Patrick Tatopoulos
Encyclopedia
Patrick Tatopoulos is a French
-Greek
production designer
, who lives and works in the United States
. His designs have appeared in numerous motion pictures, including Pitch Black, Underworld
, I, Robot
, The Chronicles of Riddick
, Independence Day
, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Stargate
, Spawn
, Godzilla
, Stuart Little
, I Am Legend
, 10,000 BC
, and Live Free or Die Hard
.
, France
, to an immigrant father from Macedonia
, Greece
, and a French
mother. His parents had a clothing store in Paris
. Patrick Tatopoulos raced motorcycles, worked in 2-D advertising and drew comic book covers. He lived in Greece
for ten years before coming to the United States
in 1989. He is tri-lingual, a fluent speaker of French
, Greek
and English
.
. From Paris he moved to Rome
and Greece
where he began selling his illustrations. Eventually, his passion for the entertainment business drew him to the United States
and within a short time became a designer for commercials, music video
and motion pictures. Tatopoulos is a frequent collaborator of directors Roland Emmerich
, Alex Proyas
, and Len Wiseman
.
In May 2000, Tatopoulos was honored by The Hellenic Times at its ninth annual Scholarship Gala in New York
. The goal of the organization is to identify young American
scholars who best exemplify the values of their Greek heritage and provide them with educational support. A Patrick Tatopoulos Creative Arts Award Scholarship was created in 2001 and Tatopoulos has personally presented the scholarship, in his name, to a deserving student in 2001 and 2002. He owns Tatopoulos Studios, Inc. and Patrick Tatopoulos Designs, Inc.
The character of Niko Tatopoulos in Godzilla was named after his youngest daughter. He made his directorial debut with the 2009 film, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
. He is currently working on the live action film adaptation of the Darkstorm Studios graphic novel, I, Frankenstein, which is being produced by Lakeshore Entertainment
. The story follows the original monster of Victor Frankenstein
who is the only force that stands between the human race and an uprising of supernatural creatures determined to overthrow the world. Filming kicks off in July 2010. Tatopoulos created the creature figures of the upcoming Stan Winston
produced Speed Demon. He will direct the action horror film Suspension, which based on a screenbook by Scott Millam.
Tatopoulos serves as a judge on the 2011 Syfy
original series Face Off
which features makeup artists competing for $100,000.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
-Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
production designer
Production designer
In film and television, a production designer is the person responsible for the overall look of a filmed event such as films, TV programs, music videos or adverts. Production designers have one of the key creative roles in the creation of motion pictures and television. Working directly with the...
, who lives and works in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. His designs have appeared in numerous motion pictures, including Pitch Black, Underworld
Underworld (2003 film)
Underworld is a 2003 action-horror film about the secret history of Vampires and Lycans . It is the first installment in the Underworld series. The main plot revolves around Selene , a vampire who is a Death Dealer hunting Lycans...
, I, Robot
I, Robot (film)
I, Robot is a 2004 science-fiction action film directed by Alex Proyas. The screenplay was written by Jeff Vintar, Akiva Goldsman and Hillary Seitz, and is very loosely based on Isaac Asimov's short-story collection of the same name. Will Smith stars in the lead role of the film as Detective Del...
, The Chronicles of Riddick
The Chronicles of Riddick
The Chronicles of Riddick is a 2004 American science fiction film which follows the adventures of Richard B. Riddick, as he attempts to elude capture after the events depicted in the 2000 film Pitch Black, and details his meeting with Jack and Imam, his escape from the prison planet Crematoria, and...
, Independence Day
Independence Day (film)
Independence Day is a 1996 science fiction film about an alien invasion of Earth, focusing on a disparate group of individuals and families as they converge in the Nevada desert and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4 – the same...
, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Stargate
Stargate (film)
Stargate is a 1994 American adventure-military science fiction film released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco Pictures. Created by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich, the film is the first release in the Stargate franchise...
, Spawn
Spawn (film)
Spawn is a 1997 American superhero film loosely based on the comic book of the same name, by Todd McFarlane and published by Image Comics. Directed and co-written by Mark A.Z. Dippé , the film stars Michael Jai White in the leading role...
, Godzilla
Godzilla (1998 film)
Godzilla is a 1998 science fiction monster disaster film film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. It is a loose remake of the 1954 giant monster classic Godzilla. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The film relates a tale of a nuclear incident...
, Stuart Little
Stuart Little (film)
Stuart Little is a 1999 family film. It is loosely based on the novel of the same name by E. B. White. It combines live-action and computer animation. The screenplay was co-written by M. Night Shyamalan and Greg Brooker, with uncredited script doctoring by David O. Russell and Billy Ray...
