Ganz๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ญ
In July 2023, after announcing that I had left my previous teaching gig of twelve and a half years, I was asked if Iโd be interested in joining the training team at a very prominent studio here in Vancouver.
I didnโt apply for the position.
I didnโt chase it.
I only entertained the conversation out of respect for an old friend and to see if there was genuinely something I could contribute.
Things looked promising, until they told me their Head of Training didnโt think I could do the job.
I wasnโt interviewed.
I wasnโt asked a single question.
But somehow, they had already made up their mind.
This happens more often than you think.
Sometimes, you wonโt even be given a chance to prove yourself.
Not because youโre unqualified, but because someone decided you donโt fit their picture.
Even with a track record of training hundreds of students from around the world, helping them secure internships at Sony, DNEG, ILM, MPC, and jobs across nearly every major and minor VFX studio in Canada, through a curriculum I designed myself, I still wasnโt considered suitable for the role.
Because their decision wasnโt based on merit.
If someone doesnโt give you the opportunity to show what youโre capable of, they donโt get to define your potential.
And they sure as hell donโt get to decide how youโll respond.
Maybe youโre not a good fit for their studio.
Or maybe they were never planning to give you a fair shot in the first place.
Either way, donโt let that moment shrink you.
You trained. You studied. You worked hard.
And your future doesnโt need to pass through their approval system.
There are other paths.
Better ones.
And sometimes, the best thing that ever happens to you is being underestimated by the wrong people.
I donโt believe in kumbayah solutions.
I believe in building people strong enough to outlast the gatekeepers.