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- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Born in a very small community in the mid west Roy had no other contact to his dream of becoming a cinematographer than through the local theater and the Los Angeles phone directory. He would recall the names of cinematographers as they appeared on their films and call them blindly to talk with them about their work. Many of them were so suprised by this young man's ambition and interest that they took him under their wing, mentoring him. When he arrived in Los Angeles he spent every moment with them on their sets and homes learning as much about them and their work as he could. Because of this he was able to meet and befriend many of the greatest cinematographers in Hollywood. His key mentor was Harry Stradling Sr. Through him he developed friendships with Joseph Ruttenberg, George Folsey, James Wong Howe, Leon Shamroy, Frank Phillipd, Leonard South, and many many others. In the late 70s he began a life long process of interviewing cinematographers on video tape or film. A deep reverence for all that is old Hollywood remains a great part of his life and the memory of the behind the scene stories told him as a young man is an important basis for his life and work.- Actor
- Stunts
- Visual Effects
Derek Mears was born on April 29, 1972 in Bakersfield, California, USA. He has numerous credits as both an actor and a stuntman, and he got his breakthrough lead role in the 2009 Friday the 13th film. He is known for his work on Sleepy Hollow (2013-2017), Predators (2010) and Men in Black II (2002).- Actor
- Stunts
- Writer
Steve James was often cast in action movies as the hero's sidekick, despite usually being a better actor and fighter than the star. James was raised in New York City, attended C.W. Post College as an Arts and Film major, and upon graduating, became involved in stage work and TV commercials. He started in film as a stuntman, working in such New York productions as Ghostbusters, The Wiz, The Warriors, and The Wanderers. His first major film role was as Robert Ginty's sidekick in The Exterminator; he later played sidekick to such stars as Michael Dudikoff (3 times), David Carradine, and Chuck Norris. His last 2 films were the pilot for the TV series "M.A.N.T.I.S." which aired on the Fox network just a few weeks after his death at age 41 of pancreatic cancer and "Bloodfist V: Human Target" with Don "The Dragon" Wilson which premiered after Steve's death.- Actress
- Writer
- Location Management
Amy Steel's acting career began in West Chester, Pennsylvania in 1973 when she attended Westtown school of dramatic arts. After two summers of dramatic training, Amy joined Barley-Sheaf Players and starred in two productions. She temporarily left the theatre to further pursue her academic career at the prestigious Kent school in Kent, Conneticut. After three years at Kent, Amy left to attend a small college in Palm Beach, Florida where she majored in communications and broadcasting. It was there that John Casablancas, President of the renowned Elite model Agency discovered her.
Amy left Florida for New York in June 1979. Career opportunities in modelling, television and film soon followed. Amy has appeared in many television commercials, several soap operas and many hit movies. Today her film and TV career continues to shine.- Music Department
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Mark 'Bez' Berry was born on 18 April 1964. He is an actor, known for Skins (2007), Halita (2019) and Geezers. He has been married to Firouzeh Razavi since 3 September 2022.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Matty Cardarople has always wanted to be an entertainer. Born and raised in Exeter, New Hampshire, Cardarople fueled his creative passion by entertaining friends and family with his comedic skills. After moving to Los Angeles he studied acting at The Beverly Hills Playhouse and has been perfecting his craft studying with Lesly Kahn. Ultimately Cardarople was discovered by Luke and Owen Wilson who gave him his career start with roles in the feature films Blonde Ambition and Drillbit Taylor.
Cardarople went on to appear in the blockbuster hit Jurassic World and Dumb and Dumber To, where he worked with his childhood idol Jim Carrey whom he cites as his career inspiration. Cardarople quickly continued to add to his credits with roles in the indie comedy The 4th, the critically-acclaimed Amazon rom-com The Big Sick and the Steven Soderbergh directed film Logan Lucky.
Cardarople got another big break with a starring role in the hit Netflix show A Series of Unfortunate Events, as Orlando, the "Hench Person of Indeterminate Gender" in the Troupe of Count Olaf played by Neil Patrick-Harris. The series is streaming now and is a favorite of audiences and critics alike. And as his impressive success continues, Cardarople can be seen in the highly-talked about second and third season of the Netflix instant classic Stranger Things.
He also stars as Noodle in the Netflix comedy film Wheels of Fortune alongside actors Matt Jones (Breaking Bad), Jeff Fahey, Noureen DeWulf, and John Ducey. The film follows a down-on-his-luck mechanic and his best friend as they head to competitions to win a big inheritance.
