TheGameNarrative

TGN: Where were you born and where did you grow up?


MAA: I was born in Romford, Essex, UK. I grew up in Rainham, Essex and lived in the UK until January of 1994.


TGN: What types of games did you play during your childhood?


MAA: Atari 2600 games, Dungeons & Dragons, Scrabble, Game of Life, plastic animals in the grass in the backyard.


TGN: Were you artistic or creative as a child?


MAA: Yes. My mother thought for the longest time that I traced the pictures, until she saw that my drawings were a different size to the reference.


TGN: When did you first decide you wanted to enter the field of art/design/animation?


MAA: Late in high school I decided to go into graphic design or illustration. I never imagined i’d end up in animation.


TGN: Were there any animated films or TV series that you saw, at a young age, that inspired you or sparked your interest in animation?


MAA: Tom & Jerry cartoons, WB cartoons, Hannah Barabara animated shows, Star Wars, Buck Rogers, V, Disney feature films…..


TGN: After college, did you ever have any jobs that were not in the field of graphics and animation, before landing your first position in that field?


MAA: I was an electrician’s assistant for a while. A bartender for years before getting a job in animation.


TGN: How did you get hired at Wyatt Cattaneo Studios and was this your first job in the field?


MAA: I volunteered my college film (“Father”) to a showreel compiled by director Tim Searle. The folks at Wyatt Cattaneo saw it and asked if I’d interview on April 18th 1989. I was hired that same day and started immediately….. My old bartending job were pissed when I quit that day.


TGN: What were some of your first animation projects?

MAA: Tetley Tea Bags and Ribena commercials for UK.


TGN: What kind of hardware and software were you working with in your early days of computer graphics and animation?


MAA: I didn’t switch to the computer animation until they trained me on it at ILM in California January of 1994. Back then we used Alias for modeling and Softimage for animation.


TGN: 1993 you started work at Industrial Light and Magic. What made you want to work for ILM and how did you get the job?

MAA: I was recently made redundant when the studio Wyatt Cattaneo closed down. Luckily I managed to get to meet with the ILM folks in London giving lectures on Jurassic Park. They saw my portfolio and reel and said they’d be in touch. They hired me December 16th 1993 and I started January 8th 1994.


TGN: What were some of your first projects at Industrial Light and Magic?


MAA: I did the training and was asked to be lead animator for Casper in the movie of the same name.


TGN: What were some of your favorite tasks in creating animations at ILM?


MAA: I felt as though I was being paid to play with computers to be honest. It did not feel like work at all. Animating creatures and characters was my specialty.


TGN: What has been your least favorite hardware or software to use for animation? Were there any that you can think of that were frustrating to use?


MAA: Prisms. Hated it. Yuck!!!! Briefly used on my short stints animating for Hercules and Fantasia 2000.


TGN: What animation did you work on with Star Wars?


MAA: I was creature animator (minus Jabba). I animated Dewbacks, Rontos, Scurriers, Stormtroopers, Jawas, the landspeeder, droids and various speeders.


TGN: How were selected to wear the original Boba Fett costume for a new scene added during the Special Edition of A New Hope?


MAA: That happened 6 months prior to me animating on New Hope. I had to ask Casper production for the day off but long story short I had already worn the suit for two Ranch summits and they knew I fit it. Steve Williams was tasked with finding someone to jump in and sought me out….


TGN: How did you feel, in the moment, when preparing for the filming of your scene for the Special Edition? Were you excited to know you would forever be a part of the Star Wars universe?


MAA: The adrenaline was through the roof. I was so stoked you have no clue. I’d been dreaming of just such a scenario since age 13…. I was in disbelief to be honest.


TGN: How has being one of the Boba Fett actors changed your life since?


MAA: I have made friends of my SW heroes after having done so many cons together with them all. I never foresaw that happening. I love the fact that I am Boba Fett and live it every day.


TGN: Which piece of Bob Fett’s equipment is your favorite?


MAA: Helmet for sure.


TGN: You were Head of Animation at The Third Floor Inc., What kind of work did you do with that company?


MAA:  I fell in love with previsualization or shot design and shot creation. Instead of animating a 3 second shot and was designing entire movie sequences. I have never looked back and now specialize in designing/rough-animating complex sequences for movies both live action and animation.


TGN: What would you say is the most difficult part of creating animation?

MAA:  Timing. Getting the timing to reflect real physics.


TGN: Out of all the films and projects you have created animation and computer effects for, which has been your favorite and you are most proud of?


MAA: Utraman Rising (Netflix) where i designed ¼ of the entire movie (13 sequences out of 48 total).


TGN: With such an impressive list of highly respected directors you’ve worked with, did any of them become a mentor or leave a lasting impact on you?


MAA: Steven Spielberg changed my way of looking at filmmaking. He would start not with details but “what the audience should feel”…..


TGN: Outside of the world of graphics and animation, do you have any hobbies?


MAA: Painting and karaoke. I do love to sing.


TGN: Which line of dialogue of Boba Fett’s is your favorite?


MAA: AS YOU WISH!