UNEXTINCT is an immersive, media-driven experience designed to promote wildlife conservation. Debuted in Sacramento, CA, and later in Columbus, OH, this project blends digital artistry with physical environments to create engaging, educational attractions. The initiative has successfully raised tens of thousands of dollars for conservation-focused non-profits, including the Sacramento Zoo and the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.​

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Contributions:

• Pioneered "Phygital" Storytelling: Led the technical execution for UNEXTINCT, an award-winning exhibition that leveraged high-density projection mapping to bridge biological education and immersive entertainment, successfully raising tens of thousands of dollars for conservation non-profits.

• Technical Architecture & Pipeline Leadership: Architected a multi-platform production pipeline (Maya/Blender to After Effects and render farm) that enabled the rapid delivery of 18 unique, high-fidelity creature sequences within a compressed production cycle.

• Team & Workflow Management: Assembled, interviewed, and hired a team of 7 artists for the Sacramento exhibition and 15 artists for the Columbus exhibition (modelers, animators, riggers, compositors). Standardized technical workflows by developing proprietary After Effects and Maya scene templates and automation scripts, ensuring consistency across 40+ media scenes.

• Non-Linear Surface Optimization: Engineered bespoke lighting, shading, and compositing workflows to optimize 3D renders specifically for challenging, non-linear projection surfaces, including a high-pressure water scrim. This specialized optimization eliminated the "projector box" effect, creating the illusion of free-floating, holographic entities.

 

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Media Content

 

Sacramento Zoo Exhibition

Exhibit period: December 26, 2023 - March 9 2024

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Delivered 7 unique media scenes with 3D animal and environment content:

• Format: All scenes, with the exception of "Tiger Trail," were dedicated media experiences (e.g., "Living Water" was 2+ minutes in length). "Tiger Trail" consisted of individual looping renders (20-30 seconds each) for every animal.

• Scenes:

  • Living Water: Manta, Coelacanth, Sawtooth shark/sawfish, Sea turtle, Vaquita, Settlers sea cow (manatee), Platypus, Whale

  • Tiger Trail: Tasmanian tiger, Tiger 1, Tiger 2, Tiger 3, Clouded Leopard, Footprints

  • Soaring Panorama: Moa, Dodo, Kakapo, Shoebill, Flock of parrots

  • Africa Alive: Barbary lion, Zebra, Eastern black rhino, White rhino, Flamingo, Bat, Chameleon

  • Electric Menageries: Great barn owl, Eastern elk, Praying mantis, Okapi, Orangutan, Cobra

  • Larger Than Life: Elephant 1, Elephant 2, Elephant 3, Elephant 4, Elephant 5, Elephant 6

  • Ancient Wisdom: Sabertooth, Pangolin, Grey wolf

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Columbus Zoo Exhibition

Exhibit period: March 14, 2024 - May 26 2024

 

Delivered 11 unique looping 3D animations (in addition to the Sacramento Zoo scenes, which were retained for the second installation):

• Format: All animals were presented as individual looping renders of 15~30 seconds.

• Animals:

  • Painted Dog

  • Quagga

  • Saiga Antelope

  • Pinta Island tortoise

  • Great Auk

  • Saola

  • Kauai

  • Hellbender

  • Falkland Islands wolf

  • Megaladapis

  • Sumatran Rhino

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Technical Proficiencies

• Tools: Blender, Maya, After Effects, TouchDesigner

• Core Skills: Projection Mapping, VFX, 3D Animation, Pipeline Management, Rigging