BlackPool Studios: Matte Painting, FX Animation & Digital Compositing

Eric Chauvin received his masters degree in Drawing & Painting from California State University Fullerton in 1991. Immediately upon graduation, he began his career at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) in Marin County, California as an assistant matte painter on Steven Speilberg’s Hook. While there, he also did matte painting work on Memoir’s of an Invisible Man and Star Trek VI. After that brief stint, he moved back to the Los Angeles area and worked as a freelance artist in the effects industry for the next year.

In October of 1992, he returned to ILM to be part of an innovative technology in special effects known as Digital Matte Painting. The show that launched this new technique was George Lucas’ television series, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.

After spending the next three years at ILM, Chauvin decided it was time to strike off on his own. So in November of 1995, he moved to Northern Washington State and started his own effects facility, BlackPool Studios. Since that time, BlackPool Studios has worked on numerous feature films, television shows and commercials.

Since 1993, Chauvin has been nominated for 8 Emmy awards and has won the award twice.

Recently Chauvin has moved into not only creating the finished work for feature films, but working as the Visual Effects Supervisor as well.