Manos Zervoudakis

I’m a graduate CG Producer, with over 7 years of prior experience in management across various sectors and looking to join a fun and challenging studio as a Production Manager. Production for me is a combination of what I love to do, what I’m good at and what is needed. I love helping people reaching their goals and potential, I’m good at organisation and logistics and I have experience in managing recourses and communicating with stakeholders which is necessary in production. I have over 7 animated short films in my portfolio produced in the past two years which enabled me to gain experience and exposure to a wide range of pipelines and tools.

SHOWREEL

GET TO KNOW EMMANOUIL

Describe yourself in 5 words.

Challenge-driven, organised, analytical, dedicated and problem-solver.

What makes you unique?

What makes me unique as a person is that I like to understand the details but keep in mind the big picture. For example, I could have transitioned directly from my management background into production, but I still chose to study animation to fully understand the details of the components that makes an animation project in order to better understand how each member contributes to the project as a whole. I believe this will only make me a better Producer.

If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?

I would be a wolf. Aside the fact that they are gorgeous animals, they have a high sense of leadership, alertness and strategic planning. They are also very social and loyal creatures moving in packs while understanding team dynamics.

What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses?

My biggest strengths are what I call my duo competencies: my attention to detail with strong organisational skills and my analytical thinking and decision making. The combination of each skill in the pair makes my competencies more efficient. One of my biggest weaknesses is that my attention to details can sometimes become perfectionism. Being aware of it, I am able to mitigate it by always asking myself 2 key questions: is it good enough? Can we afford more time/resources on this?

Describe a challenge that you had to overcome in your group projects.

One challenge that I had to face was when I first started producing projects was adapting my leadership and communication style to different team dynamics. I quickly realised that what works for one team might not work for the other one. One key learning as a result was that, as a Producer, one needs to be flexible in the approach and communicating style in order to best fit any team dynamic to ensure the success of the project.

Which animated movie inspired you the most to choose this career path and why?

I would confidently say it’s 'Toy Story'. One thing that inspired me as a kid was the beautiful storytelling and the growth characters experienced throughout. I believe their bold move to transition from 2D to 3D opened a new era in animation at the intersection between technology and creativity. I quickly realised the potential of this medium and wanted to be part of this next generation of projects that will continue to inspire people beyond age, background, gender, and borders.

If your life was a movie what would it be and why?

If my life was a movie, it would be 'Finding Nemo'!
1- Growing by getting out of our comfort zone and inspiring others to do the same.
2- Surrounding ourselves with good people that care and being there for others.

What was your crowning moment of your time at Escape?

The crowning moment of my time at Escape Studios was definitely in producing my last project 'Threaded Together'. I could tangibly see the results of my learning and progress over the past 3 years, especially in realistic planning and proactive problem solving. Me and the Director started working on the short a month in advance which allowed us to greatly improve the story and not having to rush through pre-production. This also gave us the required head space to be more available to support the team, be fully engaged during the dailies, address all feedback, and have more efficient problem solving.