The Naked Texture Artist - Chris Nichols - Episode 2

The Naked Texture Artist is a podcast where VFX/animation veterans have deep and honest conversations about their challenges and growth as working artists.

Our conversation with Chris Nichols continues, as we both dip into the depths of facing unemployment, despite being an incredibly talented texture and creature artist, as well as the highs of finding inspiration and joy from the watching the work of creature heavyweights like Gino Acevedo.

Chris is easily one of my favourite guests on this show, and you will no doubt agree. He has a wealth of skills and experience, and he doesn't hold back from sharing even the gritty stuff.

Do yourself a favour, please, and explore and support the amazing work Chris also does on the side:

https://www.artstation.com/porkpiesamurai

The Naked Texture Artist is produced by Marque Pierre Sondergaard.

Support us on https://ko-fi.com/thenakedtextureartist

Contact us on thenakedtextureartist@gmail.com

Follow us on https://www.instagram.com/thenakedtextureartist/

Music copyright belongs to Tycho for the song Awake - https://tychomusic.com/

Additional sound effects from https://www.zapsplat.com

Chapters

• 0:39 Intro
• 2:04 Interview start - Unemployed at 18 years
• 4:56 Hard to find work as a successful creature artist
• 5:58 Intermission: Learning to sleep with one eye open
• 9:11 Would Chris had had an easier life if he never had done Thanos?
• 11:42 Brave new world and challenges of moving up to the highest level of work
• 13:43 What does your career feel like 18 years in? Succeeding becomes harder and harder
• 15:56 "Even the greatest stuff becomes tedious..."
• 16:53 Key turning point in Chris' life: Lord of the Rings
• 18:03 The Gino Acevedo Appreciation Hour
• 21:00 Intermission: Eat your vegetables and brush your teeth!
• 23:10 The Gino Acevedo Appreciation Hour continued: The genesis of skin scans
• 28:17 The next frontier
• 30:27 Outro