DIRECTED BY ALEX MAKAROV
Alex Makarov is a well-known director of Ukrainian origin who has been actively working on large-scale projects for top companies worldwide for over 15 years. His works include Megasoorts for National Geographic, two pilot projects for NETFLIX, collaboration with Digital Domain on special effects for Pirates of the Caribbean, a promotional campaign for Big Dance on Inter TV channel, War of the Worlds: Auditor vs. Boss on Novy channel, Hell’s Kitchen on 1+1 channel, X-Factor, KUB, Battle of the Psychics, and The Bachelor on STB channel, among many others. All these projects are united by the director’s original vision.
Education and Skills:
Studied editing and working with actors
Spent over five years on three-dimensional animation in Maya and 3ds Max
Mastered color correction in DaVinci Resolve
Special effects and compositing in NUKE
Engaged in drawing and painting for over ten years
Devoted 20 years to music and sound engineering, including two years studying mastering and mixing in Hollywood
Projects:
Big Dance — Inter TV channel
War of the Worlds: Auditor vs. Boss — Novy channel
Hell’s Kitchen — 1+1 TV channel
X-Factor
KUB
Battle of the Psychics — STB channel
The Bachelor — STB channel
Megasoorts — National Geographic
Two pilot projects for NETFLIX
Collaboration with Digital Domain on Pirates of the Caribbean
International Collaboration:
Actively works with international TV companies, including National Geographic
Conclusion:
All of Alex Makarov’s projects are diverse, but they are united by his original vision and professionalism
MAIN DIRECTIONS
Throughout his career, Alex Makarov has devoted a significant amount of time to education. Despite his successful projects, he continues to study video editing, with Walter Murch being a great friend and mentor. Alex works extensively with actors, studying and promoting various techniques, though he still prefers the Stanislavski and Chekhov methods.
For over 20 years, Alex has focused on 3D animation using Maya and 3ds Max. He has taught at Sasha Dorogova’s school and later at Animation Mentor in San Francisco. A special focus in Alex’s career is color correction. After exploring various grading programs, Alex settled on DaVinci Resolve in 2008 and dedicated considerable time to mastering it with leading experts. As Alex notes, despite DaVinci’s technical capabilities—especially in newer versions with neural network algorithms—the key to success lies in understanding color and frame composition. This understanding can only be achieved through drawing and painting, which is why Alex continues to work in his art studio, painting with oil on canvas.
Fusion, integrated into DaVinci Resolve in 2016, also holds significance in Alex’s work. Although Alex had been working with NUKE for years and was only somewhat familiar with Fusion before its integration, his expertise in color correction led him to study DaVinci Resolve Fusion intensively. While debates about whether NUKE or Fusion is superior persist, BlackMagic’s ongoing improvements to Fusion with each new version of DaVinci Resolve are evident. The increasing use of Fusion in major international projects suggests BlackMagic’s success in enhancing the software.
Music has been Alex’s greatest passion since childhood, deeply influencing his approach to music videos. His understanding of structure, melody, rhythm, and polyphony enriches his video editing and animation work. A pivotal period in his career was moving to the United States to study at DubSpot and Garnish music schools. This experience led to many adventures, valuable connections, and the opening of a studio branch in Los Angeles under the guidance of Hollywood producer and actor David Trevor, with whom Alex produced his first pilot for NETFLIX.
Currently, MAKAROV STUDIOS operates branches in Germany, the United States, and Ukraine. The company provides services including producing music videos, documentary films, commercials, content for bloggers, and presentations for pharmaceutical and construction companies.