Albert Birney (born March 2, 1982) is an American filmmaker, writer, and animator best known for his visually imaginative and surreal films, including '' Strawberry Mansion'' (2021) and ''Sylvio'' (2017). His work blends hand-drawn animation, absurdist humor, and dreamlike storytelling. Birney is also known for co-creating the indie video game and animated project '' Tux and Fanny''.

Early life and education

Albert Birney was born in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

. He became interested in music and visual storytelling at a young age, co-founding the indie pop group

The Spinto Band The Spinto Band is an American indie rock band from Wilmington, Delaware. Formed in 1996, the band comprises singer and guitarist Nick Krill, singer and bassist Thomas Hughes, drummer Jeffrey Hobson, keyboardist Sam Hughes, and guitarist Joey Hob ...

while still in high school. He later attended

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

, where he earned a B.A. in Film in 2004.

Career

Early work and music

Birney was one of the founding members of

, an indie rock group formed in the late 1990s. He left the band in the early 2000s to pursue filmmaking and visual arts full-time. He is also a founding member of Teen Men , Hotel Alien and releases music under his own name. Birney's early work directing music videos for these projects served as a segue into his narrative and experimental film career. He has directed music videos for bands such as

Ra Ra Riot Ra Ra Riot is an American indie rock band consisting of vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, violinist Rebecca Zeller and drummer Kenny Bernard. History Ra Ra Riot formed in January 2006, playing at houses and ve ...

Dr. Dog Dr. Dog is an American rock band based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its lineup consists of Toby Leaman (bass), Scott McMicken (lead guitar), Frank McElroy (rhythm guitar), Zach Miller (keyboard), Eric Slick (drums), and Michael Libramento ( ...

Generationals Generationals is an American indie pop duo formed in New Orleans. The duo, consisting of Ted Joyner and Grant Widmer, released their debut album, ''Con Law'', in July 2009. An EP, ''Trust'', came out in November 2010. Their second full-length a ...

Future Islands Future Islands is an American synth-pop band based in Baltimore, Maryland, comprising Gerrit Welmers (keyboards and programming), William Cashion (bass, acoustic and electric guitars), Samuel T. Herring (lyrics and vocals), and Michael Lowry (pe ...

and

Dan Deacon Daniel Deacon (born August 28, 1981) is an American composer and electronic musician based in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland. Deacon is renowned for his live shows, where large-scale audience participation and interaction is often a major elemen ...

Filmmaking

Birney's breakout feature film was ''Sylvio'' (2017), which he co-directed with

Kentucker Audley Andrew Michael Nenninger (born November 13, 1981), known professionally as Kentucker Audley, is an American filmmaker and actor. He appeared on the 2007 ''Filmmaker Magazine'' list of 25 New Faces of Independent Film. He founded the independent ...

. The film premiered at the

SXSW Film Festival South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has continued growing in both s ...

and was named one of the best films of the year by ''The New Yorker''. In 2021, Birney and Audley co-directed '' Strawberry Mansion'', a science fiction romantic fantasy that premiered at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. The film received critical acclaim for its imaginative visuals and analog aesthetic. Birney is the creator of the animated project and video game ''Tux and Fanny'', which features hand-drawn pixel art and surreal humor. The project received widespread praise for its originality and philosophical undertones. In 2025, Birney released his sixth feature film, ''

OBEX The obex () is the point in the human brain at which the fourth ventricle narrows to become the central canal of the spinal cord. Cerebrospinal fluid can flow from the fourth ventricle into the obex. In anatomical studies, the obex has been fo ...

'', continuing his exploration of analog and DIY filmmaking techniques.

Personal life

Birney is the nephew of actor

Reed Birney Reed Birney (born September 11, 1954) is an American actor. Birney is known for his performances on stage and screen often acting on and off Broadway. Birney gained acclaim in 2016 for his role in '' The Humans'' winning the Tony Award for Best ...

, who starred in '' Strawberry Mansion''. He lives and works in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

Filmography

Feature Films

Music Videos

Short films and other projects

References

External links

Official Website
*
Albert Birney
discography at

Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...

Albert Birney
on

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

Tux and Fanny
on YouTube American animated film directors {{DEFAULTSORT:Birney, Albert 1982 births Living people