Stu Maschwitz grew up in Minnesota. As a kid he loved movies. His dad was an entomologist and his mother was an artist working with textiles. He made short animated movies as a young kid and later shot numerous skateboarding videos with friends. He eventually made his way to CalArts and made every opportunity at the school count.

After graduation he landed a job at ILM where he’d work for the next 4 years. He was a founding member of the Rebel Mac group at the company and eventually left to branch out on his own. He co-founded and ran The Orphanage with former ILM colleagues Scott Stewart and Jonathan Rothbart for the next 10 years.

Stu has worked as a Visual Effects Supervisor, commercial and music video director, and software developer. Today he works with Red Giant Software developing tools for artists and creating his own projects. Most notably with his 2018 animated short film “Tank”.

Stu is a true raconteur in the world of filmmaking and visual effects. With his blog, Prolost, and his ongoing work with industry partners he shares his knowledge and skills with great generosity and humor. There’s no doubt he’d make a world class teacher. But in most every way, he already is. It was so fun to catch up with Stu and hear about his amazing journey.