We recently connected with Phirada Kanjanangkulpunt and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Phirada with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
Since I can remember, I always prioritizing ethics in a work environment and when collaborating with others.
I was raised to be independent, some might say because I am a single child, but it never drives me to not enjoy group projects. While growing up without siblings, I was taught to be empathetic and care about others around me, which I treats them with respect regardless of their race, gender, or other identity group they belong to. The exposure to multi-cultural environment also affects my work ethic and my favor to inclusivity. I was born and raised in Thailand. But at 17 I moved to Wales for the last two years of high school, then to USA for my undergraduate degree in Visual Effects and now I am based in Dublin, Ireland for my Master’s degree in Computer Science. My endless travel history is a key that shapes my moral compass and ethical concerns.
Good communication is the first key to good work ethics. If I were to be given a task for a specific shot, I would always communicate whether I am in the right direction, notified ahead of time if issue occurs or if the deadline is reasonable for the time I was given. I was in a motion design team that create a title sequence for a student-led conference called CoMotion 2024. It was a new challenge for me and other students in the team. We all understand our struggles but also we are well-communicate in terms of expectation, sudden change in ideas or even the reasonable deadline for each person’s work load.
Other good work ethic is to realize your position in the team, and have awareness of how much you can do in that position. During undergraduate degree at the Savannah College of Art and Design, I used to collaborate with a large group of people; range from group of 5, to large film set. Working on set as a VFX supervisor was a great experience as a student. Being considerate to other department is the main thing on my list when working on set, and I would expect the same respect given to VFX crew as well. I would make sure that VFX department is heard and seen, was not being overworked but also know the boundaries of other duties performed by others. I was very lucky to have worked with students who were beyond professionals on-set and in the post-production as well. Those people taught me a lot in how to handle my role in a team and how to manage myself when it comes to individual work.
I have seen a lot of VFX artists experiencing career struggles from the introduction to generative AI in the film and tv industry, with the concern of ‘Will it replace us?’ or ‘Will it further exploited us?’. As a current Computer Science student, I am well-aware on how much AI or computer generated content could harm artists and people in other industries. However, we used to do only practical effects on film set, and look how far we have come with the digital tools. I pursue this degree initially because I am interested in the technical artist role in the industry, but I have realized that there is a possibility of using programming knowledge to support the artist while being tech focused.
I would always think that the world and technology will keep developing without us realizing it, but how we would corporate that into the current world, is up to us.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am currently a Computer Science Master’s student at University College Dublin in Ireland. My previous education relates to Visual Effects (VFX) which is my BFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design. I am pursuing computer science in the goal to utilized programming skill and computer science theory into a creative career, and it also seems to be a trend in the future of creative industry as well.
A lot of people would ask me ‘Why change to Computer Science?’
My answer would be ‘I didn’t change at all! It is almost an extension to VFX actually!’.
I would considered myself to be a CG generalist or 3D generalist depending on how each studios call the position. I mostly handle 3D assets, how it is modeled, textured or behave when animate. I mostly use software called Houdini and Maya for 3D model, loop development, lighting or create an FX (CG dust, fire, bombs etc.)
How would computer science apply to 3D software? A good vfx workflow and a lot of 3D assets rely on proceduralism or a specific algorithm that allow customization for specific things. For example if you want to generate a CG New York City, instead of have hundreds of artist manually 3D model each building, one piece of code would allow few artists to generate customized buildings and plot that into a 3D space. That would definitely save more time and more efficient. There are definitely more ways computer science is used in visual effects.
Visual Effects is something so close to everyone, you can see our work on commercials, tv show, film. Even though you think there was no VFX in the media you consume, most of them would went through a post-production processes, which means after it was shot, it went to editing or cleanups. For example, in some movies which were thought to be all practical effects (from doing their own stunts or using slings, etc). Most of them would still need a cleanup of wires, CG replacement of some tanks, planes etc. Our jobs is to make what you see as invisible as possible. In a way, we are also making ourselves invisible in a film industry. People were applauding for costumes, props or actors, those were obvious on screen, but VFX and post-production seems to be a mystery to a general population.
I had a pleasure to work with a post-production studio called Assembly in summer 2023 as a CG intern and was very fortunate to be able to work on a feature film. The shot that I worked on involved a big metal object falling from the building and crash on top of the truck. It would be possible to do it on-set, but there might be a lot of reason for it to be done in post-production (budgeting reason, safety reason etc.). It was a great learning experience to work on the project.
AI generated content started to become more integrated into our life. Creative and media industries are also affected by the introduction of AI as much as anyone else. As of 2024, some studio has try to implement generative AI into their pipeline, but very few. In my humble opinion, the quality of generative AI has not met the quality standard of tv and film (at least, the ones that will be shown in theater or streaming services), not just yet, but we might be getting there. I would tell film lovers to prepare to see a lot of filmmaker experiment with new tools and technique in the following decade.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
In my journey, three things that are the most impactful are:
1. Empathy : Empathy is something that I think everyone should have no matter what you do or where you are. Humans are social animal. There is little chance where we would not interact with other human beings. Empathy and sympathy allow understanding and open mind to others. In terms of work environment, It is very beneficial in a team setting, managing a team or when interacting with client. Best way to improve empathy is to expose yourself with different kind of people or read a book. It will help putting ourself into someone else’s shoes.
2. Be Versatile : I grew up seeing economy rise and fall. I would always remind myself to have an A, B, C options in my life. It is a mind set of ‘What if A is not in demand anymore, can I make money with B?’. Finding multiple skill give me benefit to choose what I wanted to do but also survive when the trend changes.
3. Be Passionate : Coming from ‘Be Versatile’, my A,B,C would always be skill that I am passionate about or at least the goal is align with my passions. Some people kept their passion as hobby, but I think being passionate keeps me from burning out of jobs.
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
A typical Asian household would be more prejudice in creative career, or generally are more traditional, and set the path for their child. However, my parents have allowed me to try and learn anything without prejudice. They would never force me to do something I do not want, or not comfortable with. I would described my relationship with my parents as ‘trusting’ and they have done nothing but make me confidence in myself and in my decisions. They also possess the same value as me that the most valuable things in life is experience. They wanted me to live my life in the fullest. That includes travels, experiencing new things and find passions in life while also able to manage finance for future savings.
So for over these years, their existence as my parents, my home and my support system has pushed me to be better and thrive for success that I believe will achieve. I’ve been living abroad for about five years now and I still regularly call my parents, thanks to social media. I would update them on my life and the same with them. Even when I am busy with exams or projects, we would still send texts daily. I would considered myself to be very very lucky to be born as my parents’ daughter.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://phiradakan.wixsite.com/website
- Instagram: Phirada.vfx
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phiradakan/
- Other: https://vimeo.com/phiradakan
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
