Scott Dewis’s wrinkled neighbors are enjoying their retirement. They drink hot, medicinal tea and recline in hammocks. They also ignore the occasional explosions that emanate from Scott’s house.

Those explosions are just another part of Scot Dewis’s day job – blowing stuff up for such famous television shows as Alias and Lost – for which his team was recently awarded an Emmy for Outstanding Special Effects in a Series.

Learn all about Scott’s gig after the fold…

It wasn’t always working from home and scaring his neighbors. While working as a mechanical engineer, Scott stumbled upon a 3D design program called 3DS Max. “Playing with it started eating up all my free time and, on a whim, I applied for a scholarship to VFS. I didn’t win, but the application process really got me thinking and in the end I decided to give VFS a go anyway.”

Animation in the Blood

Scott’s interest in animation and effects started at a young age, “I’ve always been more into the effects in big movies than the movies themselves. I used to use my parents’ video camera to do crude claymations. It didn’t have a single frame capture option so it was pretty rough, but I think I caught the animation bug long before I realized I could actually do this for a living.”

After graduation, Scott found work pretty easily, “My first job was a month-long contract at a little video gambling company that VFS recommended me to one week out of school. My second job was at a friend’s video game company, doing key frame animation for an FPS. I worked there for a year when my cousin set me up with what would become my contact and partner in the TV industry.”

Alias and Lost – what else is there to say?

Scott contact in the TV industry landed him a job with an American TV series in its second season – called Alias. “He needed someone fast who could work unsupervised from home as he did. I still work from home with the same partner, and we are working on shots for Alias’s fifth and final season.“

Scott and his partner’s worked led to more work – a pilot for an odd show called Lost. “My partner’s company was responsible for 53 or so shots of debris and airplane parts on the beach leading up to a character getting sucked through a jet engine and its explosion. My part was the modeling, animation, particles, and some roto for our 53 shots, which we produced over 3 weeks.” Lost’s opening sequence is widely regarded as one of the most spectacular in television history.

Scott, his partner, and their team were nominated and won an Emmy for their work. “It was great to get some recognition for the work we did, but I work in effects because I love it, so it was really just a nice end to a busy year.”

Branching Out

Even with Lost and Alias on the go, Scott found time to turn a man into a tree. “I modeled/rigged and animated on top of the particles to produce the transformation of a man into a tree. It was a Vicky Jensen film called Family Tree and debuted in Sundance as a short. It has since gone on to win 10 awards at various film festivals. This was my first film and a bit of a breakout for my freelance career.”

Scott’s next project just might be… well, he can’t say. Apparently, it’s a big budget flick. As for the stir he’s causing in retirement communities around Victoria, Scott shrugs.“I’m quite content.”