Recently Cardarople can be heard as the voice of Preston in Archibald's Next Big Thing streamable on Netflix. Cardarople continues to keep busy with roles such as Roger in Lazy Susan, Roy Meyer in I Am Woman, and Frank White in the Hulu anthology series Monsterland. He has also been cast as Ansel in the Taika Waititi project Reservation Dogs, Remy in "Made for Love", and the upcoming Netflix animated series "We Lost Our Human" alongside Ben Schwartz.
Things aren't slowing down for Cardarople, he can be seen in the blockbuster hit Free Guy alongside Ryan Reynolds. The film is "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. Coming up next, he will also play Clay Elliot, a young inattentive father in the romance thriller American Cherry from writer/director Marcella Cytrynowicz.
Cardarople has been seen on notable television shows such as New Girl, Angie Tribeca, Scrubs, Ray Donovan, You're The Worst, Comedy Bang! Bang! Selfie and Chasing Life.
Cardarople is accomplished in other arenas as well. He spends time drawing and writing poetry; his first self-published book of poems is titled Space Cadet and he just released his second titled Happy Birthday Everyday which both are available for purchase online. When not on set, Cardarople devotes his efforts to a number of worthy causes such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation, and local animal shelters.
Cardarople currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, cats and a rescue pomeranian named Azoun.- Actor
- Composer
- Writer
The Enigma, born Paul Lawrence, is a performer, an actor and a musician. He plays piano, guitar and flute, he sings and he composes. He has undergone extensive body modification, including horn implants, ear reshaping, multiple body piercings, and a full-body jigsaw-puzzle tattoo. He is famous for his sideshow stunts: he started performing sword-swallowing at the age of 15.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Cinematic jack-of-all-trades Rick Sloane will never win any special awards for his admittedly cheap'n'cheesy low-budget independent movies, but he nonetheless deserves some respect for weathering the storm of lots of harsh critical notices and cranking out a sizable number of films throughout the years. Rick was born in 1961 and grew up in Los Angeles, California (he even attended Hollywood High School). He started making fake movie trailers as a teenager and originally planned on being an animator. Sloane was inspired to become a full-fledged filmmaker after seeing the hilarious 70's drive-in exploitation schlock parody "Hollywood Boulevard" at age eighteen. Rick went to film school at Los Angeles City College, where he was told by several instructors that he was the least talented student in their classes. Sloane's debut feature was the lame horror slasher spoof "The Movie House Massacre," which he made when he was twenty-one years old. This was followed by the campy sci-fi outing "The Visitants." Rick achieved his greatest notoriety with the atrocious "Gremlins" rip-off "Hobgoblins;" this horrendous dud was famously mocked on the cult TV show "Mystery Science Theater 3000." Sloane really hit his stride with the crudely amusing "Vice Academy" flicks; he wound up making six movies altogether in this particular series (these pictures were made popular by being shown all the time on the late-night cable TV program "USA Up All Night"). "Good Girls Don't" rates highly as Rick's best-ever cinematic venture to date; it's a surprisingly sweet and charming female buddy comedic romp that's funny and touching in equal measure. After an eight year hiatus from filmmaking, Rick Sloane made a comeback with the less than eagerly anticipated belated sequel "Hobgoblins 2."- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Originally born Harris Glen Milstead just after the end of WWII, Baltimore's most outrageous resident eventually became the international icon of bad taste cinema, as the always shocking and highly entertaining transvestite performer, Divine.
Milstead met maverick film director & good friend, John Waters, at high school in Baltimore, and the two combined to star in and direct several ultra low budget, taboo breaking cult films of the early 1970s. Their first efforts included Roman Candles (1967), Eat Your Makeup (1968) and Mondo Trasho (1969)....however, their most infamous work together was the amazing Pink Flamingos (1972), in which Divine starred as "Babs Johnson", the "filthiest person alive" living in a pink trailer with her egg-eating grandmother, chicken-loving son and voyeuristic daughter.
Divine also starred as career criminal Dawn Davenport in Female Trouble (1974), as bored housewife Francine Fishpaw in Polyester (1981), as outlaw gal Rosie Velez in Lust in the Dust (1984) and in Waters' loving (but still slightly bizarre) salute to teen dance TV shows as Ricki Lake's mother in the superb Hairspray (1988).
Milstead's health deteriorated due to to his obese frame, and he passed away in his sleep from a combination of heart attack and apnea in 1988.- Billy Mays was born on 20 July 1958 in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays (2009), Pitchmen (2009) and Grip Wrench Commercial (2002). He was married to Deborah Mays and Dolores DiDesiderio. He died on 28 June 2009 in Tampa, Florida, USA.
