Not Sure You're Ready? How 10 Students Built Confidence With a Mentor

Brandon brings almost 20 years of experience as a video game concept artist with a long client list that includes EA, Activision, Capcom, Gree, and Disney Interactive.

Ehsan has built environments for games since 2009, on titles including Shadow Blade: Reload, Redfall, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. He is currently a Senior Artist at Bethesda Game Studios.

While at Ubisoft, AAA programmer Firas released almost a game a year including Far Cry 3, 4, 5, Assassin's Creed 3, Your Shape, Splinter Cell: Blacklist and Watchdogs 2 and 3.

Anton Tenitsky dreamed of working in the CG field from the age of 15 and went on to realise that vision after graduating from Massey University in New Zealand. Following his graduation, he built an industry career by working as a texture artist for Nickelodeon's Penguins of Madagascar and various other cartoon series, later transitioning into the casual gaming market as a 2D/3D artist for industry giant Gameloft. Most recently, he worked as a 3D concept designer on the AAA game Marvel Rivals. Today, he channels this extensive studio background into his role as a CG Spectrum mentor, where he guides aspiring artists through industry-standard workflows, providing the personalised feedback and practical skills needed to break into the professional gaming and animation sectors.

Jason Barlow is Course Director for CGSI Game Design, drawing on 16 years across game design education and production. He shapes the program around the design thinking, prototyping, and shipping discipline that studios actually hire for.

Kinman Chan has spent 22 years designing for film and games at Lucasfilm, ILM, Disney ImageMovers, Insomniac Games, and Disney Interactive. His credits include Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Strange Magic, A Christmas Carol, Curious George, and The Fox and the Hound 2. He mentors CGSI Concept Art students on the design thinking and visual storytelling that move a project from brief to screen.

Rachel is a Concept Artist and Illustrator specializing in visual storytelling and creature design. She currently works at Flix Interactive and is a Women in Games Ambassador.

Rodrigo Costa has spent 14 years animating across film, games, and stylised feature work. Five years in London VFX at Framestore, ILM, MPC, and DNEG, then Fortiche on Arcane, and eight years at Polyarc shaping the performances in Moss. He mentors CGSI 3D Animation students on the acting, weight, and shot polish that production studios expect.

Amita has worked as an Animator and Animation Supervisor for two decades. She is also an experienced mentor, teaching at Mages Institute of Excellence and Supinfocom International Animation School.

Alfredo is a 2D animator and storyboard artist who has worked on feature films like Klaus (Lead Animator on Jesper), Song of the Sea, The Secret of Kells, and several TV shows.

Kate is a VFX artist in the motion picture industry. She primarily works with Houdini, and in her spare time runs a blog based on incorporating scientific ideas in VFX, and general Houdini tips.

Sean's worked at Walt Disney Animation, Technicolor VFX, and Sony on 100+ films and TV projects. Credits: Star Trek: Picard, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Avengers: Infinity War.

Addison DeBolt has spent 14 years working on AAA shooters and real-time pipelines at EA, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward, Activision, Niantic, and Fox VFX. Her credits run from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Ghosts, and Infinite Warfare to Dead Space, Avowed, and Assassin's Creed Nexus. She mentors CGSI Real-time 3D students with the production rigour that comes from shipping at scale.

Bobby Rice has spent 21 years building game environments and assets at Rockstar, Pandemic Studios, Ready at Dawn, and Activision's Elsewhere Entertainment. His credits include Red Dead Redemption 2, Grand Theft Auto V, Grand Theft Auto VI, and The Order: 1886. He mentors CGSI 3D Modeling students at the standards expected on some of the most demanding open-world pipelines in the industry.

Mathieu Bissonnette has spent 20 years designing games at Ubisoft, Eidos, Ninja Theory, and Cirque du Soleil, with credits including Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Stories: The Path of Destinies, and Season: A Letter to the Future. He mentors CGSI Game Design students through the rare combination of cinematic storytelling and live-experience design his career has shaped.