Featured Artist: Maria Sahai, Singapore
Maria Sahai 2024
Maria Sahai: VFX Mojo Co-Founder, FX Educator and Photographer
Maria combines creativity and technical expertise. A longtime professional photographer, she’s been an ambassador for Fujifilm and F-Stop Gear, with her work featured internationally. She now focuses on FX simulations using SideFX Houdini and teaches workshops at universities.
My Photography Journey
Photography has been a large part of my life since childhood. Due to their work, my grandparents had to move a lot around the Soviet Union. During their travels, they captured black and white images of the taiga, deserts and Caspian Sea shores. I grew up looking over our family photo albums, mesmerized by these frozen moments. This sparked a lifelong dream: to explore the uncharted corners of our planet and share those discoveries with others. Eventually, I turned to photography as a way to record my travels and share them with the world.
Greenland and Norway
My VFX Journey
But just photography never felt enough. While capturing the world around me was exhilarating, I found myself wanting to interpret and reimagine those scenes in my own unique way. I have to thank Karim Sahai, now my husband and business partner, through whom I discovered VFX and its world of endless possibilities.
Karim is a seasoned photographer and VFX professional with 30 years of experience. Witnessing him breathe life into cinematic masterpieces was nothing short of inspiring. Through Karim, I discovered the incredible possibilities of combining art and technology. When I stumbled upon SideFX Houdini at the beginning of my VFX journey, it felt like finding a missing puzzle piece. This powerful software offered me the creative freedom to bring my visions to life. Since then, I have been fortunate to work in the field of FX using mostly SideFX Houdini on such movies as Dune: Part Two, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Meg 2: The Trench, Halo, Guillermo del Toro's 'Cabinet of Curiosities and others.
Movies
My Advice on Photography and VFX Education
Learning by doing has been my motto when it comes to photography and VFX – making mistakes, learning from them, and repeating the process. But I'm quick to acknowledge that I didn't do this in a vacuum. Along the way, I was fortunate to have amazing mentors who guided me and helped me stay on track.
If I had to offer one piece of advice, it would be to find a mentor or mentors to guide you. This might mean enrolling in a specialized school with experienced teachers or simply reaching out to professionals whose work inspires you. Many times, we overthink and complicate things in
our heads, but a simple conversation with someone who's been there can be incredibly illuminating.
If I could give a few more tips to aspiring VFX artists they would be these.
● As a VFX artist, it's essential to understand photography fundamentals – composition, exposure, contrast, colors. Learn about cameras and how aperture and shutter speed work, as this will help you create captivating images in 3D.
● Make it a habit to look at photographs and paintings every day. I truly believe that developing an "eye" for aesthetics can be acquired through exposure to great art and analysis of what makes it tick. Study the works of renowned photographers, artists, directors, and try to identify common themes and techniques you can adapt in your own work.
● Finally, take photos – a lot! Don't get bogged down by technicalities or worried about gear; with a phone in your pocket, you can produce amazing images every day.
Photography fundamentals
The Work I Do Today
My current work is with my partner Karim Sahai at VFX Mojo, a company we founded to bring our passion for visual effects and education to life. Our focus areas are threefold:
● movie production, where we take on complex FX-heavy shots,
● education, through collaborations with universities worldwide, providing curriculum design, workshops, seminars, and talks,
● and studio training, where we work with film and game studios to upskill their artists in specific tools or techniques.
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Quality of Your Inputs Dictates the Quality of Your Outputs
As I interact with artists, studios, or students at universities, I always emphasize the importance of stepping away from screens and immersing yourself in the world around you. Observing different sceneries during various times of day – it's an incredible source of inspiration.
Taking photos, especially, trains your brain to analyze what makes something beautiful and attention-grabbing. When you're forced to be present in the moment, taking in the sights and sounds, you're subconsciously developing that critical "eye" for aesthetics. The more you observe, the more you hone that skill.
Favorite Photography Destinations
I'm often asked about the best places to find incredible photography subjects, and while exotic destinations are certainly awe-inspiring, I believe that amazing photos can be captured right in your own living room – literally! Street photography is a big passion of mine. I love carrying my camera with me on daily errands and chores, as it forces me to look at the world around me with fresh eyes.
Of course, for those seeking more conventional postcard-perfect scenery, there are indeed incredible destinations around the world. For me, two of these places stand out: Greenland and Norway. In summer, during the midnight sun, Greenland is transformed into a surreal wonderland. For several hours at night, the sun hangs low on the horizon, painting the landscape with an otherworldly pink light – it's a truly breathtaking sight.
Norway's Svalbard archipelago, situated near the North Pole, is another favorite place of mine. During the polar night, when the sun remains below the horizon, the Northern Lights dance across the sky. I love exploring the snow-covered valleys on dog sled or riding a snowmobile through this enchanting landscape. It's an experience that leaves me in awe every time.
When I'm not immersed in VFX work with Karim at VFX Mojo, we love to organize and lead photography tours in the Arctic – specifically focusing on Greenland and Northern Norway. These trips are a wonderful way for us to disconnect from screens and reconnect with nature.
My Favorite VFX Work
One of the most recent highlights of my career was working on Dune: Part 2 – an incredibly challenging project that pushed me and our team to new heights. I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to lead such a talented group of FX artists, who shared my passion for delivering exceptional quality work.
The project's scope was massive, with a large number of shots requiring heavy effect simulations, including intricate sandstorms and destruction sequences. Looking back, I wouldn't change a thing – the final product is breathtakingly beautiful, and I feel honored to have been a part of this iconic franchise.
My Favorite VFX tool - Houdini
As you might have already guessed, my favorite VFX tool is Houdini. I feel incredibly fortunate to have discovered it early in my journey – it's been a game-changer for me.
What sets Houdini apart is its perfect blend of technical control and creative freedom. Whether you're tackling complex simulations or crafting intricate visual effects, Houdini gives you the precision and flexibility to bring your vision to life.
I'm also a huge fan of the SideFX development team's tireless efforts to keep the toolset up-to-date with the latest features and innovations. This means that even after years of working with Houdini, I still find new things to learn and explore – it's an ongoing journey of discovery.
In fact, at VFX Mojo, we're closely collaborating with SideFX on education initiatives, including our popular Black Hawk Destruction Series . If you're an intermediate Houdini user looking for a challenge, I highly recommend checking out this free resource on the SideFX website.
My GridMarkets Experiences
One of my earliest experiences with GridMarkets was several years ago, when I used it for a personal project while traveling. With only a small laptop to rely on, I needed a solution that would allow me to process simulations efficiently, even without access to powerful hardware.
GridMarkets proved to be a lifesaver, enabling me to send simulations to the cloud and render them quickly in the background. This meant I could set up the parameters for a simulation and send it to be processed on GridMarkets cloud infrastructure. Then I would go out for lunch and come back to the finished results already downloaded on my laptop. It was an incredible productivity boost, allowing me to iterate through many different versions of my project.
Since then, GridMarkets has become a staple tool that we introduce in our workshops and seminars at various universities and to small and medium-sized studios. Artists love it because it gives them the freedom to focus on creative aspects of their projects without being limited by resource constraints. With GridMarkets, they can push their simulations and renders to the cloud and get instant results – allowing them to explore more ideas, faster.