- Actor
- Sound Department
- Composer
Alex Vincent was born in New Jersey. He first appeared as Andy Barclay in Child's Play (1988) when he was a six-year-old. Two years, later during the filming of Child's Play 2 (1990), the young actor endured long days and demanding action that would have tried the patience of many an older person. But Vincent persevered, winning the respect and affection of both cast and crew. In addition to his role of Andy, Vincent has appeared on television in commercials, daytime dramas, and in the feature film, Wait Until Spring, Bandini (1989). In high school, he tried to live down the image of a child star but two years later decided to give acting another try.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Initially not a science fiction fan, theatre actor Anthony Daniels was persuaded by his agent to meet George Lucas for the casting of C-3PO in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). He went on to perform the character, both his voice and body in the suit, for all the episodic Star Wars films produced. Additionally, he performed the voice of the character for the radio serial based on the original trilogy and the animated series Star Wars: Droids (1985), Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003), Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008), related series Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) and Star Wars: Rebels (2014).
For Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999), he wore a blue Spandex suit, as the android is incomplete in the film and ultimately produced in CGI. In addition to playing the golden droid, he appeared in a live action cameo in the nightclub scene of Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and opera scene in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). As C-3PO, he played a small role in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) and The Lego Movie (2014).- Actor
- Special Effects
- Additional Crew
World renown archivist and historian of props, costumes, and other screen used paraphernalia from some of the greatest (and not so great) science fiction, fantasy, and horror motion pictures. Among some of the things found in his "basement" museum are, the original Time Machine from the George Pal classic of the same name, the original wolf's head cane from 1941's The Wolfman, the original King Kong armature, and a functioning full size head of the Alien Queen from James Cameron's Aliens.- Art Department
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Joshua Aragon, born on February 14, 1984 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, grew up in Seattle, Washington from 1990-1999 before moving back to Albuquerque. Son of Ron, a retired District Manager for The Albuquerque Journal newspaper, and Phyllis, a retired youth coordinator. Joshua's brother, Aaron, is a prop assistant in the New Mexico film industry. Sister-In-law Meaghan, owns her own baking company called (Sweet Delights by Meaghan) . Aragon's two sons are a major inspiration in his quest to be a mainstay on the big screen. In 1990, Joshua's father sparked his interest in the entertainment industry. Between the ages of 6 and 20, Aragon was also a Sound FX mobile disc jockey with his father Ron. In 2007, Aragon started working in the film industry doing background work. Since 2007. Aragon can be seen on television series such as "Breaking Bad", "In Plain Sight", "Easy Money", as well as principal roles in movies such as "We're The Millers", "2Guns", "Frontera", "Force Of Exectition", and more. Working alongside the likes of Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Jennifer Aniston, Eva Longoria, Michael Pena, Ed Harris and various other actors and actresses has allowed Aragon to learn from and work with some of the best in the industry. In 2011, Aragon started the ILLFest Concert Series along with his then partner Mark Montano, in which the likes of Rittz, Crooked I, Chino XL, Jadakiss, Apathy, T.I., Pusha T, Twista, Jimmie Allen, and other artists were brought to the stages of Albuquerque. Utilizing his ability in promotions and marketing, Aragon has been involved with numerous successful concerts and events as well as helping spread the sounds of artists Reno and TrebolClef. In January of 2012, Aragon started doing prop work, which has expanded his knowledge and abilities to carry over to behind the camera. With movies such as "ForceOfExecution", "Scorch Trials", "Sicario", "Hostiles", "12 Strong" and TV shows such as "The Unsettling", "Snatchers" & Netflix newest show "Day Break". Aragon steadily shows his support to his city, state, and other individuals pursuing their goals.- Art Department
- Set Decorator
- Production Designer
"As a Producer & Director I can highly recommend Lili.
Lili provided the set styling, design and props for my short thriller "Waiting for Nicko". From the outset Lili was quick to understand dates film brief. Lili is totally 'solution focussed' and quickly developed our initial concept/styling to delivery of a truly epic set that transformed the location. I found Lili to be creative, highly professional and a supremely talented prop maker. Her props were prototype tested, in advance of filming, ensuring that no set time was wasted. During Set build Lili worked tirelessly and efficiently working closely with my Production Team, Lighting and Camera departments to complete the build on schedule. Lili ensured that our scene changes were efficient and kept to time. I found Lili to be highly regarded by all department heads. I have had the pleasure of working with Lili on a subsequent short film project and observed her to maintain her high standards and creative work ethic at all times."
Howard Perry Producer & Director- Art Department
- Writer
- Cinematographer
Graduating in 2008 with a degree in Entertainment Technology from Chattahoochee Technical College, Nicholas has worked in many different departments. He has written, produced, and directed many short films and documentaries before joining IATSE and settling in to the props department where he quickly became well known for providing exceptional work in the field. He has worked for all major studios including: Netflix, A24, Disney, Amazon, Warner Brothers, Viacom, and many independent productions.
