Film craft for the VFX workbench.
CG Garage treats computer graphics as part of filmmaking, not a separate technical corner. Recent conversations move from recruiting and previs to boutique cloud, synthetic actors, and the hard question of how artists keep working when tools shift.
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CG Garage is a long-running conversation space for people who care about how visual effects actually gets made. It is technical, but it rarely treats software as the whole story. The show’s recent episodes keep circling back to filmmaking fundamentals: story, framing, lighting, editing, taste, and the ability to understand a whole production instead of one narrow tool. That gives the series a useful tension. It can talk comfortably about Maya, Midjourney, Unreal, Gaussian splats, AI actors, previs, boutique cloud, data centers, and old production hardware, then pivot back to why the image needs to feel like a movie. The tone is brisk and conversational. Intros can wander through promos, birthday requests, Oscar thoughts, and in-jokes, but the interviews usually settle into practical industry questions. What does VFX hiring reward now? How does a boutique shop in Portland land shows like Fallout, Shogun, and One Piece? Why does an editor at The Third Floor shape story before production has fully hardened? What happens when a cloud provider tries to understand the visual effects business from the inside? The show is especially strong on career realism. It does not romanticize old workflows. Episodes about AI and industry disruption frame change as uncomfortable, uneven, sometimes ugly, and still unavoidable for artists who want to keep making things. That bluntness is balanced by genuine affection for craft. A conversation about a rough western test becomes a discussion of how lighting and framing make the story clearer. A conversation about synthetic actors becomes less about spectacle and more about whether audiences feel anything. CG Garage works best for listeners who want insider VFX talk with enough explanation to stay legible. It sounds like professionals thinking out loud at speed, chasing the practical point and refusing to separate technology from filmmaking.
Made for: CG Garage is for visual effects artists, filmmakers, previs and post-production people, and curious film fans who want practical industry talk. It is especially useful for listeners tracking AI, virtual production, career shifts, and the craft behind screen images.
What sets it apart: The show does not treat computer graphics as tool worship. Its conversations keep pulling technology back toward story, hiring reality, production judgment, and what artists need to survive the next industry turn.
Since 2014, CG Garage has brought lively, informal conversations with Oscar-winning legends, visionary artists, and the innovators driving the industry's biggest technological leaps. From in-depth interviews to spirited roundtable discussions, hosts Chris Nichols and Daniel Thron explore the art, craft, and future of filmmaking. With Hollywood in the middle of a major revolution, we talk to the filmmakers who are making that transformation possible, covering everything from behind-the-scenes stories on iconic movies to the cutting-edge tools reshaping the industry.
Based on 5 episodes we listened to · September 2026
CG Garage connects filmmaking technology to the creative decisions, working relationships and career pressures behind finished screen images.
CG Garage treats filmmaking as a chain of practical decisions, then asks the people making those decisions to show their work. Chris Nichols and Daniel Thron keep conversations informal while making technical choices legible: how lighting and framing improve a blocked scene,…
Knowing Maya alone won't get you hired. Chris and Daniel want to know what you can make.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
AI actors, synthetic faces, and the uneasy line between polish and feeling.
The discussion keeps circling a stubborn question for filmmakers and viewers alike: what, exactly, does a screen presence need to feel human? The answer is not settled, and that uncertainty gives the conversation its tension.
A practical conversation about editing, lighting, and framing, where visual choices help the story come into focus.
CG Garage spends this hour on how a scene takes shape in the edit before it is polished, circling the rough cut, the places that need to run longer, and the parts that need a clearer shape of their own.
A clear, uneasy conversation about adapting when familiar entertainment work starts to disappear.
CG Garage frames the idea that the cavalry is not coming as a practical case for staying in motion when entertainment work shifts under an artist's feet. Andy Cochran ties that pressure to his own shrinking matte-painting work after Dune 2, then broadens it through Tom St.
A grounded CG Garage conversation about why VFX careers need film sense, adaptability, and real human connection.
CG Garage's conversation with recruiters Susan Thurman O'Neill and Stan Szymanski pushes back on a durable misconception about breaking into visual effects: knowing the software is enough.
Karen Heston traces a practical route from New York City commercial flame work to VFX supervision on Gen V.
Karen Heston's path from New York City commercial work to VFX supervision on Gen V gives this CG Garage episode a grounded look at how screen production is planned, adapted, and finished.
Accessibility, veterans, and practical independence explained clearly.
Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explain one topic per episode, from the bicameral mind to Boeing's MCAS.
Multi-part dramatized retellings of scandals like OceanGate's Titan and the Lehman Brothers collapse.
Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins dissect Oscar races, new releases, and Hollywood news.
Adam Kempenaar and Josh Larsen debate new releases, classics, and their own film rankings.
CG Garage episode 543 features VFX recruiters Stan Szymanski and Susan O'Neal discussing the evolving job market.
CG Garage host Chris Nichols interviews Karen Heston, VFX supervisor for the series Gen V.
This episode features product managers from Chaos discussing new announcements for Vantage and Arena at SIGGRAPH 2025, focusing on workflow improvements and open standards for virtual production.
This episode features an interview with Susan O'Neill, a VFX and technology recruiter at BLT Recruiting, discussing changes in the industry, recruiting strategies, and career tips.
This episode features an interview with Eric Eisler, CTO of Global Objects, discussing his background in the VFX industry, his company's work in creating detailed 3D object libraries for virtual production and AI training, and industry standards like USD and Material X.
This episode features an interview with Ian Dawson, founder of IDGRAFX, discussing his career evolution from 1990s flying logos to producing visual effects for films like Iron Man, his insights on AR interfaces, and the impact of industry changes like the writer's strike.
CG Garage episode 557 examines Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day and argues that his mainstream image obscures a stranger artistic personality.
CG Garage episode 556 brings Daniel, James, and the host together to discuss A24's announced $75 million research partnership with Google DeepMind and the backlash over AI.
This episode features VFX recruiters Stan Szymanski and Susan O'Neal discussing how the industry now prioritizes filmmaking knowledge and generalist skills over specific software expertise for job seekers.
This episode features an interview with the founders of Refuge VFX, a boutique visual effects studio in Portland, discussing their work on major projects like Fallout, Shogun, and One Piece.
This episode of CG Garage features Ashay Javadekar discussing the 100-year-old clapperboard and how technology serves storytelling in filmmaking, with reflections on the Oscars and industry trends.
This episode features Sean Rourke, head of editorial at The Third Floor, discussing his career in film editing, the importance of being in the right place at the right time, and his involvement with the Tuesday Night Writers Group.
This episode features an interview with Ryan Kelsey from Center Grid discussing how boutique cloud solutions can benefit independent visual effects studios.
The host and guest dig into AI in production, synthetic actors, and what the technology is really for.
They talk through the piece in the edit.
The episode opens with a blunt premise: the cavalry is not coming.
This episode features an interview with Karen Heston, the VFX supervisor for the show Gen V, discussing her background in photography and transition to digital effects via flame software.