Press

Quick Chat: Filmmaker/DP/VFX artist Mihran Stepanyan

June 21, 2017

Veteran Armenian artist Mihran Stepanyan has an interesting background. In addition to being a filmmaker and cinematographer, he is also a colorist and visual effects artist. In fact, he won the 2017 Flame Award, which was presented to him during NAB in April.

Let’s find out how his path led to this interesting mix of expertise.

Tell us about your background in VFX.

I studied feature film directing in Armenia from 1997 through 2002. During the process, I also became very interested in being a director of photography. As a self-taught DP, I was shooting all my work, as well as films produced by my classmates and colleagues. This was great experience. Nearly 10 years ago, I started to study VFX because I had some projects that I wanted to do myself. I’ve fallen in love with that world. Some years ago, I started to work in Moscow as a DP and VFX artist for a Comedy Club Production special project. Today, I not only work as a VFX artist but also as a director and cinematographer.

How do your experiences as a VFX artist inform your decisions as a director and cinematographer?

They are closely connected. As a director, you imagine something that you want to see in the end, and you can realize that because you know what you can achieve in production and post. And, as a cinematographer, you know that if problems arise during the shoot, you can correct them in VFX and post. Experience in cinematography also complements VFX artistry, because your understanding of the physics of light and optics helps you create more realistic visuals.

What do you love most about your job?

The infinity of mind, fantasy and feelings. Also, I love how creative teams work. When a project starts, it’s fun to see how the different team members interact with one another and approach various challenges, ultimately coming together to complete the job. The result of that collective team work is interesting as well.

Tell us about some recent projects you’ve worked on.

I’ve worked on Half Moon Bay, If Only Everyone, Carpenter Expecting a Son and Doktor. I also recently worked on a tutorial for FXPHD that’s different from anything I’ve ever done before. It is not only the work of an Autodesk Flame artist or a lecturer, but also gave me a chance to practice English, as my first language is Armenian.

Where do you get your inspiration?

First, nature. There nothing more perfect to me. And, I’m picturalist, so for various projects I can find inspiration in any kind of art, from cave paintings to pictorial art and music. I’m also inspired by other artists’ work, which helps me stay tuned with the latest VFX developments.

If you had to choose the project that you’re most proud of in your career, what would it be, and why?

I think every artist’s favorite project is his/her last project, or the one he/she is working on right now. Their emotions, feelings and ideas are very fresh and close at the moment. There are always some projects that will stand out more than others. For me, it’s the film Half Moon Bay. I was the DP, post production supervisor and senior VFX artist for the project.

What is your typical end-to-end workflow for a project?

It differs on each project. In some projects, I do everything from story writing to directing and digital immediate (DI) finishing. For some projects, I only do editing or color grading.

How did you come to learn Flame?

During my work in Moscow, nearly five years ago, I had the chance to get a closer look at Flame and work on it. I’m a self-taught Flame artist, and since I started using the product it’s become my favorite. Now, I’m back in Armenia working on some feature films and upcoming commercials. I am also a member of Flame and Autodesk Maya Beta testing groups.

How did you teach yourself Flame? What resources did you use?

When I started to learn Flame, there weren’t as many resources and tutorials as we have now. It was really difficult to find training documentation online. In some cases, I got information from YouTube, NAB or IBC presentations. I learned mostly by experimentation, and a lot of trial and error. I continue to learn and experiment with Flame every time I work.

Any tips for using the product?

As for tips, “knowing” the software is not about understanding the tools or shortcuts, but what you can do with your imagination. You should always experiment to find the shortest and easiest way to get the end result. Also, imagine how you can construct your schematic without using unnecessary nods and tools ahead of time. Exploring Flame is like mixing the colors on the palette in painting to get the perfect tone. In the same way, you must imagine what tools you can “mix” together to get the result you want.

Any advice for other artists?

I would advise that you not be afraid of any task or goals, nor fear change. That will make you a more flexible artist who can adapt to every project you work on.

What’s next for you?

I don’t really know what’s next, but I am sure that it is a new beginning for me, and I am very interested where this all takes me tomorrow.

FXPHD

New course: Flame Full Production Workflow

Mihran Stepanyan is a feature film director, cinematographer, and a self-taught Flame artist who has worked in the industry for over 15 years. He started working on Flame over five years ago and since then it has become his favorite tool for vfx.

“Before my first contact with Flame in Moscow,” says Stepanyan, “I studied some videos and other information that I could find via internet. When I worked on it for first time it was Anniversary Edition and I totally feel in love with it, because it was even better than i could imagine (compared to the previous versions).”

Since he had to learn Flame on his own, his goal with the new course is to return his knowledge to the vfx and post community. “I like to share my ideas and some tricks, and not make a secret of the techniques or methods I use,” he says. “fxphd gives the opportunity to share all this information with other artists. I think that the role of fxphd is very important for any artist who wants to feel the pulse of the industry and be part of it.”

His new course, Flame Full Production Workflow (course overview), has five hours of instruction covering great motion graphics techniques, particles, Action shaders, the timeline, modeling with the 3D shape tool, and more. The course is just one of the over 150 courses available at fxphd, all viewable once you join. Check out the teaser video, below.

Over time, Flame replaced many different software packages that Stepanyan used. “I think the reason is because it’s very multifunctional, it has a complex set of tools that most more needed for VFX artist,” he says. “I do my editing, grading, compositing and many more only in one software: Flame. There’s one thing that’s very important for me: my work became very fast and less stressful since i started using Flame. I think the reason is its stability and flexibility.”

New Course:Flame for Fusion Artists (and Vice Versa)

2017 Flame Award winner Mihran Stepanyan is back with a new course covering both Flame and Fusion. It was created to introduce Fusion artists to Autodesk’s Flame by comparing and contrasting the two apps and recent features in each one. It’s also a great course for Flame artists who want to learn some great tips and techniques as well as discover areas in which Fusion can be used in a production environment.

Check out Mihran’s preview of the course, below. It’s one of over 200 courses that are available as part of an fxphd membership.

Mihran Stepanyan is visual effect supervisor, filmmaker, digital colorist and Flame artist with more than 15 years of experience in film and media industry and of that, six years using Flame. In 2017, he received the Autodesk Flame Award, which formally recognizes and celebrates outstanding artistry and technical talent within the worldwide Flame community.

New course: High End Chroma Keying in Flame, Part 1

This, the first part of course taught by 2017 Flame Award winner Mihran Stepanyan, is devoted to a very important theme: high-end chroma keying in features and commercials. You’ll learn about light, color, and channel separation — the basics of traditional film keying — and then you will be shown how to practically apply this information and more via techniques in the digital world.

One of the important things covered is creating a clean plate as well image-based keying concepts and their usage in high-end keying. The course includes an important and useful class on keying of highly compressed media files, such as 4:2:0 chroma sampled video and how to get rid of artifact blocks and preserve detail like hair in this type of media. You will also see how to work with native Red RAW file and, how to use the Neat Video denoiser and get a perfect result.

Mihran Stepanyan is a visual effect supervisor, filmmaker, digital artist with more than 17 years of experience in film and media industry and seven years of Flame using experience. Mihran is the winner of the Flame Award in 2017. He is also an owner and founder of the One Man Studio Production.