In this episode of the 360 interviews, we have decided to focus to chat with Allan Portilho- 3D Artist and Retoucher.

Tell us how your CG skills started and a bit about your early background?
I used to be an Art Director in a small agency in my hometown called Manaus in Amazonas (the rain forest are in Brazil), where I worked extensively on photoshop.  But I always felt missing something in my arts, something like 3d texts or elements. So, I started using 3d software just to put some 3d in my photoshop work.

What was your route into the industry?
I started as an  Art Director where I’ve worked in small and big agencies in Brasil, including DDB. Then I realized what I liked most is to create images instead of being an Art Director. I moved from my hometown (Manaus) to São Paulo, with only 2 thousand (Brazilian Currency) 1 Imac, 2 pieces of luggage and 1 backpack. I kind of started learning some 3d software (Maya, Cinema 4D and Modo) at this point, nothing too fancy. Then I decided to move my career to CGI as a 3d Artist and Retoucher. I started working at Creative Studios in Brazil.  I had some bad experiences because I was so new to it and had zero experience. But I kept pushing myself, studying and working as a freelancer.

Then I moved to the United States where I had the honour to work at a few major companies such as Recom Farmhouse, The Mill, DCoy Studios, Target Enterprise, Art Machine, and many more.

You’re now based in LA, but have worked in a few places, tell us how your journey went from Brazil to LA?
Actually, I recently moved to Detroit – Michigan for work. I have worked as an employee and a freelancer. As 3d Artist, I decided not just become a 3d Visualization Specialist, but work in all the fields as I can ( Automotive, Products, Fashion, Entertainment, etc). I have around a lot in the US, let me try to simplify the places I’ve lived and companies worked.

Florida – Freelancer mainly doing product Visualization
New York – Recom Farmhouse, DCoy Studios, The Mill,
New Jersey – Freelancer as Visualization for Automotive and Products
Los Angeles – California – (for the First time) – Linderman and Associates – Where I started working on  creating assets for movie posters,
Minnesota – I was Lead CGI Artist at Target

Since I left I have done freelancing work, mainly for the Product and Automotive industry. Currently, I’m In Detroit – Michigan for something that I can’t talk about yet. But happy to announce that it will be my sixth year in the United States of America.

What big projects have you worked on and enjoyed working on most?
It’s hard to say because I have worked in so many projects in different fields. I have worked on movies campaigns such as Captain Marvel, Terminator, Godzilla, Sonic, Detective Pikachu, Eternals and much more. In the Automotive space, I have worked in amazing campaigns as well, but for me, the Toyota I-trill and I-Concept are super memorable, because they were used in the Superbowl break commercial. But honestly, all of them are equally special because they made me who I am right now.

We know that you love Domeble Assets, what is it about them that you find better than the other options out there?
I like the variety of them, but the main reason is that I feel that Domeble is more than a partner or asset library because  I can give some ideas, request assets, directly with the amazing  Domeble team, that I call friends. I made a very good friend there as well, Love you, Melanie. 😀

We’ve collaborated with you on a few projects, do you enjoy the collaborative process?
I love the way I have been treated with domeble. I always get a quick response and the team is very supportive and most important, you guys understand the passion that I have for what I do. It’s not merely about enjoyment.

There is an inevitable shift towards Unreal Engine and Unity gaming engines in the post-production and real-time image and animation workflows, what’re your thoughts on that?
I have been talking with some companies, that I have done some gigs and some job tests. I’m sure realtime visualization is the future. The way the world technology is running, everybody needs a quick preview or render. I’m 100% sure, realtime Viz will be the future.

Do you think UE and Unity will change workflow processes?
I have tried both, but I have studied  Unreal, the industry is always looking for a way to to make things quicker, easier and optimised. I think Unreal will establish a presence, but at the same time will adapt its process for the existing one and vice and versa.

You’re developing a tutorial and learning site, tell us about that? ( this is a leading question for you to big up your tutorial project – so feel free to sing your own praises. )
Yes, I’m creating Academy – Allan Portilho, this going to be a place where I gonna teach people the same techniques only found inside the big studios and agencies. I remember the time I started looking for material for my studies I struggled so much because is too hard to find material that prepares people for the industry. Not saying that my platform will be the best, but through all the years of my experience and all the places that I have worked, I have a pretty good idea what they are looking for, That is the premise of my academy. Courses and tutorials from an artist to another.

After discussing with Carl, he loved the idea and will provide all the assets for the Automotive Visualization classes, and a special discount for my students. How to not love Domeble? Impossible.

As you know, we are big believers in the VR world of 360° images – do you enjoy the virtual immersive experience?
I’m passionate about the 360 images. To be very honest, I haven’t gone very deep into VR experiences, because, even though it is CG,  it’s another world of studies and possibilities. I know more than 20 different software and a lot of shortcuts. It’s very hard to find a time to get deep into it, but as a  user, I love VR experiences.

It’s an ever-changing world, and an ever-changing industry that we work in too, what do you think the industry will be like in 5 years time?
I think in 5 years we will be upgrading our machines with Terabytes graphic cards, 10k+ screen displays, wanting faster and easier ways to make our work. I will guess, the photogrammetry will be easier to include in our workflow.

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