Happy Mushroom is a revolutionary studio that prides itself in being the world’s leading Virtual Art Department (VAD) Studio. Our teams are composed of friendly supportive artists and skilled technicians with a mission to empower creatives to tell their stories through innovative, real-time workflows.
Offering pre-production and production services, we provide a fully tailored experience for each and every project. Our adaptability has allowed us to work on a full range of projects across Film, TV, Games, and Interactive Experiences.
We love challenges, and we love to have fun. If you’d like to learn more about our process, please reach out!
CEO + Co-Founder + Creative VP Supervisor
VAD Sr Art Director + Co-Founder
CTO
VAD Art Director
VAD Art Director
Head of Production
Associate Producer
Project Manager
IT Manager
Head of HR
Director of Finance
Account Manager
Creative Producer
Stay in the loop and receive occasional announcements from our studio.
My first real job was at Blockbuster Video. I was a high school drama nerd by day and hard core student of Kurosawa and Coppola by night. Making my way to USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, I discovered I love helping creative people realize their vision. And so, for the past 25 years, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work alongside some of the most inspired, clever and hardworking folks in the LA production and VFX industry to make pretty pictures. Now my passion is fixed on helping creative minds utilize a wide range of emerging technology to tell new and amazing stories. My good fortune continues as I join the talented and forward thinking team at Happy Mushroom. Holy smokes, I love my job.
Steven Hensley is a well-versed VAD Supervisor that has worked on triple A title games, commercials, shorts and blockbuster productions such as Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Mandalorian Season 2, Oblivion, Thor 2: The Dark World, 300: Rise of an Empire, Maleficent, and more. Always striving to become a better artist, Steven Hensley is a creative, enthusiastic professional. With an excellent grasp of the latest creative tools, and proven problem-solving skills, he is an achievement-driven, responsible, individual who is committed whole-heartedly to his passion.
For over fifteen years, Andrew has built entertainment software and platforms that define how modern design is made and consumed. A pioneer in AR and VR, Andrew has been instrumental in bringing immersive entertainment to the mass market including the release of over 30 video games and aiding the launch of Oculus Quest during his time at Facebook. As CTO of Happy Mushroom, he has architected and built a next-generation platform of tools that seamlessly bring real-time 3D into all stages of the filmmaking process.
Game Systems Development:
Matan’s VFX background spans commercials, video games, film, and television. His experience in varied workflows and pipelines drew him to virtual production. As a Happy Mushroom Virtual Art Department Supervisor, Matan continues to develop new methodologies with clients such as CBS, and Lucasfilm.
Erik Walker has worked as a Lead VAD Artist with Happy Mushroom for two years. His strengths lie in layout art and direction, with an ability to quickly and accurately iterate ideas and concepts. While his main focus is in layouts, he also dabbles in rigging, animation, lighting, and VFX. Erik’s diverse skill set is invaluable to the successful delivery of cohesive creative environments.
David Olson has over ten years experience working in the film and gaming industry. He studied at Gnomon School of Visual Effects, and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where he earned his BFA. David has worked on major productions including Black Adam, The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian Season 2 and an upcoming Marvel blockbuster.
Meats Meier is one of Happy Mushroom’s leading Virtual Art Department Supervisors. With over 20 years experience in VFX, Meats offers a unique and highly detailed perspective to the world of virtual production. Meats just completed VAD supervising the new Lucasfilm series, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and a major upcoming Netflix series.
Jason has been creating images in the visual effects industry for over 20 years. During that time he has worked in video games, episodic television, and most recently commercials. Most recently Jason held the position of Deputy Head of CG at The Mill LA, and it is his knowledge of post visual effects that he is bringing to Happy Mushroom. “The marriage of real-time production with post VFX is a natural evolution within our industry and I couldn’t be more excited to be part of that process at Happy Mushroom.”
With over twelve years of experience working on blockbuster films, award-winning series, and boundary-pushing virtual projects, Safari Sosebee is one of the most-sought after creatives in the VFX and Virtual Production spaces. As Co-Founder and Lighting Director of Happy Mushroom, Safari led the virtual art department on Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian, which secured Emmys two years in a row for ‘Outstanding Visual Effects’ 2020-2021. In addition to his accomplishments in virtual production, Safari is highly regarded for his experience in 3D character design and asset modeling, compositing, lighting, and post-visualization enhancement.
As the CEO and Co-Founder of Happy Mushroom, Felix Jorge is a vibrant creative with a genuine passion for creating interactive, story-driven content. His extensive career leading Virtual Art Department teams and developing pipelines for projects such as The Mandalorian and Jungle Book, has placed him as a pioneer in the Virtual Production landscape. His “Filmmaker First” approach has initiated a collaborative and customizable process for creative and executive leads to discover their story in an intuitive way.
