Dashing: Interview (2010)

Posted on June 6, 2010 by michael

Robert Moggach – Creative Director

 

Please tell us about the Dashing Collective.

Dashing has been a year in the making and its based on working at all these different facilities around the world. I’ve seen different models from very small, like me and another guy on two flames, to the bigger studios where there are 200 – 300 artists, some working on features, some on commercials. I’ve seen how different clients have different needs and I’ve learned how to balance the agency’s needs with that of the director, finding the middle common ground which makes everyone happy. It can be a challenge to find that, but its a fun challenge to have.

 

Please tell us about the importance of Dashing’s multi-disciplinary approach to VFX.

I went to film, photography, new media and animation school and while I was doing that I was working as a film re-toucher for commercial photography and fashion and the whole time I was painting as well. In VFX I started as an animator, became a modeller and ended up as a flame artist and then a VFX supervisor. Those different kinds of skill sets build upon what I can provide, meaning I have a natural way of communicating with creatives because I understand what they want. I’m able to step into their shoes and say “ill push this way” because it will give them what they need, whether its for a Director, Art Director or whomever. I’m always trying to engage myself in different aspects of VFX, whether creative or technical because I’ve learned over the years that as much as I love the Creative Direction side of it and leading a team, I’m also very much about getting behind closed doors and figuring out how something works.

 

Do you see Dashing staying more of a smaller vfx studio?

Absolutely. It’s about building relationships with great creatives and assembling a core group of creative leadersexperts. That’s the great thing about the relationships we have, a lot of them are built on our past work so we know how we work together. There is a trust level there. The bigger you get, the harder it is to keep the quality high and meet both the client’s and our expectations.

 

What drew you back to Toronto?

When I left Toronto it was a young market recovering from some heavy international competition. The city itself has grown up, its much more cosmopolitan and international. Its also much easier to work from Toronto now whereas ten years ago there was a challenge to work remotely. Digital technology has certainly overcome this. We can easily communicate with businesses in New York, L.A, Tokyo or anywhere in the world.