Chaos

What are you looking for?

podcast banner

Barbara Ford Grant — President, Prysm Stages

372_BFG_Full.png

 This week’s podcast guest, Barbara Ford Grant, is particularly inspirational. Barbara’s pursuit of fine art led her into VFX, where she worked her way through companies including DreamWorks Animation, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Digital Domain, Walt Disney Studios, and immersive art platform Meow Wolf. She carved an enviable career path during this time, from digital artist to chief technology officer.

Today, Barbara is president of Prysm Stages, a state-of-the-art virtual production facility, and she’s just become the first female chair of the Sci-Tech Committee of the Academy. In this podcast, she details her career and how she’s continually pushed VFX technology and pipelines forward. She also reveals why HBO’s content is so good, what exactly Meow Wolf does, and the changes needed for women to thrive in the VFX industry.

April is Autism Acceptance Month, and Chaos is highlighting Exceptional Minds, an academy and studio preparing neurodiverse young adults for careers in animation, visual effects, 3D gaming, and related fields in the entertainment industry. This week, we invite you to check out Exceptional Minds’ brand-new sizzle reel to see some of the incredible work its students have created.

To learn more about Exceptional Minds, visit exceptional-minds.org, or find them on social. 

Links:

Prysm Stages >

Barbara Ford Grant on LinkedIn >

Barbara Ford Grant on IMDb >


372_BFG_YouTube.png372_BFG_YouTube.png

6:55 From fine art to fashion: Introducing Barbara

11:52 Building tools at DreamWorks

17:48 Moving to Sony Pictures Imageworks

21:50 Powering up DD’s pipeline

25:16 Why HBO creates great content

33:31 Consulting for Disney Studios

36:29 Back to art for Meow Wolf

41:55 Prysm and virtual production

52:48 Becoming the first female chair of the Oscar sci-tech committee

1:00:56 Virtual production and pipelines

IMG_h96auu.jpg
About the author

Christopher Nichols

Chris is a CG industry veteran and Director of Chaos Labs. He can also be heard regularly as the host of the CG Garage podcast which attracts 20,000 weekly listeners. With a background in both VFX and Design, Chris has worked for Gensler, Digital Domain, Imageworks and Method Studios. His credits include Maleficent, Oblivion and Tron: Legacy.

Originally published: April 25, 2022.
© Škoda Design

Subscribe to our blog.

Get the latest news, artist spotlight stories, tips and tricks delivered to your inbox.

By submitting your information you are agreeing to receive marketing messages from Chaos. You can opt-out at any time. Privacy Policy.

Chaos
© 2024 Chaos Software EOOD. All Rights reserved. Chaos®, V-Ray® and Phoenix FD® are registered trademarks of Chaos Software EOOD in Bulgaria and/or other countries.