Michael Thurmeier
Michael Thurmeier | |
---|---|
Born | 1975 (age 48–49)[1] Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1999–present |
Employer | Blue Sky Studios (1999–2021) |
Michael Thurmeier is a Canadian film director and animator.[2] He is best known for directing the Blue Sky Studios animated films Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012) and Ice Age: Collision Course (2016), which are the fourth and fifth installments in the Ice Age franchise. Along with Chris Renaud, he received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for the Ice Age short film No Time for Nuts (2006).
Early life and education
Thurmeier was born and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and went to Archbishop M.C. O'Neill High School.[3] Although he enjoyed drawing for much of his early life, he was more interested in becoming a lawyer, but he changed his mind after seeing Aladdin in his last year of high school.[3]
Career
After he joined Blue Sky Studios, Thurmeier served as an animator for Fight Club and The Sopranos. He later served as a supervising animator for Ice Age, Robots, and Ice Age: The Meltdown.
His first directing job was in 2006, when he co-directed the short animated film No Time for Nuts, starring Scrat for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. He was a co-director on Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009), and made his feature directing debut with Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012). Thurmeier returned to direct Ice Age: Collision Course (2016).
Filmography
Feature films
Year | Title | Director | Animator | Other | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Fight Club | No | Yes | No | Animator: Blue Sky Studios |
2002 | Ice Age | No | Lead | Yes | Additional Story, Lead Animator |
2005 | Robots | No | Supervising | No | Supervising Animator |
2006 | Ice Age: The Meltdown | No | Supervising | No | Supervising Animator |
2008 | Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who | No | Senior Supervising | No | Senior Supervising Animator |
2009 | Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | Co-Director | No | No | |
2012 | Ice Age: Continental Drift | Yes | No | No | |
2016 | Ice Age: Collision Course | Yes | No | Yes | Voice of Gravedigger Beaver/Party Molehog |
2019 | Spies in Disguise | No | No | Yes | Senior Creative Team |
Short films
Year | Title | Director | Animator | Layout Artist | Other | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2002 | Gone Nutty | No | Yes | 3-D | No | |
2006 | No Time for Nuts | Yes | No | No | No | Also 4-D extended version |
2010 | Scrat's Continental Crack-Up | Yes | No | No | No | Act as Ice Age: Continental Drift Teaser Trailers #1 & #2[4][5] |
2011 | Scrat's Continental Crack-Up Part 2 | Yes | No | No | No | |
2015 | Cosmic Scrat-tastrophe | Yes | No | No | No | Acts as extended Ice Age: Collision Course Teaser Trailer[6] |
2016 | Scrat: Spaced Out | Uncredited | No | No | No | Ice Age: Collision Course archive and deleted footage[7] |
2022 | Ice Age: Scrat Tales | No | No | No | Yes | Disney+ Original Short Films; Ice Age Creative Trust; Story - Episode: "Nut the End" |
Television
Year | Film | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | The Sopranos | animator: Blue Sky Studios | episode: "Funhouse" |
References
- ^ Baillie, Andrea (October 26, 2009). "Regina-born director of 'Ice Age 3' baffled by franchise success". CTV News. Archived from the original on November 11, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
Thurmeier, 34,...
- ^ Sullivan, Karen; Schumer, Gary; Alexander, Kate (2008-02-19). Ideas for the animated short: finding and building stories. Focal Press. pp. 156–. ISBN 978-0-240-80860-4. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
- ^ a b Christianson, Adriana (July 13, 2012). "Saskatchewan-born director helms new movie 'Ice Age 4: Continental Drift'". Rocky View Weekly. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
- ^ Sciretta, Peter (January 6, 2011). "Watch: Ice Age Short Film 'Scrat's Continental Crack-Up'". /Film. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
- ^ Gonzalez, Sandra (November 15, 2011). "'Ice Age' star Scrat gets into more acorn-craving mischief – EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
- ^ Truitt, Brian (November 6, 2015). "Sneak peek: Scrat heads to space for 'Ice Age' short". USA Today. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
- ^ Jacobson, Colin (October 17, 2016). "Ice Age: Collision Course (Blu-Ray 3D) (2016)". DVD Movie Guide. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
External links