Nassos Vakalis
Encyclopedia
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
director and animator.
Early life
Nassos (Athanassios) Vakalis was born and raised in Athens, Greece. Since childhood, he demonstrated an interest in art, submitting his early work in various contests and winning numerous prizes and distinctions.Education
During adolescence Nassos’ interest turned toward character animation. He got his start working as a cartoon and graphics artist for several advertising agencies and small studios in Athens and later pursued his studies in art and animation in the U.S.A. Nassos attended the Department of Film and Video at Pratt InstitutePratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
, New York and acquired his B.F.A.
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
in Fine Arts, majoring in Character Animation
Character animation
Character animation is a specialized area of the animation process concerning the animation of one or more characters featured in an animated work. It is usually as one aspect of a larger production and often made to enhance voice acting. The primary role of a Character Animator is to be the...
from California Institute of the Arts
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
, Valencia, California. During his senior year at college, Nassos participated in the Short Film Festival of Drama Greece where he premiered his animated debut film Don’t Feed the Bear. This film attracted the attention of legendary animation director Don Bluth
Don Bluth
Donald Virgil "Don" Bluth is an American animator and independent studio owner. He is best known for his departure from The Walt Disney Company in 1979 and his subsequent directing of animated films such as The Secret of NIMH , An American Tail ,The Land Before Time , and All Dogs Go to Heaven ,...
, who offered Nassos a permanent position with his company.
Professional career
In Sullivan-Bluth Studios, Nassos began as an animation assistant but scant weeks later he was promoted to an animator. In that position he completed the production of thefilms Rock-a-Doodle
Rock-A-Doodle
Rock-a-Doodle is a 1992 American animated re-telling of Edmond Rostand's comedy, Chantecler. This film was directed by Don Bluth, produced by Goldcrest Films for The Samuel Goldwyn Company, and originally released in the United States on April 3, 1992.-Plot:Chanticleer is a proud rooster whose...
, A Troll in Central Park
A Troll in Central Park
A Troll in Central Park is a 1994 animated feature-length film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman, creators of films such as Thumbelina, The Land Before Time, and All Dogs Go to Heaven. It was released on October 7, 1994 by Warner Bros...
and Thumbelina
Thumbelina (1994 film)
Thumbelina is a 1994 American animated film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman from a screenplay by Bluth based on Hans Christian Andersen's Thumbelina. The film was produced by Don Bluth Entertainment and was released to movie theaters by Warner Bros...
, developing his talent and skills under real production conditions and requirements. Soon after he became Supervising Animator for the film The Swan Princess
The Swan Princess
The Swan Princess is a 1994 American animated film based on the ballet "Swan Lake". Starring the voice talents of Jack Palance, John Cleese, Steven Wright, and Sandy Duncan, the film is directed by a former Disney animation director, Richard Rich, with a music score by Lex de Azevedo...
for Rich Entertainment
RichCrest Animation Studios
Crest Animation Productions is an animation studio located in Burbank, California, United States. The studio was founded by Richard Rich, who previously worked at Disney. The studio's first and most famous film was The Swan Princess, which was rather successful on initial release...
and simultaneously worked freelance on many advertising spots, shorts and other feature films.
In 1995, when Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
opened its new animation studios in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, he became Supervising Animator and he was assigned to design and animate “Kayley”, the lead character in the feature animated film Quest for Camelot
Quest for Camelot
Quest for Camelot is a 1998 animated feature film from Warner Bros. Animation, based on the novel The King's Damosel by Vera Chapman, starring the voices of Jessalyn Gilsig, Cary Elwes, Gary Oldman, Eric Idle, Don Rickles, Jane Seymour, Pierce Brosnan, Bronson Pinchot, Jaleel White, Gabriel Byrne,...
. During his career at Warner Bros., Nassos explored story, storyboarding and conceptual development and was involved with the pre-production of many projects the studio had in development at the time.
