Garman Herigstad with his custom Houdini procedural image treatment which is part of his “China Girl” series.

Garman Herigstad with his custom Houdini procedural image treatment which is part of his “China Girl” series.

About Garman

My name is Garman and I’m a traditional and Visual Effects artist and teacher. I’ve worked and taught in North America and East Asia. I received an Advertising Design degree concentrating in calligraphy and hand lettering. I followed that with a drawing and painting MA which introduced me to early computer graphics.

I’ve always enjoyed teaching those who are eager to learn, and I consider this my top profession and the most rewarding.

Living in Asia

I grew up in the very small town of Roland, Iowa. There were more people in the building I lived in Hong Kong than all of Roland. That building took up less ground space than the plot of my parent’s house. One of the many differences from Iowa.

For fifteen years I worked between Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, China and Singapore over two different periods. It started with broadcast commercials which turn into feature film work.

Living and working in Asia is different. Each city has its own idiosyncrasies. I’m often asked which I liked best. I like a little of this and a little of that. Overall, I liked Beijing. I liked the people I met and the work I did while there. Especially the drawings.

VFX Production

I started in computer animation at Post Production Services in 1986, working with one of the early 3D systems, the Bosch FGS-4000.  The early 3D animation work was broadcast graphics and flying logos.

In 1988 I relocated to Taipei, Taiwan which began my first nine-year Asian tour. Then on to  Hong Kong, Beijing, Bangkok and Singapore for advertising. In 1999 I went to Los Angeles and worked on my first Hollywood feature "O Brother Where Art Thou" followed by "X-Men", "The Day After Tomorrow",  "Cast Away", "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."

Fifteen years after leaving Beijing in the first period I returned to China to teach and work as CG Supervisor on several feature films.

Teaching

Between feature films, I’ve taught visual effects at the Savannah College of Art and Design, the University of Texas at Dallas, The Gnomon School, Peking University, the Mars Era schools in Beijing and Shanghai, and online via the Vancouver Animation School.  For a few years, I did run my own online school, Vizy Acky.

Many of my students work in the feature film effects and game industries around the world.

The Return

In 2018, after seven years in Bellingham WA and Vancouver BC, I returned to Ames, Iowa to work on an MFA in graphic design. I wanted to document my working life, and wrote the 52-1/2 Feet screenplay and created storyboards and pre-production design. I finished in May 2021 I now do freelance design and preparing some of the 4000 drawing I did while living in china drawings for sale.

  

Garman_Museum.jpg

namoc.org

National Art Museum of China
One of my favorite places to go in Beijing.

 

 

Garman’s previous studio in Bellingham WA from July 2014 -2018.

Garman’s previous studio in Bellingham WA from July 2014 -2018.

Overview of some of the 4,000 drawings I did while living in China.