Hunter Schmidt is the Director of Animation at Ember Lab. His story is pretty amazing and that’s why we asked him to participate as a model and independent auditor of the Fan Art T-shirt contest. Born and raised in Southern California, Hunter began his career at Ember Lab as an intern in May of 2011. He was a student at Chapman University and it didn’t take long for co-founders Josh and Mike to recognize his natural talent, passion for animation, and overall versatility. Little did they know he would grow into such an inspiring and dedicated leader. Now, Hunter directs a team of artists from around the world as they work tirelessly to bring you Kena: Bridge of Spirits. The strength of his leadership and tireless support has coalesced this far-flung group into a highly productive animation pipeline. Hunter’s influence doesn’t stop with cut scenes and in-game animations. Josh and Mike seek his input on story, music, sound, and visual aesthetic and with good reason. Hunter is a renaissance man in every sense of the word. He attributes his unique combination of creativity and discipline to a wide range of experiences and interests, including traveling around the world, years of piano training and a love for reading and learning. In fact, Hunter will tell you that one of the benefits of working across time zones is making lasting friendships with people around the world. He loves that he has a friend to visit almost anywhere he travels.
