Brian Jason Tran

About Me

I build procedural 3D systems and synthetic data pipelines at the intersection of computer graphics, simulation, and machine learning.

With 10+ years of experience spanning visual effects, synthetic data, and technical art, I've developed scalable Houdini and Python workflows for computer vision, robotics, and generative AI. My work includes procedural environment and asset generation, USD authoring, photorealistic content, sensor and ground-truth data, and simulation-ready geometry.

Throughout my career, I've combined hands-on technical development with technical leadership—building teams, developing production pipelines, and collaborating with ML engineers, artists, vendors, and research teams to turn complex requirements into scalable solutions.

I'm particularly interested in the challenge of generating high-quality, controllable synthetic data: building systems that balance visual fidelity, meaningful variation, and the technical requirements of downstream models.

My background spans both major animation and visual effects studios and emerging AI companies, giving me a perspective that bridges production-quality 3D content with data-driven applications.

Contact

💼 Experience

Technical Artist | Procedural & Agentic Workflows

Oct 2025 – Present

Apple via The Select Group

Seattle, WA (Hybrid)

  • Built procedural scene-generation pipelines using Houdini, USD, and Python to produce tens of thousands of scene variations while minimizing redundant samples.
  • Developed procedural modeling, material, and automation workflows to scale photorealistic 3D asset production and reduce manual iteration.
  • Coordinated external artists and established quality-control standards for photorealistic deliverables.

Principal Technical Artist | Synthetic Data for Generative AI

Mar 2023 – Oct 2024

Irreverent Labs

Backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Samsung Next · Bellevue, WA (Remote)

  • Built the Synthetics Division from a solo role to an 8-person team, delivering datasets for generative video and 3D model training.
  • Set technical direction with ML engineers and executive leadership, defining project scope and selecting tools to accelerate model iteration.
  • Led end-to-end delivery across internal teams and external contractors, balancing technical quality, timelines, budgets, and resources.

Lead Technical Artist | Synthetic Data for Computer Vision

May 2022 – Feb 2023

Scale AI

San Francisco, CA (Remote)

  • Led synthetic data strategy across 5+ concurrent client projects spanning classification, robotics, OCR, and keypoint detection.
  • Scaled a client’s training dataset by 30×, with model IoU improving from 0.657 to 0.794.
  • Developed Houdini/Python data-generation pipelines, managed 15+ distributed contractors, and drove improvements in labeling accuracy and quality control.

Founder

Jan 2022 – Jan 2024

Brixvi

Seattle, WA

  • Founded and operated an independent creative studio, leading a team of 5 artists and generating $100K+ in revenue.

Lead Technical Artist | Synthetic Data for Computer Vision

Dec 2020 – May 2022

Synthesis AI

San Francisco, CA (Remote)

  • Designed procedural generation systems for realistic human and environment datasets, supporting contract expansions with Apple, Amazon, and Google.
  • Built parameterized environment and object workflows balancing photorealism with ML-engineer control; established technical standards across internal artists and external contractors.

Effects Animator

May 2018 – Sep 2021

Walt Disney Animation Studios

  • Created effects for Encanto, Raya and the Last Dragon, Frozen 2, and Ralph Breaks the Internet.

Freelance FX Technical Artist

2016 – 2020

Los Angeles / NYC / London

  • Delivered FX supervision and technical artistry for projects involving Snapchat, Taylor Swift, and Maroon 5.

Technical Assistant

Jan 2013 – May 2015

Industrial Light & Magic

San Francisco, CA

  • Provided technical and pipeline support for feature films including Avengers: Age of Ultron, Warcraft, and Pacific Rim.

📚 Education

MSc, Computer Animation

2012

Bournemouth University, National Centre for Computer Animation

Distinction


BS, Computer Science

2011

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, College of Engineering

Computer Graphics Specialization

🧠 Technical Skills

Procedural & 3D

Houdini, Houdini TOPs, USD, Python, Maya, Substance Designer, V-Ray, Unity, Unreal Engine

Synthetic Data & ML

Procedural data generation, dataset design, annotation, metadata integration, domain-gap analysis, t-SNE, UMAP, PCA, Pandas, data validation

Technical Leadership

Technical strategy, cross-functional delivery, contractor and vendor leadership, QA/QC, resource allocation, budgeting

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