Just call him the Pixel Buddha. Oasim Karmieh is a CG generalist who works to inspire feelings inside the people who view his work. One look at his website and you’ll understand what we are talking about.

Digital-Tutors: Thanks for sitting down with us! Let’s start by telling us how you got dubbed the pixel Buddha. Oasim Karmieh: Well one summer it was so hot outside that I decided to shave my head. Later that day I was sitting on the bed in a Buddha-like pose, and my mom saw me from the other room and called me Buddha. My friends, who were in the room with me, started laughing and making fun and it stuck. So later on when I started to work as a graphic designer and as an avid gamer, pixel was automatically added in front of Buddha.

Digital-Tutors: We read that your goal when working on a project is to cause an emotional reaction. How do you do that? Oasim Karmieh: First thing I do is I sit down with the client---mostly over Skype---and talk about their business. I try to know the client’s business as a living thing and find the real message and feeling about that business by knowing the client and his emotions, plans and dreams. Most of my clients are small and medium business owners who care about their business as their own babies, so I’ve got to make sure that I don’t let them down when I go back with the mock-ups and the final product. And, at the same time I want the people who interact, buy and use the product to feel that real emotion and story of the product.

Digital-Tutors: When embarking on a project, what is the most important thing to do? Oasim Karmieh: Research is 50 percent of the work. You have to fill your brain with enough references and information to allow your brain to explode with creativity! Digital-Tutors: You do everything from animation to web design to logo creation. What is your favorite kind of project to work on? Oasim Karmieh: My favorite kind of projects are the ones that can tell a story or, like I mentioned earlier, cause an emotional reaction. I know that as designers or CG artists we have to work on a project and have it done at a certain deadline which is always yesterday, but lots of artists seem to forget that we are designing and creating these for people, we design that label or model that 3D character so we can get a reaction from people.

Digital-Tutors: Which do you prefer: teaching or creating? Oasim Karmieh: Both equally. When I wrote my first tutorial for pixelophy and again when I created my first course for Digital-Tutors, I discovered one amazing thing---when you are trying to teach somebody your technique and the way you work, you learn so much about yourself. You see your flaws and you try to simplify the procedure to make it easier to explain, so it’s like you are going over your skills and cleaning the flaws and bad habits that stayed with you because we all have them---especially when you are self taught.

Digital-Tutors: You’ve recieved a lot of awards and recognition in the industry, what one are you most proud of? Oasim Karmieh: There are actually a couple that I’m most proud. The first one was when my website got nominated for a Pixelward, because that was the first major competition that I entered. So to make in the final top 5 was awesome. It gave me the boost and confidence that I needed to be a good web designer. The second was when one of my 3D illustrations, She Didn’t Say Goodbye, got featured in 3DWorld Magazine. I was so happy when I found out; I was dancing with joy in my office. I am also very proud from when I got invited to create the courses Procedural Texturing in Maya and V-Ray and Lighting and Shading in V-Ray for Maya for Digital-Tutors. That was a huge thing for me, because I grew up as an artist learning from Digital-Tutors tutorials and now to have a chance to be part of that amazing team and the ability to give back, was a dream come true. Thank you for that!

Digital-Tutors: What’s next for you? Oasim Karmieh: I want to start a small CG Studio with a small team of people that I admire and look up to. I want to be able to share my knowledge and experiences that I’ve gathered along these years, while also learning new techniques daily. Digital-Tutors: We look forward to watching you continue to grow as an artist. Thanks once again for talking with us! Oasim Karmieh- Pleasure is all mine, thanks for the invite.

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