CREATIVE-BEING
Norland Téllez, PhD
nt@norlandtellez.com
As an animation professional and teacher I want to prepare my students with the tools they need to enter the competitive space of the entertainment industry.
A CalArts graduate with over two decades of experience in the animation industry, I work out of a strong foundation in 2D Animation, Classical Figure Drawing, Perspective and Composition, as well as Painting, and Color Theory—all courses which I have taught in my career.
Present
Creative-Being
Chief Creative Officer
Currently working on my new edition of the great Maya epic Popol-Wuh as Wisdom of the Peoples, an indigenous manuscript of the Quiché-Maya long considered a wellspring of Latin American and World Literature. Drawing from its native Quiche-Maya sources, I am creating a contemporary version of the text in both English & Spanish, soon to be published as a richly illustrated classic of epic literature.
2018 - Present
The Joseph Campbell Foundation
Writer & Mythologist
As a regular contributor to the Mythblasts, I work on the application of mythological studies to the development of narratives and images for our own times.
2020
Epic Reach
Storyboard Artist & Set Designer
For the first 5 episodes of Monster Treads, I developed cinematic experiences of storytelling along with developing key set designs, all to be built for a stop-motion animation.
2017 - 2018
THE AGE OF LEARNING
Background Painter & Designer
For the pilot season of Search & Explore, my responsibility was to take storyboards through the layout process and on to final paint and color.
2014 - 2016
Bronx Bull, Inc.
Animation Director/Writer
A documentary film on the life and legend of Jake LaMotta, the “Bronx Bull,” which incorporated an animated component whose production design and animation were my sole responsibility.
2013 - 2014
Dawn Sign Press
Animation Director/Writer
Once Upon a Sign
As a principal author of this award-winning mini-series, I helped to introduce American Sign Language to a more general audience. Bringing together both hearing and deaf audiences with a re-telling of classic fairytales in ASL, I worked with leading experts in the fields of Deaf Studies and ASL education from Gallaudet University and DawnSignPress. Working as a diverse team of artists and educators we created a unique form of educational entertainment designed to embrace both hearing and deaf worlds. Among the many responsibilities of production and postproduction, I can highlight:
• Sensitive client handling with basic knowledge of ASL
• Oversight of Costume Design and props
• Background Design for digital compositing
• Management of Production Schedule, Resources, and Pipeline
• Directing offsite teams of Animators, Editors, and Compositors.
2012
Walt Disney TV
Concept Artist & Writer
Working with the executives and creative leads in the development of Original Series, I had a chance to develop original content for children’s television entertainment.
• Handled existing properties along new lines of development
• Created original worlds with a widened sense of diversity
• Pushed artistic boundaries to reach a more global audience
2011
Walt Disney Consumer Products
Lead Instructor
Teaching at the Grand Central Creative Campus in Glendale, I led a series of courses on Color Theory in Animation as well as Theatrical Life-Drawing. The classes were set up as a series of workshops that explored the psychology of color, caricature & character design.
2000 - 2008
The Art Institute of California Los Angeles
Lead Instructor
I helped to lay the foundation for the Animation/Game-Art program. As core faculty I led the way in Life-Drawing, 2D Animation, Character Design, and Story Concept.
2000 - 2002
Santa Monica College: Academy of Entertainment & Technology
Lead Instructor
I taught 16-week courses in Color Theory, Life-Drawing, and Perspective & Composition.
1995 - 2000
Warner Brothers Feature Animation
2D Effects Animation Artist
Implementing techniques for compositing animation and live-action, I assisted lead animators in major feature film production, including Space Jam (1996), The Quest for Camelot (1998), The King and I (1999) and Osmosis Jones (2001).
1998 - 1999
Kurtz and Friends
Character Animator and Storyboard Revisionist
A Very Special Family Guy Freakin’ Christmas (2001)
God, the Devil, and Bob (2000)
1994 - 1998
O’Plenty Animation Studios
Character Animator, Storyboard Artist, Character Designer
One Zillion Valentines (1999), Baptism of Solitude (2001)
1993 - 1995
Little Gangster Entertainment/VORTEX MEDIA ARTS
Character Animator, Designer and Storyboard Artist
Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure (1994)
Madeline and the Magnificent Puppet Show: A Learning Journey (1995)
1991
Walt Disney Feature Animation
Animator in Trainning
As part the Animation Training Program for that year in Orlando, Florida, I did my first assistant animation work on Beauty and the Beast (1991)
EDUCATION
2010
Ph.D. Mythological Studies
PACIFICA GRADUATE INSTITUTE
801 Ladera Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Dissertation Topic: Esoteric Dimensions of the Popol Vuh
2005
M.A. Mythological Studies
PACIFICA GRADUATE INSTITUTE
249 Lambert Road, Carpinteria, CA 93013
Major: Studies in World Mythology
1999
B.F.A. Film/Video
THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF THE ARTS.
24700 McBean Pkwy, Valencia, CA 91355
May 21, 1999
Major: Film Animation
Email:
nt@norlandtellez.com