, I Am Legend
I Am Legend (film)
I Am Legend is a 2007 post-apocalyptic science fiction film directed by Francis Lawrence and starring Will Smith. It is the third feature film adaptation of Richard Matheson's 1954 novel of the same name, following 1964's The Last Man on Earth and 1971's The Omega Man. Smith plays virologist Robert...
, 10,000 BC
10,000 BC (film)
10,000 BC is a 2008 American fantasy film from Warner Bros. Pictures set in the prehistoric era. It was directed by Roland Emmerich and stars Steven Strait and Camilla Belle. The world premiere was held on February 10, 2008 at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin...
, and Live Free or Die Hard
Live Free or Die Hard
Live Free or Die Hard , is a 2007 American action film, and the fourth installment in the Die Hard series. The film was directed by Len Wiseman and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane. The name was adapted from the state motto of New Hampshire, "Live Free or Die"...
.
Early life
Tatopoulos was born and raised in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, to an immigrant father from Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, and a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
mother. His parents had a clothing store in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Patrick Tatopoulos raced motorcycles, worked in 2-D advertising and drew comic book covers. He lived in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
for ten years before coming to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1989. He is tri-lingual, a fluent speaker of French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
Movie career
In Greece, while working as a designer artist in the production of commercials, he was continually fascinated by creatures and special effects. He studied at the École d'Art Décoratif de Paris, the École des Arts Appliqués de Paris, and the École des Beaux-ArtsÉcole des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
. From Paris he moved to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
where he began selling his illustrations. Eventually, his passion for the entertainment business drew him to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and within a short time became a designer for commercials, music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
and motion pictures. Tatopoulos is a frequent collaborator of directors Roland Emmerich
Roland Emmerich
Roland Emmerich is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer.His films, most of which are Hollywood productions filmed in English, have grossed more than $3 billion worldwide, more than those of any other European director...
, Alex Proyas
Alex Proyas
Alexander "Alex" Proyas is a Australian film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for directing such films as The Crow, Dark City, I, Robot and Knowing. He is known for employing a stylish photographic techniques in his films, with dark overtones usually in a post-apocalyptic...
, and Len Wiseman
Len Wiseman
Len Ryan Wiseman is an American film director best known for his work on the Underworld series and Live Free or Die Hard. His latest project, Total Recall, is set for release in summer 2012...
.
In May 2000, Tatopoulos was honored by The Hellenic Times at its ninth annual Scholarship Gala in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The goal of the organization is to identify young American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
scholars who best exemplify the values of their Greek heritage and provide them with educational support. A Patrick Tatopoulos Creative Arts Award Scholarship was created in 2001 and Tatopoulos has personally presented the scholarship, in his name, to a deserving student in 2001 and 2002. He owns Tatopoulos Studios, Inc. and Patrick Tatopoulos Designs, Inc.
The character of Niko Tatopoulos in Godzilla was named after his youngest daughter. He made his directorial debut with the 2009 film, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans is a 2009 American film directed by Patrick Tatopoulos. It is the third installment in the Underworld series, focusing primarily on the origins of some characters and the events leading to the Vampire-Lycan war, depicted in the previous films Underworld and...
. He is currently working on the live action film adaptation of the Darkstorm Studios graphic novel, I, Frankenstein, which is being produced by Lakeshore Entertainment
Lakeshore Entertainment
Lakeshore Entertainment Group is an American independent film production company founded in 1994 by Tom Rosenberg and Ted Tannebaum . Lakeshore Entertainment is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California...
. The story follows the original monster of Victor Frankenstein
Victor Frankenstein
Victor Frankenstein was born in Napoli, is a Swiss fictional character and the protagonist of the 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, written by Mary Shelley...
who is the only force that stands between the human race and an uprising of supernatural creatures determined to overthrow the world. Filming kicks off in July 2010. Tatopoulos created the creature figures of the upcoming Stan Winston
Stan Winston
Stanley Winston was an American visual effects supervisor, makeup artist, and film director. He was best known for his work in the Terminator series, the Jurassic Park series, Aliens, the Predator series, Iron Man, Edward Scissorhands, and Avatar...
produced Speed Demon. He will direct the action horror film Suspension, which based on a screenbook by Scott Millam.
Tatopoulos serves as a judge on the 2011 Syfy
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
original series Face Off
Face Off (TV series)
Face Off is an American reality television game show on the Syfy cable network in which a group of prosthetic makeup artists compete against each other create prostheses such as those found in science fiction and horror films...
which features makeup artists competing for $100,000.
