Deak Ferrand,
The creator of visionary landscapes
An Interview by Meinert Hansen

Deak Ferrand was fresh of school when we first worked together at Buzz in Montreal, nearly 10 years ago. His visionary talent blew me away back then. Just look at what he’s doing now on his web-site, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg! Deak’s work inspires a sense of awe. I believe it comes from a desire within him to inhabit the landscapes and worlds he creates. Deak’s clarity of vision and understanding of composition and light sets him apart from his peers. Combine this with a strong cinematic sensibility, and you’ll understand why the film industry wants to work with him. He’s also a really nice guy.

Meinert(MH): What was your cg experience before you moved to LA the first time?

Deak Ferrand(DF): I had done a lot of commercials and low budget movies. But having "Screamers" behind us made a big difference in being ready to work in LA. I really learned all my tricks watching Meinert and Gunnar. I remember the panic of those first weeks on the "Milky way" commercial. I was so afraid that I would be fired. I really felt inadequate.

MH: What finally allowed you to make the move to LA?

DF: I wanted to work for ILM at the time. But nobody was interested. Buzz decided to open a branch in LA to get some of the American production filtered through that office.

MH: I remember when I first met you your ambition was to work on big features. You got there pretty quickly. Has it met your expectations?

DF: I grew up with this "American dream" vision of working on Hollywood type movies.

By the time I started working on these movies, I realized that it did not make any difference in my involvement to do my best. I will give the same energy to a low budget movie as I would with a big production. I have no control over the quality of the movie, my work will never save a bad script or a lousy direction. That's why I don't read scripts before working on a project, I'm too afraid it will suck. I just want to work on projects that will challenge me in getting better at what I do, the rest is out of my control.