In 1997, Nassos was appointed by his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
, the California Institute of the Arts
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
, to teach Character animation. A year later he joined the newly founded DreamWorks
where he worked closely with Steve Hickner, director of Prince of Egypt, with whom he formed a friendship. Between 1998-2000 at DreamWorks, Nassos completed Joseph: King of Dreams
Joseph: King of Dreams
Joseph: King of Dreams is a 2000 American animated musical film and the first direct-to-video release from DreamWorks Animation. The film is an adaptation of the story of Joseph from the Book of Genesis in the Bible and also serves as a prequel to the 1998 film The Prince of Egypt.- Plot :Joseph is...
and storyboard
Storyboard
Storyboards are graphic organizers in the form of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence....
s for the films Outlaws, Tusker, Tortoise and Hare and the acclaimed Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is a 2002 American animated film that was released by DreamWorks. It follows the adventures of a young Kiger mustang stallion living in the 19th century wild west. The film, written by John Fusco and directed by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook, was nominated for the...
.
At the end of the 90s, during a professional trip to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Nassos met Panagiotis Rappas, another Greek animation artist and owner of Stardust studios. Together, they founded Time-Lapse Pictures LLC and signed a deal with Klasky Csupo
Klasky Csupo
Klasky Csupo, Inc. is a multimedia entertainment production company located in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, founded by artist/producer, Arlene Klasky and animator, Gábor Csupó.- History :...
for the production of the Paramount release Rugrats in Paris: The Movie
Rugrats in Paris: The Movie
Rugrats in Paris: The Movie, also known as The Rugrats Movie 2: Rugrats in Paris and Rugrats in Paris: The Movie - Rugrats II, is 2000 American animated film, and the sequel to the 1998 film The Rugrats Movie that follows the continuing adventures of the Rugrats. In the film, Chuckie Finster takes...
. A year later, Time Lapse Pictures was relocated to Athens
Greece, where Nassos returned to produce and supervise animation for several sequences of Sony’s Eight Crazy Nights
Eight Crazy Nights
Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights is a 2002 animated musical comedy film co-written by and starring Adam Sandler. Unlike most mainstream holiday films, it centers on Jewish characters during the Hanukkah season, as opposed to religious or secular celebration of Christmas...
and Paramount’s Rugrats Go Wild as well as El Cid the Legend for the Spanish Filmax and Jester Till for the German Munich Animation, as well as many 2D and 3D commercials for the Greek and international market.
Though Time-Lapse Pictures is still operating in Athens, in late 2004 Nassos returned to Los Angeles where he now lives with his wife. He is currently working for the feature animation development unit of DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. is an American animation studio based in Glendale, California that creates animated feature films, television program and online virtual worlds...
Studios.
In 2006 Nassos was awarded by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with an Emmy for outstanding achievement in content for non-traditional delivery platforms for the ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
show Off Mikes and on 2007 he is again nominated for an EMMYfor the second season of "Off MIkes". Nassos has also worked on the popular short animated series Crime Time
Crime Time
Crime Time is a series of animated shorts produced by Future Thought Productions, produced by Jay Zaveri and Steven Kasper, directed by Nassos Vakalis.- Premise :...
as a Director and has penned several of the shorts himself. During 2007-2009 Nassos and Time-Lapse PIctures co-produced the animated Christmas specials " The Little Mouse That Wanted to Touch a Star" and "The Boy and the Tree" based on a short stories by Eugene Trivizas
Eugene Trivizas
Eugene Trivizas, is a Greek sociologist and author of children's books.- Background :Born in Athens, he received his LL.B degree from the University of Athens in 1969. In 1972 he passed the Athens Bar examinations and in the same year he was called as a barrister to the Athens Bar. In 1973 he...
. " The Little Mouse That Wanted to Touch a Star" received awards at the Cyprus International Film Festival
Cyprus International Film Festival
The Cyprus International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cyprus. It is a non-profit organisation. The festival features premieres and screenings of many films, and contains competitive categories including Feature, Short, Documentary, Video art, Video Dance and animation...
, ANIMFEST '09, International Film Festival of Patras city-11th International Panorama and London Greek Film festival and "The Boy and the Tree" was voted by the EUROPEAN BROADCASTERS UNION (EBU) as the Second best production in Europe for children and juniors 2009.