For over ten years Gio Nakpil has worked on some of the biggest box office films, such as Star Trek and the Pirates of the Caribbean series, among others. This talented 3D artist recently completed work on The Avengers as "Digital Creature Model Supervisor" for the Hulk. We asked one of his good friends, Carlos Huante to introduce this interview:

Carlos Huante: Gio is one the few modelers that I can say that I trust to work on my designs. He is the best out of that group as well. The sign of a true artist is one who will study and work tirelessly with interest in everything and never stop growing. Gio is all that and unfortunately for him, he's a good friend. I use Gio for everything I do because when he shows up for work he shows up with all guns "a blazin'. He never enters half hearted. He's a talented little bastard as well....there it is.

Redforward: What would you consider the scariest monster you've ever seen on the big screen?

Gio Nakpil: My initial gut reply would be obvious: the xenomorph from Ridley Scott's "Alien." After much thought, I would say the vomit monster from "Poltergeist 2." I was so mesmerized and scared at the same time. Seeing Craig T. Nelson vomit the larvae out of his mouth, then watching the formless mass form its shape underneath the bed was a revelation. The appendage-free creature crawled out on its belly towards the door, paused, looked at the camera, then kept moving along. It was such a quick sequence of events, but that particular creature freaked the hell out of me.

Redforward: When did you realize you might have potential as an artist?

Gio Nakpil: I didn't realize my potential until much later in my career. I've always known that I wanted to work for the company I'm working for now. I worked very hard to achieve that goal, but I never felt I pushed myself enough to be the best artist I could be. It wasn't until I met Andrew Cawrse and Carlos Huante that I realized how very little I actually knew and how much I had to learn. Their mentorship fueled my hunger to push myself as far as I could. They kicked my butt big time, but I was determined to learn the knowledge they were dropping on me. This is why mentorship is a very crucial thing. It puts you in a place where the student can learn from someone who's at a level beyond your own, thus you can't help but soak things in like a sponge. The moment they started liking my work was the moment I realized that, hey, maybe I have limitless potential as an artist. It really IS up to me to make use of my potential, or waste it.

Redforward: What do you look forward to in a new project?

Gio Nakpil: I'm a huge film buff, so working on a project by a director I am a fan of is always huge. Working on "War of the Worlds" was like winning the $50 million lottery jackpot since it was Spielberg's foray back into sci-fi and he hadn't done one since "E.T.". Beyond that, what I look forward to the most is getting a creature to build that's well designed. Give me anything by Carlos Huante and you can lock me up in a room with very little food for the duration of the creature development and I'll be happy. Working off exceptionally designed creatures by an amazing art director always makes me feel that I'm learning from the process of the build.

Redforward: You've worked on some of the most high profile films over the past few years. These must carry a lot of responsibility. Does that create any stress for you and if so, how do you handle it?

Gio Nakpil: Modelling happens at the very beginning of the production pipeline, so there are a lot of things we must do to ensure that the model construction is in solid condition as it carries through to textures, lighting, animation, etc. Communication is THE best way to deal with this responsibility. I always make sure to update everyone who will be working on the creature. A sense of collaboration is always present when this happens. That decreases the stress of responsibility because the weight is shared by many, rather than just one. At the end of the day, we are in the business of making monsters. It should always be a fun task. Whenever I find myself stressing, I always take a step back and think, "I'm working on a muscular horned ogre. Why am I flipping out?" Then it's all good.

Redforward: Many artists become jaded about their work after a few years. What's your secret for still being so passionate about your work?

Gio Nakpil: I'm always hungry to learn more and improve myself. I work in one of the best places in the world so it would be very foolish to not take advantage of this opportunity. Even when you've been working on fun things like monsters for a long time, it can get repetitive if you allow yourself to see it that way. However, if you choose to take every creature as a chance to push yourself for the purpose of improving your skills, then each one becomes an exciting goal and challenge. To me, being jaded in a job that allows one to get paid to create monsters, spaceships, and robots for a living is the ultimate waste. We're all prone to being disillusioned by politics or other external forces, but I choose not to let it affect the fun that I experience each day at work. Really, with all the real world problems that's going on outside of the bubble that is our industry, how can one take any of this for granted?

Redforward: How important to your work is the support from your colleagues?

Gio Nakpil: In a work-type environment where you have to collaborate with your colleagues, it is very important that you are supported by each and every one of them. One cannot operate solo. In terms of my own personal work, I don't concern myself with what others think.

Redforward: Do you still make time to connect with the community through forums and social networks?

Gio Nakpil: I totally do. I am where I am because of the online world. I got involved within the CG community via websites such as 3DLuvr and 3DArtist (Raph.com). The importance of the internet as a means for artists to show off their work is more relevant than ever. You have blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. Facebook has been a great way to show my work and to connect with artists whom I highly respect. The blog medium has been wonderful since it forces me to do more of my own personal works. These are exciting times, that's for sure.

Redforward: You mentioned your interest in teaching, what are you looking to gain, as an artist from this?

Gio Nakpil: I learn more about myself whenever I'm teaching others. It allows me to focus on things I should brush up on. There's a tremendous responsibility to teach information that's actually useful. I've done many presentations before and I really enjoy interacting with people. Also, I am where I am because people have taken time to teach and mentor me. I believe in paying it forward.