The Art of Color Grading Animation with Keiran Lee

How to Handle Animation and VFX as a Colorist

Colorist Keiran Lee shares insights from his career journey working on major animated feature films such as Lego Batman and the extremely collaborative nature of animation color grading.

He also reflects on the role of mentorship, having worked alongside respected colorists, including Eric Whipp and Olivier Fontenay. He also discusses his leap into freelancing after his decade-long tenure at Animalogic.

“We had time to play. We would have sessions with the production designer or directors where they would come down and just play with a scene. That ability to play is where you find those happy accidents.”

– Keiran Lee

Why The Big Picture Matters in Animation

In this in-depth conversation, Keiran shares his journey from being a camera operator to a prominent colorist in the Australian grading scene. Keiran details his experience managing HDR-first workflows in animation, implementing ACES through complex VFX pipelines and navigating the delicate balance between fixing issues in grade versus sending back to lighting.

Selected Credits:

Key Takeaways from this Insight

By the end of our conversation, you will gain insights on:

External Links

Related Mixing Light Insights

Chapters

Questions or Comments? Leave a comment!

Have you made the leap from Baselight to Resolve (or vice versa)? What’s been your experience of learning a new tool? What would you like to learn more about grading animated shows? Leave a comment and let me know!

– Kali