Happily married to his wife Naomi, they live in Atlanta with their dog, Kirby.- Make-Up Department
- Art Department
- Special Effects
Christina Kortum is a special makeup effects artist and prop maker based in both Portland, OR and Burbank, CA. Her company Ravenous Studios has been supplying custom makeups, costumes, and props to the film industry since 2009 both domestically and internationally. You can see Christina's work on television shows such as Portlandia, Leverage, Librarians, and Grimm as well as numerous independent feature films. She is a member of IATSE 488.- Actress
- Producer
- Casting Director
Stephanie Mihm, the first lady of The Mihmiverse, made her first appearance in her husband's films in 2007's "It Came From Another World!", as the Church Lady organist in the end credits. She now does a little bit of everything for Saint Euphoria Pictures. Her credits include costumer, producer, casting, and actor. In 2019, she was in the title role of the Mihmiverse film, "Queen of Snakes". She also can be seen in several other Mihmiverse movies playing a wide variety of roles, including (but not limited to) the High Priestess of Mars, scientist Rosemary Bennett/Jackson, astronauts Drs. Rutherford and Elliott and a myriad of monsters, mutants and scary creatures. Stephanie also lends her talents to help create props, design & build sets and provides voiceover work. When she is not acting as writer and/or director or Christopher R. Mihm's "Girl Friday," she is a highly qualified elementary school Special Education teacher.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Philip Odango is an American actor, artist, designer, producer, director and cosplayer. With over a decade of experience in directing and producing over two dozen stage productions, he is known for his award-winning costume work as Canvas Cosplay. He has appeared as an invited guest, costume contest judge and panelist in many conventions, including San Diego Comic Con, Disney's D23 Expo, New York Comic Con, Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Dragon Con, AsiaPOP Comicon, Rose City Comic Con and HawaiiCon. He recently judged the The Cosplay Authority Global Challenge in Manila, one of the largest cosplay cash prizes in the world with a grand prize of $10,000 USD,.
His costumes have been featured in national media such as The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Good Morning America, International Business Times and Forbes Magazine; and in industry media, including Cosplay Culture Magazine, Cosplay in America, Kotaku and Fashionably Geek. His award-winning Doctor Strange cosplay was featured by Marvel, and he was commissioned to produce a replica prop for The Jimmy Kimmel Show. A seasoned competition champion, his cosplay of Maui from Disney's Moana won at the Crown Championships of Cosplay in Chicago, and is recognized by Disney's head of animation of Moana as "The REAL Maui".
In 2017 he partnered with Singer® Sewing Company as its official Brand Ambassador, helping introduce novice sewers and cosplayers to the features and functionality of Singer products. Singer most recently sponsored the New York Comic Con Eastern Championships of Cosplay, where Philip helped award the top 3 overall champions. Philip launched the "Bros Who Sew" initiative to teach sewing workshops and encourage visibility on male sewists.
With 15 years of professional experience in advertising, marketing and communications, and an active member of the Public Relations Society of America, Philip strives to empower cosplayers worldwide to strengthen their confidence and professional development. In January 2018, Philip launched his Cosplay Professional Development Series with his introductory book Cosplay Marketing & PR 101: Startup Essentials for Growing Your Cosplay Brand.- Art Department
- Production Designer
- Set Decorator
Claudia Cantoral, (also known as Claudia Cantoral Blaney), is a props, art department and set decoration technician for TV/Film, Music Video Production and Theatre.
In 2011, she graduated from the University of British Columbia holding a B.F.A. in Theater Design and Production.
Born in Mexico City, she moved with her family to Vancouver, Canada at the age of 10 and has made it her home ever since. From a young age, Claudia has been interested in the arts and found her passion for theatre and the performing arts in her late high school years. She has been involved in the entertainment industry ever since.- Actor
- Art Department
- Art Director
David Wilczynski is a Props Master at Columbia College Chicago. David loves working as a Props Master because of his love of the little details in a film that most people wouldn't notice and props are a great way to add those's little details that bring even more flavor to the film. Ever since David was a little kid he's wanted to work in the art department grabbing random bits of junk off the ground because he thought they would look good in a film. What you call hording, he calls research.- An accomplished actor, painter/sculptor and writer, Denis Forest attended Ryerson Theatre School in Toronto, Canada. He was an associate artist with the Necessary Angel Theatre Company from 1982-1987, where he collaborated on a number of award-winning plays under the direction of Richard Rose ("Tamara"). In 1983 "Mein" received the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Best New Play, and in 1984 Denis was nominated for an ACTRA acting award for the CBC drama A Man in Uniform (1993). In 1985 he was co-recipient of the prestigious Chalmers Award. In 1990 he moved to Los Angeles, where he played a number of memorable roles in film and on television. Recent film credits include Eraser (1996), Cliffhanger (1993) and The Mask (1994) (which showcased his comic abilities). He also starred in John Frankenheimer's Against the Wall (1994), Andersonville (1996), Stephen King's Storm of the Century (1999) and the drama The Shield (2002)). In March 2002 he appeared in two episodes ("Provenance 1" and "Provenance 2") of The X-Files (1993) and was preparing to begin work on a film.
