NCCC Success Story

Hometown: Steamboat, CO

Major: 3D Digital Design

Employer Name and location: Motion Capture Studio at RIT/NTID, Rochester, NY

What was your position and work responsibilities on co-op?
My position is 3D Animator, and my responsibilities were working on 3D models, teaching our team 3D modeling and animating 3D avatars based on motion capture rigs.

How did your studies at RIT/NTID prepare you for this co-op and your future career?
I must prepare for my future with my considerable skills in 3D design and maintain my motivation for learning new things in 3D animation. I worked hard to improve my skills at 3DDD and MoCap so I could have good artworks in my portfolio in my future career. I had my friends to give me feedback on the portfolio to make it more competitive. RIT/NTID gave me a space to be able to prepare for my future career.

What did you think your co-op would be like before starting, and what was it actually like?
The project seemed overwhelming at first and I knew it would take a long time to complete, but we never gave up as we found a new way of researching and improving our 3D skills at the lab.

What lessons did you learn while on this co-op?
In MoCap, the lessons I learned were developing a more efficient production pipeline for 3D avatars, finding ways to save projects without crashing, and making video tutorials for my team as part of documentation practice. These lessons helped with the synergy of the team who had different experiences and knowledges.

What advice would you give to students going on co-op?
It is a great opportunity for you to gain experience and add work to your portfolio. Communication is important for a thriving workspace for deaf and hard hearing people. Do not be afraid of trying new things; supervisors will appreciate students taking initiatives and being open to trying new things.

How did COVID impact your co-op?
We had to communicate on Slack, Zoom and other online communication tools, and take a loaner-laptop to connect to our lab studios' computers. We had to communicate a lot more and a lot of planning was required, but we made it work. It was a positive experience for us overall.