Collaborators
Patrick Tatopoulos worked with the following directors on more than one film:- Alex ProyasAlex ProyasAlexander "Alex" Proyas is a Australian film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for directing such films as The Crow, Dark City, I, Robot and Knowing. He is known for employing a stylish photographic techniques in his films, with dark overtones usually in a post-apocalyptic...
(Dark City, I, RobotI, Robot (film)I, Robot is a 2004 science-fiction action film directed by Alex Proyas. The screenplay was written by Jeff Vintar, Akiva Goldsman and Hillary Seitz, and is very loosely based on Isaac Asimov's short-story collection of the same name. Will Smith stars in the lead role of the film as Detective Del...
, KnowingKnowing (film)Knowing is a 2009 American-British science fiction film directed by Alex Proyas and starring Nicolas Cage. The project was originally attached to a number of directors under Columbia Pictures, but it was placed in turnaround and eventually picked up by Escape Artists. Production was financially...
) - David TwohyDavid TwohyDavid Neil Twohy is an American film director and screenwriter.-Life and career:Twohy was born in Los Angeles County, California...
(Pitch Black, The Chronicles of RiddickThe Chronicles of RiddickThe Chronicles of Riddick is a 2004 American science fiction film which follows the adventures of Richard B. Riddick, as he attempts to elude capture after the events depicted in the 2000 film Pitch Black, and details his meeting with Jack and Imam, his escape from the prison planet Crematoria, and...
) - Len WisemanLen WisemanLen Ryan Wiseman is an American film director best known for his work on the Underworld series and Live Free or Die Hard. His latest project, Total Recall, is set for release in summer 2012...
(UnderworldUnderworld (2003 film)Underworld is a 2003 action-horror film about the secret history of Vampires and Lycans . It is the first installment in the Underworld series. The main plot revolves around Selene , a vampire who is a Death Dealer hunting Lycans...
, Underworld: EvolutionUnderworld: EvolutionUnderworld: Evolution is the second installment in the Underworld series, following Underworld in 2003...
, Live Free or Die HardLive Free or Die HardLive Free or Die Hard , is a 2007 American action film, and the fourth installment in the Die Hard series. The film was directed by Len Wiseman and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane. The name was adapted from the state motto of New Hampshire, "Live Free or Die"...
, Total RecallTotal Recall (2012 film)Total Recall is an upcoming science-fiction action film based on the 1990 film of the same name and the 1966 novelette We Can Remember It for You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick. It is directed by Len Wiseman and written by Mark Bomback, James Vanderbilt and Kurt Wimmer. It was first announced in 2009...
) - Paul W.S. Anderson (Alien vs. PredatorAlien vs. Predator (film)Alien vs. Predator is a 2004 American science fiction film directed by Paul W. S. Anderson for 20th Century Fox and starring Sanaa Lathan and Lance Henriksen. The film adapts the Alien vs. Predator crossover imprint bringing together the eponymous creatures of the Alien and Predator series, a...
, Resident Evil: ExtinctionResident Evil: ExtinctionResident Evil: Extinction is a Canadian-British 2007 science fiction action horror film also categorized as a doomsday and zombie film, and is the third installment in the Resident Evil film series, which is based on the Capcom survival horror series Resident Evil...
) - Roland EmmerichRoland EmmerichRoland Emmerich is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer.His films, most of which are Hollywood productions filmed in English, have grossed more than $3 billion worldwide, more than those of any other European director...
(StargateStargate (film)Stargate is a 1994 American adventure-military science fiction film released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco Pictures. Created by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich, the film is the first release in the Stargate franchise...
, Independence DayIndependence Day (film)Independence Day is a 1996 science fiction film about an alien invasion of Earth, focusing on a disparate group of individuals and families as they converge in the Nevada desert and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4 – the same...
, GodzillaGodzilla (1998 film)Godzilla is a 1998 science fiction monster disaster film film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. It is a loose remake of the 1954 giant monster classic Godzilla. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The film relates a tale of a nuclear incident...
, 10,000 BC10,000 BC (film)10,000 BC is a 2008 American fantasy film from Warner Bros. Pictures set in the prehistoric era. It was directed by Roland Emmerich and stars Steven Strait and Camilla Belle. The world premiere was held on February 10, 2008 at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin...
, 20122012 (film)2012 is a 2009 American disaster film directed by Roland Emmerich. It stars John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Thandie Newton, Danny Glover, and Woody Harrelson. It was produced by Emmerich's production company, Centropolis Entertainment and was distributed by Columbia Pictures...
)