Michael Wiehart, a European-trained director and designer whose mixed-media work reflects his fluency with all aspects of animation, VFX, motion graphics and live action, has joined the directorial roster of Curious Pictures.
Wiehart comes over to Curious from Superfad, where he was a creative director based in its New York office. He joined Superfad in 2003; prior to that, he was a freelance art director and designer working in New York. His reel includes work for MTV, Pepsi, the New York Lottery, Quest Communications, Time Warner and Lenovo.
A native of Switzerland, Wiehart studied graphic design at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. After spending five years with the Zurich-based production company Frame Eleven, he came to New York in 1998 to start up the studio’s U.S. base.
Wiehart’s holistic way of working often finds him involved in all aspects of a project. As he likes to describe his modus operandi, he does everything from design storyboards to animation, shooting photographs and creating typefaces.
Wiehart sees Curious as an environment where his interests in working across media genres and production disciplines will flourish. “I’m most interested in applying conceptual thinking to each assignment, and then bringing it to life in whatever form works best,” he said. Curious, with its work in everything from games to feature films, broadcast promotion, TV commercials and programming, seems like the perfect launching pad, he noted.
The director envisions himself being able to use all the tools at his disposal at Curious, from a motion-capture stage to a full animation department and CGI. His background enables him to either execute animation and effects himself or work closely with a team of collaborators. “It’s more of a European approach to production, which can have its advantages,” he explained. “When the director can be involved in everything from conception to completion, it lets you follow a single creative vision all the way through. It keeps the production very streamlined, and the creative process never stops until we deliver the final product.”
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More