Coming from a geographically small place, Samuel sensed that the world was enormous; therefore he became a very curious person. His parents didn’t have many opportunities growing up, therefore had an enormous desire to feed their son’s curiosity and encouraged him to try everything and to get as many life experiences as possible. With a lot of hard work and sacrifices, they encouraged Samuel to try out a variety of things in school including learning English, playing soccer, going camping, competing on the marching team, playing the clarinet, joining the swim team, and even training as a juggling performer.

When he reached university he maintained his curiosity of the world and explored many different career options before finding his true calling. He started at the University of Puerto Rico on a choir scholarship, but he majored in Engineering with the intent of building a real-life Iron Man. [WK1]Even though he was in a good position to fulfill the engineering career, he still craved other interests. He changed his major to English literature, then studied French in Quebec, Canada. He went on to study Cinematography and flirted with Graphic Design. These many experiences guided him to find his true passion for animation.

He transitioned his studies to Atlantic University College in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico to pursue a degree in Digital Animation. He got involved in as many projects as he could, one of which was a local film festival where its top participants were rewarded with a trip to Los Angeles to see “Hollywood.” This was his first time in L.A. and he spent the week touring amazing studios such as Blizzard Entertainment, Paramount, Universal Studios, Sony Animation, and, of course, the Nickelodeon Studios in Burbank. This introduction opened his eyes to the possibilities and gave him a clear perspective on what he could one day become.

After graduating from university, he joined local animation studio, Gladius Studios, along with 13 of his college friends. For the next 2 years, he honed his CG skills working on commercials and even some animation series as a Visual Effects Artist, all while developing a specialization in lighting and compositing. However, he hadn’t forgotten his dream of working for a big studio and when he saw the Nick Artist Program opened opportunities for a CG Track, he challenged himself to apply. Samuel is very excited about his achievement of getting into Nickelodeon and exploring animation outside of Puerto Rico. He is eager to get involved in big projects and continue his journey around the animation world.