He has also written screenplays, among them "Blind Spot" and "Into the Fire". As an acclaimed artist, his paintings and sculptures have been exhibited and are permanently displayed in galleries and venues such as the William Turner Gallery in Venice, California (2000-2001), Bedlam Art in Los Angeles (March-April 2002), Soolip Gallery (2000), JP Morgan Securities in San Francisco, Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas (2000), Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas (1999), the Laguna Museum of Art (2000; his work is also featured in the sales and rental office of the museum), LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) Group Show (1999), DeVorzon Gallery in Beverly Hills, D2 in Seat Vision, Diana Derpic, the William Turner Gallery in San Francisco at the Triton Hotel (1996) and in private collections.
Although Denis was often cast to play bizarre and eccentric characters, his dramatic work (including a flawless performance in "The Shield") speaks of his amazing range, talent and sensitivity. Denis spoke of his delight at the success in his native Canada of the children's film Tadpole and the Whale (1988) ("The Tadpole and the Whale"), which made his character Marcel a favorite with children - who would recognize him and approach him on the street. In his personal life, Denis was an engaging, sensitive, spiritual, kind, funny, extremely intelligent and enlightened person; he will be remembered as a truly gentle soul. Denis' special interests included poetry, literature, philosophy, art, film, music, yoga, and alchemy which held a special intrigue for him and figured profoundly into his painting. Denis was truly a Renaissance Man. Denis passed away suddenly following a massive stroke in Los Angeles on March 18, 2002, after having dinner in a Franklin Avenue restaurant in Hollywood with a few friends. An incredibly talented actor, writer, and artist, a wonderful and inspiring friend who left us too soon, a ray of light - that is how Denis will be remembered by those who had the good fortune of knowing him. - Producer
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Max Fleischer was an American animator, inventor, and film producer from Krakow. As an inventor, Fleischer is primarily known for inventing the rotoscope, an animation technique that allowed animators to draw realistic images and movements, based on live-action images. He later co-founded the short-lived animation studio Fleischer Studios (1929-1942), and served as the studio head for its entire history. The studio was primarily known for creating short film featuring the animated characters Koko the Clown, Betty Boop, and Bimbo the Dog. It also introduced the first animated adaptations of both Popeye and Superman. Fleischer lost control over his studio to Paramount Pictures, though he would continue to work in animation for decades.
In 1883, Fleischer was born to a Jewish family in Krakow, Austria-Hungary. His father was the tailor Aaron Fleischer, and his mother was the housewife Malka "Amelia" Palasz. The Fleischer family emigrated to the United States in 1887, settling in New York City. Aaron became an exclusive tailor to high society clients, and the family enjoyed a middle-class life for about a decade. Aaron lost control over his tailor shop in the late 1890s, forcing the family to move to an impoverished section of Brooklyn.
Fleischer received commercial art training at the Cooper Union, a private college located at Cooper Square in New York City. He received formal art training at the Art Students League of New York. His teacher there was the Canadian painter George Bridgman (1864-1943). Fleischer also received further education at "Mechanics and Tradesman's School".
After completing his education, Fleischer was hired as an errand boy by the newspaper "The Brooklyn Daily Eagle" (1841-1955, 1960-1963). He remained there for years, working variously as a photographer, a photoengraver, and a staff cartoonist. He initially drew only single-panel editorial cartoons. He later created the satirical comic strips "Little Algie" and "S.K. Sposher, the Camera Fiend".
Fleischer left the newspaper c. 1905, in order to work as a technical illustrator for the Electro-Light Engraving Company in Boston. In 1909, he was hired as a catalog illustrator for the Crouse-Hinds Company. In 1910, he was hired as an art editor by the magazine "Popular Science". By 1914, the first commercially produced animated short films appeared in movie theaters. The characters; movements were generally "stiff and jerky", and so Fleischer started working on a method to trace images from a live-action film. He worked on his rotoscope from 1914 to 1916, and was granted a patent for the invention in 1917. This allowed the production of realistic animation.
