Since autumn, Leo Graf has been expanding the f5 team with his skills. He is responsible for everything that moves. In this interview, he reveals how companies can use animation to stand out in the flood of advertising and content. In addition, he talks about his career and how he worked on international movies.
 
Why are video and animation so important these days?
 
Movement makes everything more exciting. With animation, we can specifically control when and where your attention should be directed. Unlike static content – such as posters – an animation allows us to guide you where you should look and when. We all are surrounded by a flood of advertising and content, in the world wide web and in the real world, moving images offer the opportunity to clearly stand out from static content.
 
What sparked your interest in Animation?
 
My enthusiasm for animation came from the desire to be creative in the movie scene and to make things visible that cannot be filmed. This opens up a whole new world where, not only what we can see and touch, but literally everything is possible. The challenge is to make something "that lifts" out of countless possibilities.

I made my first animation when I was 16 years old, for a spy movie. I made the animation of a slow-motion pistol shot. Visual effects (VFX) is all about enriching filmed footage with animation, where it is important that it looks photorealistic in order to be compelling. At 16, I certainly wasn't at that level I am today.

How did you become an expert?
 
First, I did an internship at a motion design agency in St. Gallen and then studied animation in Lucerne. After that, I worked in a VFX studio in Munich and worked on big movies like "The Flash" or "The Meg 2". Now I am dedicating myself entirely to my film production company Nektar in St.Gallen and am also able to strengthen and support the f5 team.

What do you like about your work?
 
As for me, challenging projects are the most exciting. It is important to me that my work has a clear impact. Technically demanding tasks, such as simulations of water or fire, I like the most. Animations should always serve a purpose as they cannot be simply filmed. I worked for months in Munich on only 10 seconds of a movie! I appreciate it to have various projects.

How do you see yourself from an entrepreneurial perspective? Is success important for you?
 
The entrepreneurial side is quite new to all of us at Nektar. When it's going well, it's fun, and it's cool to have both creative and entrepreneurial aspects. At Nektar, we have a good balance between creative minds and entrepreneurial thinkers. Our goal is to make every project the best it can be, so we can be proud of it. We want everything that comes from us to be top-notch. This is important for our reputation.
 
Where do you see your way? Where will you go?
 
I hope that I can continue to deepen my experience. I think that in the future I will work more with the camera again to make movies. But animation will always be an important part of my work, and I'm looking forward to the challenges that await me at f5 as well.