I have T-Shaped Skills…
Look at the graphs below and you’ll find out that I rarely own 100% of a specific tool or technology.
The love for design and technology, for storytelling and creativity, for connecting dots that were not drawn together, pushes me to explore always new opportunities, tools, and solutions.
The tools listed below are just a way for me to quickly get to answers, proofs of concepts, ideas, prototypes, stories to be told, and experiences to share.
I think that after all these years in this business, this is my biggest strength, the biggest asset I can bring to a team and to a project.
3D + Authoring Software
I’ve spent 17 years at PDI/DreamWorks working on proprietary software, being part of the team that also designed and developed such tools.
Commercial packages were always a constant source of inspiration.
Softimage was one of the first high-end packages I’ve learned in 1990 and I spent 4 years traveling the world for Softimage demoing the latest features and working with the developers on new ones.
At Google Spotlight Stories we work with a proprietary game engine and tools written in C++, Python and Lua. We always keep an eye on commercial packages like Unity and Unreal for inspiration and comparison.
In Daydream, we use all sort of tools to quickly iterate on prototypes: C#, Unity, shaders, Python and Tensorflow, procedural tools like Houdini, etc.
Learning a new software is always a welcome stimulating challenge for me.
I’m passionate about design and user experience, so delving into new tool is a chance to see how other developers and designers have tackled new problems.
2D Software + Photo + Video Editing
As a technical artist and documentary photographer, I always need powerful creative tools to complement my vision.
I love when I can find new ways to bridge together different tools in a new pipeline to solve a problem.
Back in 1989, I was also the demo artist for the very first Avid released in Italy. This gave me the opportunity to explore the world of non-linear editing that was just making its first entry in the post production and film industry.
Programming Languages
I often found myself having to learn a new programming language to prototype an idea and push myself in uncharted territories.
I got my feet wet with Basic, building small tools that I could use in my daily work with the Picture Maker Cubicomp.
I started playing with node based compositing tools in 1990, fascinated by nondestructive workflows and visual programming.
At PDI I was part of the team that designed and developed the proprietary node-based rigging system used in may feature films we have realized.
When still available, Fabric Engine reminded me of that visual approach at programming that allows me quick prototyping iterations.
I recently picked up again Houdini that I love for its procedural approach to the workflow. I challenged myself with a visual project, The Space Within, that forced me to explore and combine AR tools with 3D procedural workflows.
I learned Objective C around 2010 when I started coding mobile apps for children with my own company Curious Hat. I recently started to take my first baby steps with Swift.
After years developing tools and technologies to push 3D model vertices and matrices around, I found myself writing simple GLSL shaders, coloring pixels and discovering the intricacies of real time engine pipelines.
I even had a chance to hold one of these for my role as Co Character TD Supervisor on Shrek.
Yet this golden guy did not help me to fully understand what a quaternion is… 🙂
