Mr. Hayashida graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts & Music in 1990. Following graduation, he worked for the companies LINKS, Shiseido and Yellow as a computer graphics (CG) artist. In 1996, while at Yellow, Mr. Hayashida won a Computer Animation Festival competition at SIGGRAPH's Electronic Theater. In that same year, he joined Square as the Sequence Supervisor and Lead Artist in the production work for the movie Final Fantasy.

In 2001, Mr. Hayashida became a freelance CG artist working on movies, television commercials and games, as well as personal artistic projects. He formed his own production company LINDA in 2002.

http://www.hayashidahiroyuki.com/

Q. How did you get involved in the 3D computer graphics industry?
A. When I was student in the1980s, several artists started showing unique, impressive and memorable computer graphics (CG) work in America, Canada and France. I saw infinite possibilities in this completely new style of art. I really hoped to work and learn by myself, but workstations and software were very expensive and made it impossible. So, I joined the company Links after I graduated college and started from there.

Q. How do you use Maya?
A. Currently, I use Maya software in the production of movies, TV commercials and games. I'm not using any other 3D CG software. All of my production workflow, from pre-visualization, to modeling and animation, to rendering, is done with Maya.

Q. What projects have you worked on?
A. I have worked on TV commercials for Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda; for the cosmetic companies Shiseido and Clinique, for Budweiser and for a Japanese food company. In the area of games, I have worked on Capcom's Biohazard, and Dead or Alive from Tecmo. I have worked as the Sequence Supervisor and Lead Artist on the movie Final Fantasy.

Q. What makes this industry so exciting to you?
A. It's possible to closely realize my imagination without physical constraint. Computer graphics is also an effective means of making a movie by myself.

Q. Where do you see the industry going in the next 5 years?
A. I'm interested in movies and art—especially movies. CG will continue to offer a way for artists like me to explore new formats, not just large Hollywood productions. Continued innovation and the flexibility of the powerful tools in this industry will allow artists to experiment and reveal their unique talents.

Q. What words of wisdom do you have for anyone interested in entering the world of 3D computer graphics?
A. Keep the passion you had when you decided to be a CG artist. It's important not to stick to only one position; take up the challenge to try new things when you can.