Fleischer partnered up with his brother Dave Fleischer, to produce the animated film series "Out of the Inkwell" (1918-1929). It included 62 animated films, mostly featuring Koko the Clown as the protagonist. The character was inspired by Dave's previous job as a clown at Coney Island. The selling point of the series were the on-screen interactions between live-action artists and their pen and ink creations. The Fleischer brothers were eventually able to hire the experienced animator Dick Huemer, who produced more fluid animation for their films.
In 1924, Fleischer and a number of partners co-founded the film company Red Seal Pictures Corporation, which owned 36 theaters on the East Coast of the United States. One of Fleischer's partners was the inventor Lee de Forest (1873-1961). De Forest was working on a method to produce sound-on-film recordings for films. Fleischer gained access to de Forest's Phonofilm process, and went to work in creating animated short films with sound. The first of them was "My Old Kentucky Home" (1926), which also featured the first use of lip-synch in animation. Fleischer eventually worked on 19 early sound films, but the Red Seal went bankrupt in 1927.
From 1927 to 1929, the Fleischer brothers had a brief business partnership with film producer Alfred Weiss. They agreed to produce animated short films for Paramount Pictures, which would serve as their distributor. The partnership dissolved due to the mismanagement of Weiss, but the Fleischer brothers would maintain a working relationship with Paramount for the following 15 years.
In 1929, Fleischer co-founded the Fleischer studios. The company's staff initially set up operations at the Carpenter-Goldman Laboratories in Queens. Only 8 months later, they moved to a new location in Broadway. This would remain their main headquarters until 1938.Fleischer and his staff started work on the film series "Screen Songs" (1929-1938). It featured sing-along animated shorts, teaching the lyrics of various songs to the audience. The short films featured performances by popular musicians of the 1930s, such as Lillian Roth, Ethel Merman, and Cab Calloway.
The short film "Dizzy Dishes" (1930) introduced the character of Betty Boop, a caricature of a Jazz Age flapper. She quickly became a recurring character, and served initially as an imitation of real-life singer Helen Kane (1904-1966). Betty was a hit with the audience, and she was granted her own film series in 1932. She starred in 90 films between 1932 and 1939, and had guest-star roles in other 36 films between 1930 and 1933. She was the most popular character of the Fleischer Studios, regarded as the first "sex symbol" on the animated screen.
In late 1932, Fleischer licensed the rights to the comic strip character Popeye the Sailor. The character was granted a film series of his own, appearing in 109 short films between 1933 and 1942. The series introduced animated adaptation of several comic strip characters from the series "Thimble Theatre" (1919-1994), such as the damsel-in-distress Olive Oyl, the muscular bully Bluto, and the gluttonous scam artist J. Wellington Wimpy. The characters became household names, with Popeye himself said to surpass Mickey Mouse in popularity by the end of the 1930s.
Due to a business deal, the Fleischer Studios acquired much of its funding from a long-term partnership with Paramount Pictures. At times when Paramount itself was facing financial problems, the studio found itself suffering from a lack of funding. Fleischer was initially unable to secure rights to the innovative three-color Technicolor process in 1932. The studio introduced its first color cartoons in 1934, but had to use the limited two-color processes of Cinecolor (red and blue) and Two-Color Technicolor (red and green). They introduced their first film in three-color Technicolor in 1936. By that point, the rival studio Walt Disney Animation Studios was considered to be more innovative in its uses of color animation.
In the mid-1930s, Fleischer patented the use of three-dimensional effects in animation. He promoted these under the name the "Stereoptical Process". The process was used to great effect in the featurettes "Popeye the Sailor Meets Sinbad the Sailor" (1936) and "Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves" (1937). Max Fleischer started petitioning Paramount to fund an animated feature film, but their executives were doubtful of its commercial value. Following the box office success of the animated feature film "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937), Fleischer received sufficient funding to work on his own feature film.
In 1938, the Fleischer Studios moved its headquarters to Miami, Florida. The studio staff started working on "Gulliver's Travels" (1939), the second American animated feature film to be produced. During its production, the personal relationship between brothers and business partners Max and Dave Fleischer deteriorated. Max reportedly disapproved of Dave's love life, and attempted to end one of Dave's romantic relationships. The film was eventually completed and grossed more than $3 million dollars at the American box office.
To Max Fleischer's disappointment, the Fleischer Studios found itself in debt due to their first feature film. Paramount received a lion's share of the profits from the American box office, and the animation studio had no rights to any profits from the film's releases in foreign markets. In addition, Paramount penalized the animation studio with the debt of 350,000 dollars. The film had exceeded its original budget, and this violated a contract agreement with Paramount. The Fleischer Studios were now indebted to their distributor.
