Culver City/Vancouver-based visual effects house Zoic Studios continue to bolster their burgeoning game division with the addition of Dutch game industry veteran Paulus Bannink as Creative & Technical Director. He comes to Zoic from Sony Computer Entertainment and Guerrilla Games where he worked on the Killzone game series since its inception in 2004. His diverse experience in game development encompasses both technical development and artist roles, working to develop pipelines and also remaining nimble to adapt his creative work to already existing pipelines. Through the years, Bannink has shared his technical prowess at top industry events including Siggraph, CEDEC and GDC.
Bannink immersed himself in computer graphics at a very early age, freelancing at various studios in the Netherlands immediately upon high school graduation, then joining Harlequins Interactive in Amsterdam in 1998. After spending a few years honing his technical skills to complement a wide range of project requirements, he moved on to Guerrilla Games in 2004 to work on “Shellshock Nam 67” and “Killzone 1” as a VFX Artist. As he continued working on both the in-game and cinematic content for the “Killzone” series, he amassed a myriad of roles including art and pipeline development, Senior Technical Artist and Lead Technical Artist.
Says Bannink, “After a decade of developing successful game titles for Sony Computer Entertainment, I’m very excited to bring my experience to Zoic’s game division. I have always had incredible respect for the talent at Zoic Studios and having the opportunity to work with them to deliver new and cutting-edge game content is a once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Says Zoic’s Executive Creative Director/Co-Founder Chris Jones, “Zoic is incredibly lucky to have landed such a remarkable talent as Paulus. He brings both an incredible acumen and diverse accomplishments that we plan to leverage as we continue to expand our presence in the games market.” Adds Zoic Executive Producer of Games Cindy Airey, “We are very excited to welcome Paulus to our growing games team here at Zoic. Paulus’ technical and creative leadership will be an integral part of our strategy here at Zoic to service our clients at the highest level both in engine and working with game assets for prerendered trailers, cinematics and other fringe content surrounding video game IP.”
About Zoic Studios
Zoic Studios is a visual effects company based in Culver City, California and Vancouver, B.C., which creates computer-generated visual effects for film, television, commercials and video games.
“Visual Evolution” is their mission: to evolve the story, art, and technology of the moving image. Zoic’s accomplished artists and producers understand story, process, technique and relationships. Their team has a proven track record of success in a range of media including episodic, film, commercials and gaming. Masters in the fields of 3D, Compositing, and Production Management, their elite reputation attracts additional talent and encourages a strong work ethic. Zoic’s relationships with its clients are deep and long lasting. The company is known for results-driven excellence in all endeavors.