Resume

Peter C. Miller
818 359 7521 / 818 558 7372
Resume

 

 
2002 - Present Research & Development, Animation Technology, DreamWorks Animation, NBCUniversal, Comcast

2017+ Senior Software Engineer, Configuration Management
2017+ Maya Specialist
2013-2016: Large Application Lead for China Studio Initiative
2013-2016: Linux Release Engineering Specialist
2010-2013: Software Engineer in Test
2002-2010: Software Quality Assurance Specialist

Responsibilities include:

  • Authoring and executing manual and automated builds for core software suites used by DreamWorks Animation's feature film production crews. Using Electric Commander, Bamboo, and custom Python scripts, I ensure Maya, Houdini, Nuke and other large applications are reliably integrated with third party and proprietary plug-ins for multiple feature film and television production pipelines in active R&D environments.
  • Using SCons and Rez extensively for both build time and run time configuration determination, as well as assist production with the more complex production resolution sets.
  • Continuous Integration/Deployment support: Maintain automated suites in Electric Cloud's Electric Commander and Atlassian Bamboo and perform initial investigation of encountered issues.
  • Create and maintain Docker Containers and/or custom Python-based scripts for Release Engineering for targeted R&D software deployments.
  • Software Quality Assurance (QA) pre-release testing of core proprietary and third party animation tools, and authoring automated unit and functional test suites.
  • Isolating difficult-to-reproduce problems and wrapping them up in solidly defined workflows and problem definitions to enable resolution from R&D.
  • QA-based performance measuring and evaluation for internal and third party software toolsets.
  • Promotion of QA engineering needs and specification authoring for new R&D project teams.
  • Managing ongoing development of a visually based render farm throughput optimization tool. This project was initially the result of a 6 week sabbatical granted in 2008. For more than 3 years it has frequently and consistently found significant issues to be remedied that are commonly overlooked by existing farm management systems which, though they yield much larger amounts of information, still overlook basic, common, and significant configuration shortcomings.
  • Coordination, support, and standardization of Maya within feature film production needs.
  • Prioritizing new Maya feature development with the Autodesk Custom Engineering office in Santa Barbara.
  • Defining Maya problems, workarounds, and solutions for production artists.
  • General testing of internal proprietary and third party 3d animation software packages, as well as associated hardware.
  • Facilitating solutions with internal development as well as 3rd party vendors Autodesk (Formerly Alias), Nvidia, HP and Red Hat.
  • Software Engineer and Release Engineer for Rez- compliant components of DreamWorks Animation R&D solutions to international partner studios, such as Oriental DreamWorks Shanghai.

Linkedin page

   
2014 - Present Co-Founder, Animated Codes Made Easy LLC. Lead backend api developer supporting near-realtime service for generating animated versions of arbitrary QR Codes. Acme was granted patent # US 10,083,535 B2 in October of 2018 which I co-authored.
   
1997 - 2003 Commercial Glider Pilot (Part time), Windhaven Glider Rides,
Santa Ynez, Ca.
   

1998 - 2002

 

Quality Assurance Product Specialist for Maya, Alias Systems (formerly Alias|Wavefront,) Santa Barbara, Ca. In 2003, Maya won an Oscar for scientific and technical achievement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Responsibilities:
Authoring and executing test plans for Maya software and hardware; authoring and publishing qualification pages; defining application feature user view requirements, oversight and education of interns; describing software problems and verifying solutions with developers both internal and external to the company; individual and team production testing of Maya; verifying readiness of software for release engineering process; customer issue escalation participation and resolution.

Quality Assurance Projects at Alias|Wavefront:
Maya 1.0 IRIX, Maya 1.0 (Windows NT port), Maya 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 Trax Nonlinear Animation, 3.0.1 (Linux port), 4.0, Maya 3.5 (Mac OS X port), Maya Personal Learning Edition, Maya 4.5.

Maya Skills:
Polygonal and NURBS modeling, Rendering/IPR, MEL, Cloth, Particle Dynamics, Rigid Body Dynamics, Expressions, Paint Effects. Examples in the Gallery.

1996 - 1997 3d modeler and animator, Pure Mirage Imaging & Animation. Contract game content development for Shattered Light; Modeled and animated background tilings for 2.5D multiplayer games.
1995 - 1996 Photoshop Instructor, Dean Collins Knowledge Network.
1993 - 1995 Faculty, Brooks Institute of Photography, Santa Barbara, California.
1989 - 1991 Programmer, APOLLO Reservation System, United Airlines.
   
Film Credits:

Captain Underpants - CM Software Engineer
The Boss Baby - CM Software Engineer
Trolls - CM Software Engineer
Kung Fu Panda 3 - CM Software Engineer
Home - CM Software Engineer
Penguins of Madagascar - CM Software Engineer
How to Train Your Dragon 2 - CM Software Engineer
Mr. Peabody & Sherman - CM Software Engineer
Turbo - Software Engineer, Quality Assurance
The Croods - Software Engineer, Quality Assurance
Rise of the Guardians- Software Quality Assurance
Madagascar 3- Software Quality Assurance
Puss in Boots - Software Quality Assurance
Kung Fu Panda 2 - Software Quality Assurance
Megamind - Software Quality Assurance
Shrek Forever After
- Software Quality Assurance
How To Train Your Dragon - Software Quality Assurance
Monsters vs. Aliens - Software Quality Assurance
Madagascar 2 - Software Quality Assurance
Kung Fu Panda
- Software Quality Assurance
Bee Movie
- Software Quality Assurance
Shrek The Third - Software Quality Assurance
Flushed Away - Software Quality Assurance / Triage
Over the Hedge
- Software Quality Assurance / Triage
First Flight - Modeler
Madagascar - Software Quality Assurance / Triage
Kelso Loco - Director, Digital Effects Artist
Shark Tale - Software Quality Assurance / Triage
Shrek 2 - Glendale Animation Technology (DVD only)
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas - Software Quality Assurance / Triage

(Peter C. Miller: IMDb)


   
Current Film Projects:

How To Train Your Dragon 3

Trolls 2

   
Education: 1996 - M.S. Brooks Institute of Photography - Photography / Digital Imaging.

1989 - B.S. University of Colorado, Boulder - Business Information Systems.
 


Software:

3D Animation - Maya 1.0 through 2018 on IRIX, Linux, Windows and OSX.
Software Development IDEs - Pycharm, Eclipse
Version Control - Accurev, Git + Github, CVS
Build & run time Software Component management: Rez
2D Image editing - Photoshop, Gimp
Compositing - Nuke, After Effects
Web Page Authoring - Brackets
Number Crunching - Excel

Languages:

  • Python - Automated regression testing and Maya execution
  • MEL (Maya Embedded Language) for automated build methods and run time 3d manipulations in Maya.
  • C++ (amateur, last coded in the 1990s)
  • Assembly Language for IBM TPF facility mainframes while maintaining core seat inventory software of United Airline's 'Apollo' reservation system.
  •  
    Other Education:

    FAA issued Commercial Pilot License - Glider/Sailplane rating. Most recent Biennial review completed 22-AUG-2009, currency valid to 22-AUG-2011. 1050 flights, 370 hours as of August 2009.

    USHGA issued Paragliding License - P3 rating. Rob Sporrer, Instructor 153 flights, 29 hours as of August 2005.

    National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS)

       
    Memberships:

    Soaring Society of America
    United States Hang Gliding Association