge stone wall of carvings of the Confederate Soldiers at Stone Mountain State Park, Georgia 1982-86 This work was documented at one time in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest ever projected imagery! Created and supervised work for the 1984 Summer Olympics projected billboard and entertainment imagery on the Federal Building in Westwood, California (including my own laser animated student short entitled Omeyotl which also premiered at an LA SIGGRAPH meeting in 1983 at Art Center in Pasadena); work for  display at EPCOT Center, Walt Disney World, Florida, 1985.

Awards in Industry

• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Oscar nominated for Best Achievement in Visual Effects, won a BAFTA Film Award for Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects, and numerous other awards.
• Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed; nominated for numerous awards.
• Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat; nominated for numerous awards.
• Elf, won the 2004 ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards it won the Top Box Office Films Award, the 2004 Golden Trailer Awards it won the Best Comedy Award and was nominated for numerous other awards.
• The Rundown; X-Men 2,  Online Film Critics Society Awards 2004, nominated for the OFCS Award for Best Visual Effects, it was nominated for many other awards.
• Daredevil, nominated for numerous awards.
• Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas, 2004 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA nominated for the Saturn Award for the Best Animated Film and many other nominations.
• Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, won the 2003 ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards for Top Box Office Films; won the Young Artist Award for Best Family Feature Film in the Animation category, it won a 2004 Genesis Award in the category of Feature Film; at the 2003 Academy Awards was nominated for the Best Animated Feature; it was nominated for an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Theatrical Feature and was nominated for many other awards in different categories.
• The Road to El Dorado nominated for numerous awards.
• The Prince of Egypt, at the 1999 Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards it won the Critics Choice Award for Best Animated Film; at the Young Artist Awards it won the Young Artist Award for Best Animated Family Feature, it also won and was nominated for a number of other awards including an Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song (this was awarded prior to the establishment of an Academy Award for the category of Animated Feature Film).
• Alien Trilogy, Awarded the 1996 PlayStation Game Award by PS Extreme Magazine, I was the artistic lead, level designer and animator on the project.

Academic

March 2005 — Present

Assistant Professor, Nanyang Technological University, School of Art, Design and Media

Relocated to Singapore to establish the first University-based Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Southeast Asia, specializing in Computer Animation instruction

Digital Animation Courses
Course Title and Code

• ANI 230 / DT 2003 3D Modeling Workshop I
• ANI 255 3D Modeling Workshop II
• ANI 260 Introduction to Storyboarding
• ANI 390 Animation Seminar I
• DT 2015 Advanced 3D Production

ADM Foundation Programme Courses
Course Title and Code

• FDN 101 Foundation Drawing
• FDN 140 Design and Time

Final Year Project

ANI 410 & ANI 450 BFA Digital Animation Final Year Project (FYP)

Graduate Students

• 2 MSc (Digital Media Technology)
• 1 – PhD

Awards in Academia

TEACHING

2012

• Koh Boon Hwee Scholar Award Certificate of Honor
  For Inspirational Mentorship

RESEARCH

2013

• Vegas Indie Film Fest!
  Bronze Bulb Award
• 13th Annual Beverly Hills Film Festival
  Best Animation Award
• AHOF Savannah International Animation Festival
  Best Gaming Animation
• Canada International Film Festival
  Royal Reel Award
• The California Film Awards
  Best Animated Short

2012

• Love Unlimited Film Festival
  Best Visual Effects in an Animated Film
• The Accolade Competition
  Award of Merit
• 11th Urban Mediamakers Film Festival (UMFF)
  Best Animation: Third Prize Winner
• Vegas Cine Fest
  Honourable Mention
• Marbella International Film Festival
  Best Animation Award

2010

• CGAT – Computer Games and Allied Technology 2010
  Best Research Paper Award, Chavez, M. Liu, L., (2010), “Cinematics and Narratives: Development of a Prototype System”

SERVICE

2008

• Special Recognition Award 2008
  Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE), in recognition of work done with inmates in the Singapore prison system.

Featured Work