Hi! I'm Nate Morrical
I'm a professional programmer with a passion for computer graphics.
My Passion
I'm passionate about computer graphics, visualization, high performance computing, and human computer interaction. These areas allow me to push myself creativity and technically, and in the process I get to work with a ton of talented people in the field.
Even back in highschool, I was tinkering with CAD tools like Unreal Engine, Blender and the Hammer Editor for Valve's Source engine. Computer graphics was just a hobby at the time, but I decided what I really wanted to do was make a career out it. I mean, what's better than getting paid to do what you like? I decided to try getting my foot in the door by pursuing a bachelors degree in computer science at Idaho State University, where I focused on 3D Modeling and animation, interactive graphics, parallel computing, and some computational geometry through undergraduate research.
From there, I went on to the University of Utah, where I'm currently working on a PhD in Computing in Graphics and Visualization. I'm incredibly humbled to be able to study computer graphics here at the U. So many influential people in the computer graphics community passed through here, and I'm thrilled to be able to follow in their footsteps.
Pixar Studios (Renderman)
Summer 2018
With the help of the awesome team at RenderMan, I was able to add a comprehensive set of python bindings to interactively edit ray traced scenes. I also had the oportunity to work on RenderMan XPU, and presented some features at the RenderMan Science Fair at Siggraph 2018.
Applied Visualization Laboratory
Summer 2017
I was an intern for the Idaho National Laboratory. There I worked on using CAVE systems, Stereo Walls, and VR headsets to visualize tomography data.
Computer Graphics Research
2015 – 2017
During my undergrad, I was a research assistant for John Edwards. Together, we worked on an algorithm to construct something we call "object resolving quadtrees" by taking advantage of every day consumer graphics cards.
Our work was mainly to improve generalized Voronoi Diagram and distance field construction, which in turn could improve robot traversal, physics simulations, data visualization, and many other things.
GSOC and the Blender Foundation
Summer of 2016
Google summer of Code allows students to work with a mentor to learn more about open source development.
In the program, I wrote a proposal to Blender on improving the performance of vertex painting.
My proposal was a success, and my vertex painting tools should be merged into the official Blender program in 2.8. (Shout out to my mentor, Bastien Montagne, and Pachupp for the art!)
Looking to collaborate?
Feel free to contact me! I'd love to chat!