I spent Monday at DreamWorks’ Glendale campus as a part of their Educators’ Symposium. It was fun to be back on campus – this time as an invited teacher, which made it rather unique. Alex McDowell gave an in depth talk about design for live action and animated features in the digital age, including examples from his work on Minority Report, The Terminal, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Bee Movie. He also gave us a sneak peak at the special trailer of Watchmen that was only screened at Comic-Con. Though I’m very familiar with all the ways that digital design is being used in production, Alex has a unique and informative view on how it fits into the big picture, including an interesting workflow chart (that makes more sense when he walks you through it).

They also screened a sequence from Madagascar II and a 3D sequence from Monsters Vs. Aliens. Since these aren’t due out for a bit, I won’t say anything other than they look fantastic and we laughed out loud all the way through both of them. I can’t wait for the final films!

We were also treated to a composite reel of student work from 24 schools that submitted pieces. It’s exciting to see the level of talent that is just coming of age now, and the breadth and variety of work that they’re doing.

Thanks DWA for a great day!