My Story

To give you a brief insight about myself, my name is Giovanni Nakpil. I am a Graphic Artist. Like many others like me, I grew up helping the rebellion with its mission to overthrow the Empire's evil regime. When I have some spare time (which wasnt often since I was also helping this guy named E.T find his way home) I would go with my buddy Indy to Cairo and help him uncover ancient archeological artifacts before the Nazis got a hold of them. Weird you might say? Well, for a young kid whose imagination was sparked with visions of monsters and spaceships, it was as normal as humming an hour long medley of every John Williams score you can think of while doodling.

I grew up from a family of architects. My great grandfather was a national artist in architecture and was also a civil engineer in the Philippines. My grandfather is an architect, and so too is my father. With that, the future for me -at first- seemed to be clear as a crystal. I would become an architect when I grow up. I would design buildings and structures. I would painstakingly follow the simple rule "form follows function". As I grew, however, I discovered that the visions I had for the future did not really apply to me anymore. My plans took a slight detour into a not too distant field...computer graphics.

In an industry where you are paid for your creativity, one is always pressured to keep up with the rest. The never ending quest to remain on the cutting edge can sometimes be as draining and stressful as a job can be. I am not saying I am on the cutting edge, in fact I think I am far from it. By definition, to be on the cutting edge, you always have to create something that has never been seen before, which is an impossiblity since this industry sometimes thrives on recycling fads to death. May it be through flashing buttons, or shiny, flashy interfaces, we basically see the same concepts hidden under a layer of camouflage. I admit I am guilty of this, everyone is. It is only when you strive to create your own identity through your works that you remain on the edge. That is what I hope will set me apart. With each concept that I think of, I try to put as much of me in it as possible.

I am still at a very early stage in my career. Looking ahead, I can't even begin to imagine what I will be doing in the future. Technology changes so rapidly. The moment I can say "know that program like the back of my hand", release 2 is already on its way, with version 3 not too far from completion. It is an exciting field, never linear. I guess that is why I am so grateful for Indy, Luke, Chewie and the rest for leading me down this path. The future is now something to look forward to with giddyness as more toys are on the way to play with.

Giovanni F. Nakpil

P.S. If you happen to be either Steven Spielberg or George Lucas, pls click here. If you just happen to be a passerby, pls click here.