In 1940, Fleischer Studios introduced three new animated series: "Gabby", "Animated Antics", and "Stone Age Cartoons". "Gabby" was a spin-off from "Gulliver's Travels" , featuring the adventures of the film's town crier. "Animated Antics" was an anthology series, often featuring supporting characters from "Gulliver's Travels". "Stone Age Cartoons" featured a surprisingly modern take on Stone Age life, and has been cited as a precursor to "The Flintstones". All three series were regarded as commercial failures, generating little interest from exhibitors.
In search for a more viable series, Fleischer licensed to the superhero character Superman. The studio created a short-lived series for the character, releasing 9 short films between 1941 and 1942. It was the character's first animated adaptation, and featured more technically complex elements than most of its contemporaries in animation. Each episode had a budget of about 50,000 dollars, twice the budget of the typical Popeye cartoon in the same period. Frustrated that they had to animate the character leaping from place to place (as in the comics), the Fleischer brothers came up with the idea that Superman could fly on his own. The high cost of the series turned out to be a problem, but the series was popular.
Meanwhile, the Fleischer brothers were working on their second animated feature, at the request of Paramount. The film in question was "Mr. Bug Goes to Town", a tale of anthropomorphic insects. It was scheduled for release in early December 1941, but its release was postponed for months due to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Theater owners showed only a limited interest in the film, and it turned out to be a box office bomb.
With the Fleischer Studios heavily in debt to Paramount and Dave Fleischer having already resigned, Paramount decided to claim ownership over the animation studio and its characters. Max Fleischer was forced to resign, while the studio was re-organized into the Paramount subsidiary Famous Studios (1942-1967). The most notable character of the new studio was Casper the Friendly Ghost.
Fleischer was briefly out of work. He subsequently was hired as the head of the animation department for "The Jam Handy Organization", a Detroit-based company owned by film producer (1886-1983). Fleischer primarily worked on animated training films for the Army and Navy during World War II. He continued working for Handy until 1953. His most notable film for this entire period was "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (1948), the first animated adaptation of a 1939 Christmas story by Robert L. May. Fleischer personally directed the film.
In 1953, Fleischer was hired as a production manager by Brayco. It was a company which primarily produced filmstrips from the late 1960s to its closing in 1963. It had formed as a corporate successor to the animation studio Bray Productions (1912-1928), where Fleischer had briefly worked in his early career.
In 1955, Fleischer won a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures. They had the rights to re-release most of his former films, but the court decided that they did not have the right to remove Fleischer's name from the film credits. In 1958, Fleischer and his new partner Hal Seeger (1917-2005) founded the minor animation studio "Out of the Inkwell Films". They had the intention to revive "Out of the Inkwell" as a television series. They eventually produced 100 color episodes of the new series, released from 1960 to 1961. Due to his failing health, Fleischer decided against appearing in person in the live-action segments.
For most of the 1960s, Fleischer made efforts to reclaim ownership over Betty Boop, his most popular character. Paramount had sold its rights to the character in 1958, but the courts were unable to decide which person or company held the exclusive rights to the character.
In 1967, Fleischer and his wife Essie retired to the Motion Picture Country House, a retirement community for film industry people. The retirement community was located at the southwest end of the San Fernando Valley, and had been operational since 1942. In September 1942, Fleischer died there, due to "arterial sclerosis of the brain". He was 89-years-old at the time of his death, having survived several of his former partners and employees.
