Production house Mothership, a sister company to Digital Domain, has signed director Grzegorz Jonkajtys (Greg) for commercial and music video work in the U.S. He is perhaps best known as the writer/director behind the CG animated short Ark which earned a Golden Palm nomination at the Cannes Film Festival, Best in Show honors at the 2007 SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival, and an Award of Distinction at Prix Ars Electronica.
The story Ark relates is of an unknown virus that wipes out the human population. It heads a list of Greg-directed short films that includes Mantis, Legacy and The 3rd Letter, which has been making the rounds on the festival circuit. Greg, who graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Poland, in 1995 and lives in San Francisco, is currently writing the feature screenplay for his next project, Snow King. As a VFX artist and animation lead for Platige Image, Digital Kitchen, CafeFX, The Syndicate, and in his current post at Industrial Light + Magic, Greg has contributed to such films as Sin City, Hellboy, Blade III, Pan’s Labyrinth, Mist and Terminator Salvation.
During his 12-year career working in feature film and advertising, the Warsaw-born Greg has established himself as a filmmaker with a distinctive aesthetic and point of view. His work has been described as dark, full of texture with dramatic character design and compelling storylines, and often combines CG techniques with shot practical miniatures and other handmade elements that heighten the otherworldly aspect of his films.
Ed Ulbrich, president of Mothership, credited agent Bryan Besser at Verve with introducing the company to Greg’s work.
Greg in turn was favorably impressed with Mothership. “Despite my obsession with animation and visual effects, I actually take a fairly classic approach to moviemaking,” said the director. “I love almost autographic framing, inward dollies; I want to immerse the viewer into my world. Mothership was the ideal production studio for me to spread these wings and the exciting things they’re doing in the transmedia space enables its directors to be involved in extending their storytelling experiences even further.”
Alec Baldwin Urges Judge To Stand By Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Case In “Rust” Shooting
Alec Baldwin urged a New Mexico judge on Friday to stand by her decision to skuttle his trial and dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin halfway through a trial in July based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey recently asked the judge to reconsider, arguing that there were insufficient facts and that Baldwin's due process rights had not been violated.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer on "Rust," was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal when it went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the revolver fired.
The case-ending evidence was ammunition that was brought into the sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers alleged that they "buried" it and filed a successful motion to dismiss the case.
In her decision to dismiss the Baldwin case, Marlowe Sommer described "egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct" by law enforcement and prosecutors, as well as false testimony about physical evidence by a witness during the trial.
Defense counsel says that prosecutors tried to establish a link... Read More