MEET THE ARTIST
The Spanish creative talks us through his foundational moments in 3D, a typical day running his own studio, and the tools used to create his work
With more than 20 years of experience in the creative industry, JM Blay has worked on movies such as Dungeons & Dragons, The Hobbit and Guardians of the Galaxy, video games including the Call Of Duty series, and music videos for artists like Paul McCartney and Lady Gaga.
He is the creative director and founder of Blay Studio, a production company and creative studio based in Valencia, Spain, and has collaborated with renowned studios and agencies worldwide. In that time, Blay has developed projects for a host of companies including Netflix, Marvel and Sony.
He holds a degree in fine arts, a master’s degree in audiovisual communication, and a PhD in motion graphics. Blay’s work has also been recognised in specialised magazines, and he has given lectures at festivals and universities worldwide.
Do you have a background in 3D design or are you self-taught?
At university I studied art and audiovisual communication. 3D and motion graphics is something I started learning by myself during my final year of university. When it comes to 3D, I started with 3ds Max and used that software for a couple of years, but I abandoned it because, at that time, it was really tedious and complicated to learn. This was before the internet. Later on, when I was doing gigs as a motion designer, I started playing with Cinema 4D (C4D) and it blew my mind. I’ve never stopped using C4D since I opened it for the first time.
How do you keep things fresh?
I find inspiration in movies, documentaries, series, books, museums and music, but especially watching ‘making-of’ features of movies. I try to find inspiration in all the things that surround me, but not as a methodology; it’s because I’ve been curious my whole life and have never stopped. My mind is always being stimulated by different sources, not necessarily related to the industry. In fact, I kind of avoid keeping up with the latest trends and such.
What’s your day-to-day life like?
I usually follow the same routine: I wake up, I take my kid to school, and then I work. I’ve run a fully remote creative studio since 2018, so my working day starts with having a meeting with my team to make sure everyone has work to do, then I begin working myself.
Some days I spend the whole time dedicated to developing a project, doing 3D and motion design, while other days are full of meetings, emails, and so on. I’m based in Spain, so if my client is from the US, I focus on the mornings and have all the meetings in the afternoon. If my client is from the UK or Europe, then I have more time in the evenings and can go to the gym and do martial arts to unwind.
How long hav