Fleischer's animated works eventually found a new audience in animation fans who regard them as an alternative to Walt Disney's works, and who often find them to be more appealing to older audiences. Works of the Fleischer Studios have also been popular with animation historians, which regard them highly for their innovations. Fleischer remains one of the most famous animated film producers of the 20th century, but his reputation mostly endures due to the cult following of some of his characters.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Born and raised in Mexico, Romero began acting professionally when he was 16 years old touring the country with musicals such as "Barnum" and "Something's Afoot". He went on to make history as a series regular playing an openly gay character in the award-winning sitcom "Los Beltrán" on Telemundo from 1999 to 2001. He has also starred as the incorrigible Sergio in "YLSE," a comedy web series with Ruth Livier and Marlene Forte; and as Sicario with Kate del Castillo in "Ingobernable" for Netflix. Other acting credits include: a bilingual reporter in "War of the Worlds" at Walt Disney Hall with Sigourney Weaver; the starring role in the critically-acclaimed international touring production of "The Ogreling" at 24th Street Theatre; a Reveler in "Crescent City," an opera produced by The Industry; the prime-time drama "Fashion House" with Bo Derek on The CW; "The Moment After" an award-winning film directed by Gerald McCullouch (CSI); Showtime's "Blood Money" with Alan Arkin; "The Father I Knew-The Michael Landon Story" next to Sheryl Ladd for CBS; "Silk Stalkings" with Stu Segall Productions; and the last film by Temi Lopez (Chain of Desire) "Home: The Horror Story." Romero's voice over talent can be heard in season five and seven of "Archer" on FX; the PBS animated series "Maya and Miguel"; ABC's "Handy Manny"; the "Scarface" and "Saints Row" video games; bilingual promos for Bravo, ABC and HBO; New Line Cinema's movie trailers; commercial campaigns for Sprint, Mazda, Old Navy, State Farm, AMPM, Red Cross, among others; and several Spanish audio books. He hosted E! Entertainment's celebrity travel and vacation show "FYE!" and the Internet radio show "The Spiritual Tourist". Additionally, Romero served as master of ceremonies for Fashion Week of the Americas in Miami, Modarte, Latin Pride and Day of the Dead in Los Angeles, and for several non-profit organizations such as GLASS, Bienestar and The Latino Commission on AIDS in New York. Romero holds a BFA from the University of Southern California, worked as an Allen Lee Hughes Fellow at Arena Stage in Washington D.C., as Assistant Director with directors such as Craig Noel and Rene Buch, and served as Artistic Director/Teacher of the bilingual outreach program Teatro Meta at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. As a young man, he was exposed to the ancient Mesoamerican cultures and today continues to work closely with the Maya Itza Council of Elders and Priests in Yucatan, Mexico. Romero is also a musician, having taken up piano at the age of six, and has trained as a painter, dancer and gymnast.- Special Effects
- Director
- Visual Effects
Brian Johnson is a award winning special and visual effects designer and director who for over 40 years provided his services to a multitude of film and television productions.
Johnson's career began in 1957 when he joined Anglo Scottish Pictures after meeting veteran effects artist and skilled matte painter Les Bowie moving on to become a clapper loader and filming effects plates for Dunkirk (1958). After becoming a Hammer films effects assistant in 1958 Johnson's national service in the RAF followed before moving on to film the 1961 apocalyptic classic The Day the Earth Caught Fire during which he was an effects assistant at Bowie Films.
In 1961 Johnson joined AP Films (later Century 21) under the talented Derek Meddings, firstly as a model builder and flyer on Gerry Anderson classics such as Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray and later a second unit director on the groundbreaking television series Thunderbirds. By 1966 Johnson left Century 21, taking with him a wealth of knowledge and found himself working on a Stanley Kubrick picture called 2001: A Space Odyssey on special effects shots which took over two years to complete. 2001 of course went on to become a huge success and to this day remains one of the most influential and highly regarded pictures of the science fiction genre.
After 2001 film, Johnson went on to work on various film and television productions including Moon Zero Two, On the Buses, Z Cars, and the Hammer production When Dinosaurs Ruled the World with renowned stop motion animator Jim Danforth who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. By 1974 Johnson was once again working for Gerry Anderson on his latest television series Space: 1999 producing high quality effects which are still highly regarded today, he was also responsible for designing the now iconic Eagle Transporter and various other craft of the series. It was during the production of 1999 at Bray Studios Johnson was first approached by two filmmakers to work on a big American space picture turning them down as he had signed for the second series of Space: 1999.
Johnson's next big production was to be Ridley Scott's Alien where he once again worked with friend and Space: 1999 collaborator Nick Allder on the various model miniature effects sequences out of Bray Studios as special effects supervisor. Meanwhile the American Space picture became Star Wars, the highest grossing film of all time, an Academy Award winner and a cult worldwide phenomenon, the two aforementioned filmmakers were George Lucas and Gary Kurtz. Fortunately for Johnson he was invited to work on the sequel The Empire Strikes Back where he supervised special and visual effects at the now world renowned Industrial Light and Magic.
In early 1980 Johnson's work on Alien was recognized when he was bestowed the 1979 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects along with H.R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Nick Allder and Dennis Ayling. Just after this The Empire Strikes Back was released to worldwide acclaim and the 1980 Special Achievement Academy Award was presented to Brian Jonhson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Bruce Nicholson in recognition of their achievements in the field of visual effects.
Johnson went on to work on Dragonslayer, at the request of Lucas and Spielberg and was nominated for another Academy Award, this time losing out to Raiders of the Lost Ark, this proved to be his final Lucasfilm production after which he worked on The NeverEnding Story and James Cameron's Aliens for which he was awarded a BAFTA for his contribution to visual effects.