DNEG Feature Animation has appointed two new senior creative hires to bolster its leadership team. Ted Ty joins as global head of character animation based in Montreal, while Archie Donato relocates from Los Angeles to join the team as VFX supervisor on a major new project in London.
DNEG Feature Animation is currently in production on a number of high-profile animated projects, including animated musical feature Under the Boardwalk for Paramount Animation, and is in development on the very first animated adaptation of The Great Gatsby with Oscar-winning director William Joyce.
These new hires follow the appointment of former Skydance executive David Prescott, who joined the team last year as sr. VP of creative production.
Ty joins DNEG Feature Animation with over 25 years of experience and a deep understanding of both 2D and 3D animation. Ty started his career at Walt Disney Animation where he worked as a 2D animator under the mentorship of animation legends such as Mark Henn, Ruben Aquino and James Baxter on animated features such as Mulan and Lilo & Stitch. Following a move to DreamWorks, he contributed to major 3D animated features such as Puss in Boots, How To Train Your Dragon 2 and Rise of the Guardians.
Ty is a noted and prolific animation instructor, having taught animation masterclasses at CalArts, CTNX Expo, DreamWorks, SCAD, Pixel Quebec and iAnimate.net. He is also a master teacher at YoungArts Foundation. His most recent work was as head of animation and co-director of animated action-comedy feature Fireheart.
VFX supervisor Donato brings a cinematic perspective and a background in live action filmmaking to his new role for DNEG Feature Animation, as well as experience at ILM, Digital Domain, Rhythm & Hues and 17 years at DreamWorks Animation. During his time at DreamWorks, Donato contributed to many of the studio’s biggest films, most notably as CG Lead on Kung Fu Panda, Megamind, Monsters vs Aliens and Shrek Forever After, lighting supervisor on Rise of the Guardians and CG supervisor on Mr. Peabody & Sherman. Most recently, Donato has turned his talents to VFX supervision for episodic content on shows like Home Before Dark for Apple TV+, Messiah for Netflix and The Loudest Voice for Showtime.
Review: Director James Watkins’ “Speak No Evil”
Quick. Has there ever been a horror film set in a country home with a decent cell signal?
Nope, and there's no signal at Paddy and Ciara's house, either, deep in the English countryside. Soon, that land line will be cut, too, but we're getting ahead of ourselves.
Paddy and Ciara are that fun-but-somewhat-odd British couple whom Louise and Ben, early in "Speak No Evil," meet on their idyllic Tuscan family holiday. Americans based in London, Louise and Ben are at loose ends, with both job and relationship issues. And so, when the new acquaintances write to invite them for a country weekend, they decide to go.
After all, how bad could it be?
Don't answer that. There are many such moments in the first two-thirds of "Speak No Evil," a Hollywood remake of the 2022 Danish film, here starring a deeply menacing James McAvoy. Moments where Louise and Ben, out of mere politeness and social convention, act against their instincts, which tell them something is wrong – very wrong.
Director James Watkins and especially his excellent troupe of actors, adult and children alike, do a nice job of building the tension, slowly but surely. Until all bloody hell breaks loose, of course. And then, in its third act, "Speak No Evil" becomes an entertaining but routine horror flick, with predictable results.
But for a while, it's a way more intelligent film. And the jumpy moments work — I'll confess to literally springing out of my seat when someone uneventfully turned on a power drill.
We begin in stunning Tuscany, where Louise (Mackenzie Davis, in the film's most accessible and empathetic performance) and Ben (Scoot McNairy, all nerves and insecurity) are vacationing with 11-year-old daughter Agnes (Alix West Lefler). At the pool, they... Read More