Based out of Kansas City, Bruce Branit has over 10 years experience in the Hollywood visual effects community and has four Emmy Award nominations for his work. He is an award winning director and graphic designer who is perhaps best known as the co-creator of the acclaimed film, 405. NewTek sat down with Branit to find out more from this talented artist.

Can you tell us a little about your artistic background?
I grew up with an older brother who was always shooting 8mm movies, so I sort of got into the idea of making movies and creative projects at an early age. At the age of 10 my father bought an Apple II and I wrote my own programs to do simple video and graphics with it way back then.

At the University of Kansas I started in architecture, then drifted into drawing and design, and finally into industrial design. I got a really good general design education that I think really helps me to this day. During college I worked at a screen printing shop doing art for colleges and businesses. It gave me a good understanding of the artist/client relationship.

Who are some of the influences in your art?
There is a commercial director named Joseph Kosinski that I think is great. He uses CG so well and in such interesting ways to make such beautiful imagery. Really cool stuff.

There are a couple of original LightWave artists I know that I’ve always thought could do no wrong. John Teska and Ken Stranahan have been doing this for so many years, and they still crank out so much good work it still surprises me.

How were you first introduced to 3D?
I worked for a screen-print shop during college and found myself exploring different tools that I had no real reason to work with. I’d use programs like Stratavision 3D to model things like a basketball when clip art really would have sufficed. In college for industrial design we had some introduction to very rudimentary CAD. But in those days it was so early and technical it was not a creative tool at all.

Around 1993 a college friend of mine, Jeff Scheetz, worked at the local television station and one day while hanging out at the studio he showed me one of the early Video Toasters. We loaded up the Porsche or triceratops model into LightWave and rendered a frame in a few seconds. That Stratavision 3D basketball I mentioned took about 7 hours to render. I immediately saw how with that sort of feedback someone could actually build and animate almost anything. A few weeks later Jeff and I pulled together $4000 dollars and bought an Amiga Video Toaster just for LightWave, which came with it. That was the only way you could own LightWave in those days. We divided up even and odd nights on the calendar as to which days each of us would get to animate. A few months later we each had demo reels and were looking for careers.

What are your favorite features of LightWave?
I’ve always liked the whole package. But, I find the Modeler the best. When I have a job that requires a detailed complicated model, I go into a zen-like state and just work through it bit by bit. There is never a down-time where I am trying to figure out how or if I can build something. It just flows.

When I stop to think about it, it is really hard for me to think of favorite features. I think that is because when I am using LightWave, I am rarely thinking about the program itself. Its just there as a tool while I am modeling or lighting or animating. I think that says a lot about the program and how people use it.

You have worked on some amazing projects in your 10 years of Hollywood visual effects. Care to share some of your favorites?
I did a single shot for the movie Spawn. It was memorable because it was a great lesson to me on how the business works. I did a transformation of Spawn’s hand for a close up shot. It was a typical last minute panic job where we got the shot from the studio with the movie due in theaters in just a few weeks.

Luckily the shot came together nicely right off the bat and it looked great. A little too great. The director saw a few things in what I had done that he loved and wanted them more prominent. So I made some changes. Each conference call with the director and VFX supervisor resulted in more enthusiastic “can you do this?” questions. Even though the deadline was closing in, I kept saying through clenched teeth, “sure.” After all in effects we CAN do anything, right? But they kept beating me up asking for more and more. Then I talked to my boss at that time, John Parenteau, and he said something I still remember. “It’s their job to get everything they possibly can out of you. It’s your job as a professional to tell them when its enough and you need to deliver.” So the next call they had some more ideas and asked for a bunch of changes. I nervously told them that if I was going to deliver in time I needed to polish up and render what we had and not add anything new. There was a short uncomfortable pause. Finally both of them laughed and cheered and said “Awesome. It’s done! We love it just like it is. Send it to us!” All of us were doing our jobs, and the result was a great shot, delivered on time.

You've been nominated for 4 Emmy Awards. What were those nominations for?
I got awarded for working on all the last Star Trek shows: Voyager, Deep Space Nine and Enterprise. But, it’s an honor just to be nominated. Really... I swear.

