Williams studied animation at
Sheridan College, graduating in 1984. During the summers he would work at the
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education Computer Laboratory, learning more about
computer animation. After graduation, he went on to work at
Alias Research (currently a part of
Autodesk) in Toronto. He acted as the company's spokesperson, leading to a job at
Industrial Light & Magic in 1988. ILM had purchased
Silicon Graphics computers to create the
computer-generated effects in
The Abyss, and said workstations used Alias
modeling software. Along with animators
Mark A.Z. Dippé,
Scott E. Anderson and Jay Riddle, Williams helped develop a photorealistic alien pseudopod made out of seawater, which later earned the film an
Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Continuing at ILM, Williams worked in two more breakthrough moments of CG effects that earned the company more Oscars: the
T-1000 from
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), a liquid metal robot that evolved from the work done in
The Abyss; and the dinosaurs of
Jurassic Park (1993), one of which was the
Tyrannosaurus which Williams personally built. As the chief computer graphics animator of
The Mask, Williams shared a nomination for Best Visual Effects (along with
Tom Bertino,
Jon Farhat and
Scott Squires) at the
67th Academy Awards. Williams left ILM along with Dippé following their work in
Spawn (1997), which Dippé directed with Williams being the effects supervisor and
second unit director. Along with a job at
New Line Productions, Williams opened Hoytyboy Productions in
San Francisco. Hoytyboy's biggest work was 2006's
The Wild for
Walt Disney Pictures, which Williams directed. He also directed more than 200 commercials between 1997 and 2010, for clients including
Capital One,
Toyota,
AT&T,
Lexus and
McDonald's. As of 2012, Williams continues directing commercials. ==Selected filmography==