Gnomon Graduate Jay Machado on ILM, Teaching, and the Art of Hard Surface Modeling

Jay Machado has always found himself drawn to hard surface modeling. Growing up around classic cars and inspired by sci-fi spaceships, he carved out his own path. Now a Model Supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic, Jay remains dedicated to lifelong learning—both in the studio and inside the classroom as an instructor at Gnomon. Read on for a look at his day-to-day at ILM, his experience working on Star Wars projects, the impact of teaching, and some throwback photos spanning student projects and alumni events.

Jay, how did you get into art?

I always loved drawing as a child. My mom and I would play this game where I would ask her to draw something, and we would take turns drawing it. She noticed potential in me at a young age and really fostered that love of art. In school I was always “the kid who can draw” and I kind of accepted that an artist was what I wanted to be.

You first visited Gnomon during an Open House. Can you tell us about what led you to that visit?

I had heard of Gnomon through my Instructors at Cal State Fullerton who pointed me toward the DVDs from Gnomon Workshop. After graduation and struggling to find work I decided I wanted to watch more of the DVDs and I discovered the school.

Funny enough, on my way to Open House we got into a car accident! Hahaha yes, that poor ‘97 Chevy Malibu. I wish I could say that was the last crash that thing was involved in. Anyways, after sorting out the insurance information on the 101, my mom and I attended the Open House at Gnomon and being on campus just felt right to me. My mom made a comment akin to “It feels like you belong here.” This is how it started.

Did you pick up 3D from the very start? Was there an adjustment period?

It was great learning how 3D assets are made. I kind of expected to like modeling, but I became fascinated with so many different parts of the pipeline. I came in thinking learning this whole process would make me a better 2D artist and drawing and painting were something I loved doing for fun, but 3D modeling and texturing has completely replaced that for me!

I always thought of drawing as being half coordination and half observation, and I think creating digital assets made me realize how much of the observation part I really love. In a 2D rendering it’s all about color and value to replicate what you are seeing, but creating imagery in 3D is making the objects, exploring the physical properties of those objects, and learning to understand how things are lit. It’s so much more involved than brushstrokes on a canvas, and it’s literally changed the way I experience the world. 

Also I think about the time period I was at Gnomon (between 2009-2011) and how exciting the film industry was at that time. We were in the middle of the Dark Knight Trilogy, JJ Abrams’ Star Trek, Transformers, Tron Legacy, and the early days of the MCU. These were huge VFX-heavy blockbusters, and it was so thrilling to peek behind the curtain and learn from people who were directly involved in creating them. 

How was your time at Gnomon?

I loved being on campus. There was kind of an electricity in the air, like everyone there was excited to be learning one thing or another and you could almost feed off that excitement.

I was part of quite a small class at Gnomon when I started in 2009, and it was great to experience everything from the first day of classes all the way to graduation with these people. I made a really great friend in Dustin Blattner, who eventually got me a job at Sony Santa Monica. I did get to know a few students outside of our class as I began to take electives and spend more time in the labs, and I am still in contact with many of them.

So many of the classes I took had a big impact on me but to shoutout to a few: Hard Surface 1 and 2 with Max Dayan, Lighting and Shading with Stephen McClure, Texturing with Eric Miller, Character Sculpting with Mark DeDecker, and of course the portfolio class with Alex Alvarez were huge for me.

I did become friendly with a few other instructors, but when you are a student you kind of view your professor as a master who is all knowing and you sit there knowing nothing so there’s quite a divide there. It was only after graduating and working in the industry that I realized there wasn’t as much separation between me and my instructors as I had perceived. I realize now, especially being an instructor, that there is no point at which you stop learning and know everything, so in a way we were closer to being colleagues than I knew. I am constantly impressed by my own students, and I definitely learn things from them. I do still feel the divide I experienced as a student between us, but they’ll get there just like I did.

The community while I was a student was one thing but what I’ve been even more pleased with is the sense of community as an alumnus. It’s so cool to continue to see the work students are producing, attend events etc. I still feel that electricity being on campus. It’s also a fantastic resource when we need people at work and are looking to hire. Gnomon is always the first place I look! 

Why did you eventually decide to work on hard surface and spaceships?

I think I have to attribute my love of hard surface to my Dad. He’s kind of a mechanical genius, and he’s worked on classic cars as a hobby most of his life. So, I grew up around classic cars and really learned to appreciate them. I wish I was half as knowledgeable about working on cars as he is, but thankfully he’s always happy to help me through working on mine. 

What’s funny is neither of my parents are into Star Wars, so I didn’t really see the movies until I was a bit older, but I distinctly remember watching Star Trek II with my dad and if the space battles in that movie don’t make you fall in love with spaceships I don’t know what will! 

When I was in school, hard surface really didn’t seem to be a popular thing. Everyone had aspirations of being a concept artist or character/creature artist and the attitude toward hard surface was kind of that anyone could do it and it wasn’t very interesting. Once I decided to focus on it, I fell in love with the discipline, and it did feel like my life had been leading up to it. I’m very fortunate that at that time a hard surface modeling reel was kind of unique and made me stand out.  