You have worked on several music videos in the past few years. Any favorites?
The first video I did was Gravel Pit for Wu Tang Clan. I’ve also done Aerosmith, Moby, U2, Spider-Man, Black Eyed Peas, Limp Bizkit and Gwen Stefani videos.

The Aerosmith video, Fly Away From Here, stands out because it was such a challenge and such an insane production. We started with two of us and a couple of sequences. Four weeks and 10 more artists later we were delivering a finished video with 199 shots all featuring entirely CG backgrounds to MTV to debut that same day. It just kept getting bigger and more ridiculous. It was really worth it though. The video was nominated for a Grammy. The Spider-Man video featuring Chad Kroeger and Josey Scot was almost the same situation a year later. That one involved tons of New York City set extensions. It ended up winning an MTV VMA award.

Your studio is based in Kansas City. Has this changed the type of work you take on?
I loved my time in LA and the work and people I worked with. But after eight years I felt like getting back to the Midwest and enjoying life with my wife and family a little more.

Luckily I have been able to continue my work on feature films, commercials, and television shows remotely while living in KC. For me, personally, it is the best of both worlds. I really enjoy my time I have to be back in LA now. I appreciate both places more. Locally, I’m working on taking on some larger projects, sequences and entire commercial spots by getting a group of animators here trained that can handle those larger jobs. I’ve also been able to get some great new local clients for agency and film work here too.

What's the top Kansas City tourist attraction?
KC is a great small town/big city. It’s over 2 million people so you can get any big city thing you desire, but people still have a small town vibe and pride. People don’t usually come to KC for tourism. But most people who have spent a few days here, generally have good things to say about it. There is an area called the Plaza modeled after Seville, Spain that has a lot of great restaurants and shops. KC’s downtown is currently undergoing a renaissance with a new arena and entertainment district. There is a thriving art gallery district where my offices are that has a great night-life each month when the galleries all stay open. We are known for barbecue (I’ve put on 10 pounds since moving back here), so check out Gates, KC Masterpiece, Arthur Bryant’s or Jack Stack.

What are the top three differences between Los Angeles and Kansas City?
Well traffic. That’s a big difference. I lived 25 miles from work in LA and some days it took 1-2 hours each way. In KC I live 30 miles away from my offices and it takes only 20 minutes rain or shine.

Then there is the weather. I love seasons, and we definitely have those. But, sometimes it sucks to have weather of 10 below with 8” of snow, and be on the phone with someone in LA where it is 75. But I grew up with weather like that, so the passage of time makes more sense to me with 4 very different seasons each year.

The other big difference is “the industry.” Where ever you go in LA you run into a post boutique, or dubbing service or a deck rental company. The city is built around what we do. In KC it is a little different, and it makes you work a little harder. You can get 95% of the same services but maybe there is only one or two options instead of 40.

What would be your dream project?
I’d love to be doing CGI or supervising post production on a small independent movie that I’ve directed.

What's next on your plate?
I’ve got some shots coming up in the next few weeks for a big feature and work on a huge national graphics package.

I’ve also been working on a 10 minute short that I shot in HD last year. It’s 180 shots of actors on greenscreen with tracking marks. The edit is locked, and about 50 shots are finalized, but there is a ton of CG to go. It was an idea I’d had for years, but I only decided to go for it after I worked on a few sequences for Sin City. I realized that I own all the tools that were being used on that movie, so why not use them for something of my own. I planned out a post schedule to get it all done by June, but my regular work has been so busy this year that my schedule is slipping every week.

What do you wish was on your plate?
Anything rewarding and challenging.

Any suggestions to someone wanting to get into Hollywood Visual Effects?
An artist has to find a way to put great stuff on his reel. That’s all. No excuses. Because that IS the job! If you can do that for yourself, someone will want you to do it for them. I see a lot of reels that are just not very good. I think artists start comparing their 2006 reel to their 2005 reel and start only seeing their own growth. It is important to know the strength of your own reel. Honestly compare your reel to what you see in games and movies. If you are trying to get a job making those games or movies, your reel should be close to that quality. If you have a so-so reel don’t be looking for lead positions, look for positions that you know you could fill. If you can grow into any position from there. And be humble.

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us, Bruce!

Be sure to check out more info about Branit VFX at their website: http://www.branitvfx.com