Michael Rianda (born December 25, 1984) is an American cartoonist, director, screenwriter, and voice actor. He is known for his work on ''

Gravity Falls ''Gravity Falls'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery television comedy, comedy animated television series created by Alex Hirsch for Disney Channel and Disney XD. The series follows the adventures of Dipper Pines (Jason Ritter) and his twi ...

'' as a creative director and writer for season 1, and creative consultant for season 2. He is also known for directing, co-writing, and co-starring his feature directorial debut '' The Mitchells vs. the Machines'' (2021), for which he was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Animated Feature The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature is an Academy Awards, Academy Award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for the best animation, animated feature film. An animated feature is defined by the a ...

Early life and education

Rianda was born on December 25, 1984, in

Salinas, California Salinas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Salt pan (geology), Salt Flats") is a city in the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Monterey County, California, Monterey County. With a population of 163,542 in the 2020 Census, Salinas is ...

. He attended the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a Private university, private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for ...

after he "drew and said amusing things" in school, studying character animation. Rianda also started writing and directing two short films at the animation school titled ''Everybody Dies in 90 Seconds'' (2008) and ''Work'' (2010).

Career

He became a creative director and writer on the Emmy Award-winning

Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...

animated television series ''

'' until his departure in 2013. Mike also voiced Lee, Thompson, Mr. Poolcheck, and additional voices. Rianda later returned and served as a creative consultant for its second season. In 2021, he directed and co-wrote, along with Jeff Rowe, '' The Mitchells vs. the Machines'', in which he also voiced Aaron Mitchell. The film was released on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

on April 30, 2021.

Filmography

Feature films

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rianda, Michael Living people 1984 births American animators American animated film directors American male voice actors American male television writers American television writers Annie Award winners Animators from California People from Salinas, California California Institute of the Arts alumni Sony Pictures Animation people Nickelodeon Animation Studio people Netflix people Netflix Animation people