Bill Kroyer

William Kroyer is an American director of animation and computer graphics commercials, short films, movie titles, and theatrical films. He and Jerry Rees were the main animators for the CGI sequences in '' Tron''. From 2009 to 2021, he served as the head of the Digital Arts department at Lawrence and Kristina Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University.

Career

Kroyer began his animation career in 1975 by working in a small commercial studio. In 1977, he finally ended up at Disney Studios as animator on '' The Fox and the Hound'' but left Disney later because he did not want to work on '' The Black Cauldron''. It was then he met future ''Tron'' director Steven Lisberger, who was working on '' Animalympics''. After ''Animalympics'' was completed, Lisberger developed ''Tron'' and sold it to Disney.

After ''Tron'' was finished, Kroyer decided to stay with computer animation instead of traditional animation and worked at Robert Abel and Associates and Digital Productions. In 1986, he and his wife, Sue, started Kroyer Films to combine computer animation with hand-drawn animation. They made a short film titled '' Technological Threat''; it was nominated for an Academy Award in 1988 and preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2008.

After ''Technological Threat'' was finished, Kroyer decided to stay with computer animation for films such as '' Jetsons: The Movie'' and '' Rugrats in Paris: The Movie''.

He directed '' Computer Warriors: The Adventure Begins'' in 1990 and then '' FernGully: The Last Rainforest'' in 1992. He was originally set to direct '' Quest for Camelot'' but left the project over creative differences.

Soon after he joined Rhythm and Hues Studios as Senior Animation Director and supervised the CGI animation for films such as '' Garfield'', ''Scooby-Doo'', '' Cats & Dogs'' and '' The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas''.

In early 2009, he began teaching at Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts in Orange, California.Wolff, Ellen (March 2011). "Bill Kroyer's Academic Adventure". '' Animation Magazine''. pp. 33-35

In 2017, he and his wife Susan became the first couple to receive the June Foray Award from the international Animation Society for their "contributions to the art and industry of animation."

He is the author of "Mr. In-Between: My life in the Middle of the Animation Revolution", published by the Taylor & Francis Group in 2025.

Filmography

* '' Rugrats in Paris: The Movie'' (CG animation director: Rhythm & Hues)
* '' The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas'' (CG animation director: Rhythm & Hues)
* '' The Green Mile'' (animation supervisor: Rhythm & Hues)
* '' FernGully: The Last Rainforest'' (director)
* '' Computer Warriors: The Adventure Begins'' (writer, director)
* '' Jetsons: The Movie'' (computer animator: vehicle animation)
* '' Technological Threat'' (writer, director, producer, computer animation)
* '' Starchaser: The Legend of Orin'' (computer animation planner, key animator)
* '' Tron'' (production storyboards, computer image choreography)
* '' Animalympics'' (animation director, animator)

See also

* Kroyer Films
* Rhythm & Hues
* Robert Abel and Associates
* Digital Productions
* Silicon Graphics
* Wavefront Technologies
* Alias Research
* Symbolics Graphics Division
* Apple Macintosh
* Softimage 3D
* CSRG, UC Berkeley

References

External links

*

''Creating the Memories'' by William Kroyer

Author's website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kroyer, Bill
20th-century births
Living people
American animated film directors
Year of birth missing (living people)
Chapman University faculty