Anwar Bey Taylor

Anwar Bey-Taylor Art Director/ Lead Game Artist Video game art development Mind Traveler Design www.MINDTRAVELERDESIGN.com-California | New York Bio Anwar Bey has been a professional video game artist since 2007, beginning his career as a 3D artist at Blizzard Entertainment, EA games, Bethesda and Activision. There, He deepened his knowledge of film, cinematography, and the art pipeline for video games and films. Anwar has collaborated with leading studios across the industry, continuously refining his skills in 3D/2D asset development, animation, storytelling, and art direction. With over 17 years of experience, Anwar has worked globally, sharing iterative design practices, creative philosophy and expansive business practices. His journey has shaped him into an entrepreneur, professor, and well respected leader in the entertainment industry. Today, he brings his warmth and passion to every project, striving to be the best art director, mentor, artist and empathic creative leader he can be. Director​ As a director, Anwar leads global teams of artists to produce immersive, high-quality video game art with rich storytelling. He builds cohesive teams that excel in creativity, technical sense, and problem solving ensuring that every art asset is not only visually stunning but also full of life and history. Anwar creates client-approved style guides and workflow templates to align the team's vision and streamline execution. He provides personalized visual direction to each artist, helping them reach their full creative potential. Anwar’s leadership ensures that all projects are delivered on time with a consistent, unique, and cohesive style. Additionally, Anwar is at the forefront of experimenting with artificial intelligence, using it to enhance creativity, optimize pipelines, and drive innovation in the art creation process. Shipped Titles Storyscape World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Skylanders: Giants Assassins Creed 2 Diablo 3 Dota 2 Gamaya: Legends PLASMAworlds Elder Scrolls Online (Beta) StarCraft2: Wings of Liberty StarCraft2: Heart of the Swarm Star Wars: Uprising Sims 4 and many more Clients Blizzard Entertainment Ubisoft Sony Computer Ent. Slide London EA Games Toys for bob Activision Lumba Games Fogbank Studios​ ​ Disney Bethesda Softworks Steam Workshop Kabam! Gree Gamaya Visionary Realms Academy of Art ​ ​ Netflix and more! Work Experience PLASMAworlds Director | 2020 – Present​ www.plasmaworlds.com​ Creator of PLASMAworlds, a custom-crafted entertainment platform featuring immersive cinematic action-adventure sci-fi stories. Art Director​ Anwar leads a global team of 30+ artists in creating graphic design, 2D/3D art, and animation for a range of projects, including animated series, illustrated books, social media, and the metaverse. ●​ ●​ ●​ ●​ ●​ ●​ ●​ ●​ Story writing and narrative development Leading and supporting art teams, recruiting and nurturing talent Managing and directing 100+ international artists Designing and implementing metaverse experiences Overseeing the illustration and animation departments Digital and physical product design Developing pipelines and art continuity documentation Directing multi-platform art campaigns Mind Traveler Design San Francisco, CA Founder/ Studio Art Director/ Producer 2013 - Present www.mindtravelerdesign.com MTD Founder​ Anwar is the visionary force behind Mind Traveler Design (MTD), driving innovative design solutions, intellectual property creation, strategic partnerships, and business growth. With a focus on expanding MTD’s impact, Anwar turns ideas into compelling brands and experiences that push the boundaries of creativity. MTD Director​ As Director, Anwar leads diverse teams of artists and clients in crafting immersive narratives and groundbreaking designs. Through the art of storytelling, Anwar taps into the limitless power of imagination, guiding both creators and audiences to dream without limits. At MTD, we take the abstract concepts our clients bring to us and transform them into tangible, inspiring experiences. By blending imagination with design, we solve complex challenges and deliver solutions that transcend the ordinary, elevating visions far beyond their original scope. MTD Creator​ Anwar is the creator of Mind Traveler Design, PLASMAworlds, and a global network of visionary developers. Together, they forge innovative experiences that push the boundaries of art, technology, and possibility. Fogbank Entertainment (a Disney company) San Francisco, CA Character Pipeline Director 06/18 - 02/20 www.fogbankentertainment.com Anwar solved for the role of Character Pipeline Director. Anwar optimized, managed, and directed the in-house and outsource character development pipeline alongside the ever talented team at Fox/Disney Fogbank Entertainment. Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA 3D Art Instructor - Video Games and Film 01/15 - 01/20 http://www.academyart.edu/ Anwar worked with the video game development program directors to design, optimize, and provide essential direction for the 3d art development curriculum for Academy of Art's undergrad and grad school programs. This includes improving the resources and understanding of professional art asset creation for environment art and character art disciplines, in addition to utilizing the industries most cutting edge technology integrated seamlessly to foundational art and design techniques. Oculus Launch Pad Menlo Park, CA 07/17 - 12/19 Creator/ Director/ Producer As a selected participant of Oculus Launch Pad developers program at Oculus VR, Anwar assembled a small mercenary creative team and developed an action adventure sci-fi playable game prototype in virtual reality called PLASMAworlds: BLASTBOX. In addition He conducted talks about creating new IPs in VR and traditional game dev. Electronic Arts Senior Character Artist Redwood City, CA 09/13 - 07/14 Created characters and a library of character assets for Sims 4 https://www.thesims.com/ Toys for Bob Novato, CA Senior Character Artist 10/11 - 10/12 www.toysforbob.com Anwar created High-res sculptures and printed physical toys for toy prototyping as well as low poly characters for Xbox, Playstation, and WII specification. Anwar led the creation of the in-game enemy creatures for Skylanders: Giants. Zenimax Online Studios/ Bethesda Softworks Baltimore, MD Character Artist 01/09 - 07/11 www.zenimax.com Anwar created in-game monsters, creatures, ghouls, armors, weapons and ghosts for the online multiplayer called Elder scrolls online. Blizzard Entertainment Irvine, CA Cinematic Modeler 01/08 - 01/09 www.blizzard.com Anwar created cinematic models for Diablo, StarCraft2, and WOW cinematics. Anwar's creations consisted of models of environment terrain, weapons, accessories, tanks, rocket turrets and all kinds of other organic and hard-surface assets Overview Specializations: Art Direction Art Culture creation Artificial Intelligence Empathy leadership Animation Procedural fullstack art creation Team building for production Schedule setting and optimization Art Development pipeline creation Design Strategy Design Thinking Infinite possibilities Unreal 5 Unity Character Development/Design Real-time character model creation Digital character sculpture Low poly character modeling Real-time Hair creation Weapon modeling Vehicle modeling Prop Modeling (hard-surface & Organic) Normal map & AO map creation Texture painting & creation Efficient UV-unwrapping Rigging Story Writing Digital Tools Substance Painter Substance Designer Autodesk 3ds Max Autodesk Maya Adobe Photoshop Adobe Premiere Adobe After Effects Adobe Premiere Autodesk Mudbox Marvelous Designer Pixologic Zbrush Xnormal Headus UVLayout Quixel 3d coat BodyPaint CrazyBump Unity Unreal Professional Design Talks San Francisco Public Library, San Francisco, CA - Valencia, San Francisco, CA - ComicCon Africa, Capetown, SA - 2023 Wits University, Johannesburg, SA - 2022 University of Trinidad & Tobago, T&T - 2019 Facebook/META, Seattle - 2018 AfroTECH, San Francisco - 2017 Murdoch University, Australia - 2017 Blavity, Los Angeles - 2016 Universidad Icesi, Cali, Columbia - 2015 Research and Development South Africa & East Africa (2016 - 2024) Business Development Japan (2019) Animation Development Colombia (2015) IP development Thailand (2014 - 2016) Story Development Dubai, United Arab Emirates (2011) Innovative architecture research Costa Rica (2011) Jungle environment research Community Work Anwar is passionate about inspiring the next generation of video game and entertainment designers. Through partnerships with organizations such as Hack the Hood, Creativity Explored, Youth Speaks, Industrial Design Outreach, Facebook (Meta), ICE Addis, Beats Rhymes and Life, Blacks in Gaming, and Youth Uprising, Anwar shares his expertise and encourages young people to explore their creative potential. On weekends, Anwar mentors aspiring artists and game developers, showing them that with dedication, they can achieve their dreams, particularly in the world of video game design. His goal is to empower youth to see endless possibilities for their futures and to ignite their passion for creativity. Education Art Institute of California-Orange County Santa Ana, CA 2006 Game Art & Design Anwar continues to take part in life drawing and painting classes, as well as online workshops, game art competitions, tutorials, and traditional sculpture classes. Resume in PDF format is available upon request