Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
References
Timeline
Generic

Lee Robinson

Montreal,QC

Summary

Dynamic Art Director with a proven track record at Squeeze Animation Studios, excelling in visual storytelling and creative pitching. Spearheaded award-winning projects, delivering impactful art direction and fostering collaboration across teams. Adept in character design and project management, I consistently elevate artistic vision while ensuring alignment with client expectations.

Overview

7
7
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification

Work History

Art Director

Squeeze Animation Studios
Montreal, Quebec
06.2023 - Current
  • Artistic direction of Resident Evil 3D animated short. Directed the initial pitch process, articulating a high-level creative vision to the client, resulting in a $1.2 million contract acquisition. I designed the visual direction and provided impactful and effective feedback across all art departments, including character concept, environment, modeling, lighting, animation, and VFX.
  • Led art direction for award-winning 'Barbolation' Clash Royale music video for Supercell. Developed colour keys and DMPs in collaboration with VFX supervisor and director. Provided paintovers and support for the lighting team.
  • In-house Art Director for an upcoming Riot Games music video. Working within the style of one of Riot Games' biggest franchises, I collaborated with the internal and external teams, communicating notes, character turnarounds, and feedback for modelers, DMP, and environment artists.
  • Internal Art Director for Ubisoft's Rainbow 6 animated teaser short. Partnered closely with Ubisoft to define visual tone for Year 9 Season 3 of Rainbow 6. Developed storyboards and color keys, enhancing project aesthetics. Designed backgrounds to support overall narrative and artistic goals.
  • Directed art vision for an Augmented Reality project in collaboration with Fox Sports, showcasing stylized NFL players alongside live presenters during the broadcast. Supervised design, modeling, and surfacing of nearly 50 NFL players within two and a half months, contributing to a unified overall style.
  • Directed artistic vision for internal IPs and external pitches, adapting various art styles and techniques.
    Pitched creative concepts to clients including Netflix, Capcom, and Ubisoft. Demonstrated confidence in presenting innovative ideas to diverse audiences. Collaborated with teams to ensure alignment with client expectations and project goals.

Freelance Visual Development Artist

Aardman Animations
Montreal, Quebec
07.2024 - 02.2025
  • Collaborated with Meta and Aardman to design a vision for an innovative AR sculpting app.
    Utilized Blender, Adobe Medium, and Photoshop to produce visuals aligned with user experience.
  • Recruited by Aardman to contribute to the visual development of an innovative cat simulator video game, immersing players in a feline viewpoint across a dynamic cityscape. Thinking strategically about the environment and how it will inform the player's experience, I created multiple concepts and key art.

Lead Artist

Sinking Ship Entertainment
Toronto, Ontario
05.2021 - 06.2023
  • Supporting the Art Director and other discipline leads, I managed the design team to develop and ship 52 episodes of Builder Brothers: Dream Factory.
  • Collaborating with 3D environment artists, we developed a sandbox environment in Unreal Engine 4.0, transitioning to 5.0 for utilization across all episodes.
  • Delivered direct and effective feedback to a large team of designers, character and environment modelers, and surfacing artists.
  • Collaborated with contractors to establish style guides for developing brand identity targeting merchandising opportunities. Presented the show to potential stakeholders.

Senior Visual Development Artist

C03
Toronto, Ontario
09.2019 - 05.2021
  • Designed props and backgrounds for Marvel's 'What If?' series 2. (3 months)
  • Character Designer on the yet-to-be-released Road Of Vengeance. Designed original characters, turnarounds and props before transitioning to colour scripts.
  • Partnered with outsourcing team in Pune, India to strengthen background and matte painting efforts.

Senior Designer

StoryBerry
Toronto, Ontario
08.2018 - 09.2019
  • Secondary Character Designer for the Netflix movie, Marmaduke.
  • Designed props, created colour keys and collaborated with modellers in China.

Education

Associate's Degree - Animation

Newcastle College
Newcastle, UK

Figure Drawing

Steve Huston Mentorship
Online

Skills

  • Art direction
  • Visual storytelling
  • Storyboarding
  • Character design
  • Project management
  • Creative pitching
  • Design feedback
  • Attention to detail

Certification

  • Successfully completed Patrick Haprin's critiqued course, 'Storyboarding & The Art of Pitching'
  • Partook in Jeff Wamester's 'Storyboarding for Action' course, with feedback.

References

References available upon request.

Timeline

Freelance Visual Development Artist

Aardman Animations
07.2024 - 02.2025

Art Director

Squeeze Animation Studios
06.2023 - Current

Lead Artist

Sinking Ship Entertainment
05.2021 - 06.2023

Senior Visual Development Artist

C03
09.2019 - 05.2021

Senior Designer

StoryBerry
08.2018 - 09.2019

Associate's Degree - Animation

Newcastle College

Figure Drawing

Steve Huston Mentorship

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Lee Robinson