Do you feel like spaceships in some weird way are characters themselves?

I absolutely think spaceships are characters themselves. I think vehicles in general are. For me, personally, it goes back to cars. A car is often a person’s first taste of freedom and independence and if you work on your own car there are definite feelings of pride and accomplishment there. If you ever get a chance to attend a classic car show you really see how much a person loves their car, and they really transcend just being a machine. You see that same sense of pride in Han Solo with the Millennium Falcon or Captain Kirk with the Enterprise. These aren’t just vehicles to these characters, there is a real relationship there. This to me is best exemplified in Empire Strikes Back.

Han and Chewie spend the whole movie nursing the Millennium Falcon back to health. There are moments where things go wrong and they feel anger toward the ship, there are times where they are pleading with the ship to pull through, and there’s genuine appreciation when things work out. That’s something I really relate to.

When I am working on a spaceship I try to get into character and imagine I’m in-universe building it. It almost resembles the episode of The Book of Boba Fett where Mando and Peli build the N1 Starfighter together. Obviously, that’s romanticizing it a bit, but I do try to imagine how each part was manufactured and (especially when kitbashing) try to imagine what the function of each part might be even though at the end of the day it only needs to look cool.  

What are the things that you really enjoy about working at ILM?

Working on the big franchises can be cool. There is always a good amount of excitement and people anticipating what you are working on, but it is also a double edged sword because not every one of these films or series is received positively so it can be a bit demoralizing to have worked so hard on something that people don’t like. I’ve been very fortunate that most of the things I’ve worked on have been pretty well appreciated.

I think my favorite part about working at ILM though is the history. I’ve worked with people who are literal legends in the game that I really looked up to as a student. I love hearing stories about how they handled things on past shows, but I also really admire how forward thinking everyone is. I mentioned earlier the idea of continuous learning, but at ILM there is a lot of weight placed on continuous innovation. Everything feels new and exciting and cutting edge, and it makes the work feel fresh and fun. 

How does your work at ILM usually look like? Are there some things or rituals that are unique to this company? 

Since I moved back down to SoCal during Covid, a lot of my work has been done from home but starting last year I’ve been driving into the Lucasfilm office on the Disney Studio lot in Burbank, which has been really awesome. Talk about history, there is a ton of cool stuff to see around there. I haven’t made it up there yet but apparently they have Walt Disney’s office perfectly preserved from the time of his death. 

My day to day is actually mostly spent head down and modeling or texturing. Even as a supervisor overseeing other modelers, I still work on assets most of the time. There are dailies every day and the occasional bid meeting. As a company we have all kinds of fun events, community lunches, little show parties we call “ergo breaks” and each year there’s the company picnic at Skywalker Ranch and a big holiday party. It’s always fun to get together with co-workers outside of work, even if most of the conversation just ends up being about work. 

What advice would you give to students who are just starting out?

My first advice would be to never be satisfied with what you already know. Always be hungry to learn more. In our world of VFX there is always a new tool or a new workflow to learn. I’ve learned things from co-workers who have their own ways of doing things, from forums and groups I’ve joined through social media, and I even learn things from my own students.  

But aside from CG stuff, I encourage them to be eager to learn more in general. Last year I built a water tower model for the movie Twisters, and I spent the first couple of hours learning about water towers, looking at technical drawings, and examining details. I love doing that type of research, and I feel like that passion and attention to detail will show up in your modeling. 

Second, once you’ve graduated, don’t overlook an opportunity while you wait for your dream job. I get hundreds of messages from people each year who all tell me working at ILM is their dream, and every time we do hire there is so much competition. ILM is my dream job, but it also wasn’t my first job. Each of the jobs I worked before ILM were great experiences of working on a variety of projects and meeting new people to learn from and honestly grow with. This is a team sport, and you will build a lot of comraderie with the people you work with. 

Third, don’t ever do any work for free! Not for exposure, or for the privilege of putting something on your reel or any other reason! If it isn’t a personal project that you’re doing yourself or a group project with friends for fun, get paid! Your skills and your knowledge are valuable! 

Jay Machado’s journey from Gnomon to ILM is a testament to his dedication, adaptability, and passion for learning. From the moment he set foot on Gnomon’s campus, it was clear he found a place where his talents could thrive. His time at Gnomon not only sharpened his technical skills but also connected him with a community of artists who continue to inspire and collaborate with him today. We’re proud to count him among our alumni and to see him carrying forward the same curiosity and enthusiasm that first brought him here.

About Gnomon

For over 25 years, Gnomon has educated many of the world’s best digital artists on its state-of-the-art campus in Los Angeles, California. Recognized as one of the top U.S. colleges in Forbes' 2023 rankings and called “the MIT of visual effects” by Fast Company magazine, Gnomon offers a variety of educational options to help students reach their goals in the entertainment industry, with certificate and degree programs, and over 100 individual courses. Our comprehensive programs, experienced faculty, and state-of-the-art facilities ensure that every student can achieve their full potential, just like Jay. Gnomon's strong industry partnerships give students real-world experience and a competitive edge in the job market.