About

Hello, and welcome to the “all about me” page! I’ll try to keep it brief and to the point, but mainly talk about what excites me about working in the animation industry.

Way back in 1996, I got my first job out of Art Center at Disney Feature Animation. Not a bad start for an art career, right? I began as a background trainee, copying classic Disney backgrounds in gouache: the original paint they used in the 1940s & 1950s. I was exactly reproducing backgrounds from classics like Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and Sleeping Beauty, just to name a few. After nine months of “forgery training”, I finally got promoted to full time production artist on Hercules. I also painted traditional and digital backgrounds on Tarzan and Treasure Planet. Then the big 3D shakeup happened when Disney let go most of their 2D artists, including me.

Over the years, I’ve worked at various studios continuing to paint backgrounds, color scripts, character visual development, and environment design - which I love. In 2012 I started experimenting with Maya as a design tool, when it was only used for pre-vis and final production. But I saw 3D as a great concept tool for anyone who had the temerity to learn it, which has taken me years, as I’m still trying to grasp the tools and workflows to create something cool.

Most recently, I’ve been getting back into Blender, an amazing 3D concepting tool. I’m experimenting with a hybrid workflow which combines the best of traditional 2D drawing and 3D modeling. Blender’s Grease Pencil along with a few other add-ons allow me to essentially draw and sculpt in 3D space. I really love the ability to move all around an environment, make design changes from any angle, experiment with lighting, composition, color, atmosphere, and animation.

I’ve also played around with VR and find it fascinating. I enjoy creating my own VR drawings and paintings in Gravity Sketch, Quill and Open Brush. I’ve also experienced some beautiful games and short films. My only reservation with this exciting medium is the headset. With my Quest 2, I can only survive for 30 minutes to an hour before fatigue sets in. But I’m optimistic that this problem will soon be solved, as I think VR is a completely new direction for the entertainment industry.

So that’s about it! I’m currently working on a personal 3D project which is inspired by the small, artsy Washington town where I live called Port Townsend. I will tease you with this: a boatyard, dirty dishes and dysfunctional robots.

Cheers, and thanks for visiting!

-Scott

Represented by Ellen Ann Mersereau, Esq.  

Email: mersereau@earthlink.net   Phone: 323-461-3316