Hey Everyone, Rather than just produce the usual Rhetoric found inside 'Mission Statements', we thought it would perhaps give a little more insight into MBM if we presented ours in a Q & A format that incorporated some of our own questions, with those sometimes asked by our customers:
Q - Why did you make the swap from Production work to pretty much 'full time' Production of Training Material?
A - At the very heart of our decision was the woeful lack (at that time) of ANY kind of decent training for Mental Ray inside the 3ds Max application! Lots of people everywhere were wanting to use this 'supposedly' incredible render engine, but no one seemed to know how anything was supposed to get done. With the exception of one or two Outstanding Individuals, the training or tutorials around at the time were either pretty basic or pretty badly presented. We decided there and then to try and fill that gap with the knowledge we had acquired through use of the engine, as well as beginning our own more In Depth research program.
There was also a good deal of excitement generated by the thought of doing something that was radically different for us. Could we actually translate our skills into training materials that people would genuinely benefit from? Could we sustain a viable business over an extended period with this Training idea? Would we continue to be challenged (both technically and artistically) and find genuine satisfaction in this line of work? All of these things (and more) were challenges that we found ourselves wanting to take on.
Q - What is your goal with the Training you produce, and what do you think makes it different from the Masses of Training out there now?
A - It is probably obvious that the main goal with any training is to provide a certain 'level' of education to those who want or need it! But it is also true to say that it is right to think of 'Training' as a service that is provided for the benefit of others. Especially is this true in the field of CG where artists need to be continually updating their skills so that they stay current with emerging technologies and practices. The service we can provide is that of minimizing the amount of time, research and indeed frustration they have to go through in order to do that.
One goal that we had, over time accomplished without even knowing it, is that of actually Changing peoples lives! It is absolutely true that individuals and companies can/do provide an education that literally alters the course of a persons life, opening up all sorts of possibilities for them that just were not there before! That is a pretty satisfying thing to be able to do.
As for the 'difference' found in MBM Training, the one thing we have always tried (sometimes not as successfully as we would like) to do is not only show artists 'What' they need to do to accomplish a task inside 3ds Max and its Render Engines, but also try and give enough information so that they understand 'Why' this approach is perhaps a good one to take. We have found a lot of customers have really appreciated that, as well as the 'Clarity' of the explanations we give. Nothing worse than a piece of technical software functionality being made even more complicated by a badly given explanation.
Q - Why do you produce all your training ‘In House’ as it were? Would you use ‘Other’ Artists to produce Training for MBM?
A - From a purely business point of view things are generally a lot easier when fewer people are involved! We try to keep every aspect of the production process focused by having the whole team involved and aware of the goals and requirements of each project and its relevant phases. Generally we find things move along much smoother because of this.
Certainly we would be happy to use other artists if a suitable project were to come up! So far though we have not needed to consider this as a part of our business needs. You never know what is around the corner though!
Q - Why are you now using Social Media sites such as ‘YouTube’ and ‘FaceBook?
A - These sites make it very easy for us to have a community 'Face' for MBM. If customers have a need or a desire to interact with the MBM team then these familiar sites make it very easy for them to do so. Since it is the customers that make our business what it is it seems only sensible to use these tools to give the customers a way to give input into MBM if they need or want to.
Q - What is the thinking behind having a ‘Reward Points’ system inside the MBM Shop?
A - Every business is always glad to have Loyal customers, the ones who like your product and come back regularly to make a purchase. MBM has a lot of these customers and we decided that along with the New Shopping System we would like to incorporate some way of giving something to customers who regularly buy Training from us! The reward point system seemed like a good way of doing that.
Q - Currently Mental Ray and VRay are the only Renderers covered in your NEW ‘In Depth’ series, any plans to add more in the future?
A - Absolutely, although Mental Ray and VRay will, for the foreseeable future, receive the bulk of our production time, Max's Scanline Engine and FryRender will also be added at some point, with options on lots of others left open.
Q - How do you Feel?
A - Tell mother I feel fine! :-)
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