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Like so many creative professionals, Shaman Marya doesn’t measure success by a singular achievement but rather in the testing of his abilities through varied opportunities that allow him to grow and interact with others on a similar journey. While he has certainly worked on films which are recognized as truly massive hits, he finds equal gratification in his contributions to smaller films and other projects like art installations. Whether the day finds him collaborating with someone like Oscar Award Nominated Cinematographer Mandy Walker, as he did on Snow White, or creating designs for artist Jordan Wolfson’s virtual reality experience “Little Room”, the magic and excitement of pushing the boundaries of perception and art are eternally fascinating to Shaman. While the title of Virtual Production Technical Director is most often how he is referred to, the moniker of “dreamer” most certainly applies to Mr. Marya as he literally is essential to bringing dreams into a perceived reality. Where art and technical mastery meet storytelling is where you will find him.
Attempting a live-action update of the classic animated film Snow White is no small undertaking. As one of the most beloved and enduring in the Disney canon, a modern iteration of this story required something substantial to justify it while still paying respect to the original version. Released almost a century after the original animated film, it’s obvious than one of the most profound factors of this version is its visual style. While 1937’s Snow White enchanted audiences, the 2025 version of this film is simply transportive. The world established in this production is completely believable, almost to the point of astonishment. Working closely with Mandy Walker (President ASC, ACS and Director of Photography on the film) as Lighting Technical Director on Snow White, Shaman was focused on the lighting and integration of visual effects shots with the live action filming that was done on set with Gal Gadot and Rachel Zegler. Ms. Walker states, “Shaman’s technical proficiency and aesthetic sensibility perfectly complement each other and make him a rare talent in the industry.” That talent led to the successful creation of such moments as the melee between the Evil queen’s forces and bandits, in a forest populated by CG animals. Mr. Marya notes a feeling of connection to cinema history as he used his skills to help remake the iconic “Heigh Ho” song and scene which introduces Doc, Bashful, Sleepy, Dopey, Grumpy, Sneezy and Happy. He comments, “This was the first time the song had been redone since 1937 and the magical creatures of the forest are introduced through the shadow wall. This shot felt like I had been entrusted to work on a part of cinema history and I will forever be grateful for being a part of it.” Shaman also cites the “Whistle While You Work” scene with its sense of fantastical imagery as a challenge as well as a high point for him.
Testifying to how his skillset can flex in many different directions, Shaman recently collaborated with international agency Unit9 as the Virtual Production Technical Director on Little Room by American artist Jordan Wolfson that ran at the Beyeler Art Foundation from June to August 2025. The piece invites audience members to be 3D scanned and engage in a body swap experience with each other, wherein they are taken through a guided experience, curated by fine artist Jordan Wolfson. Shaman designed the entire end-to-end pipeline, managing 4 different teams, to design and curate one of the most complex art experiences in recent years. The project involved the integration of photogrammetry, animation, motion capture, live facial tracking, custom lip sync animation, and more. Shaman professes, “This was the most difficult and ambitious undertaking of my career so far. My role as Technical Director was to bring together the moving parts of this amazingly ambitious idea. So, I not only constructed a working pipeline and formulated how the creative teams would work together, I worked on every part of this project to ensure its success. It’s truly a marvel and I’m so incredibly proud to have been a part of such an undertaking.”
Shaman has already returned to film with his work on the 3 D animated film Ashen which takes place in mid-century London during the great fog of 1952. He’ll once again be working with cinematographer Mandy Walker. Serving as Executive Producer and Virtual Production Supervisor alongside Director Ruby Bell, Mr. Marya was recruited specifically by Ms. Walker when they worked on Snow White. Bell, Walker, and Marya all were invited to speak at the Hollywood Professional Association Tech Retreat in Palm Springs regarding their work on this upcoming Children’s Horror film and the technical approach of it. At the event, Shaman demonstrated some of the state of the virtual production and visual effects techniques being employed in the making of Ashen. Ashen is highly anticipated in the 2025 film festival tour. There’s no telling what new project Shaman Marya will be working on by the end of this year, but it will most definitely be thrilling to witness.
