Walter Robot

Last updated

Walter Robot is a creative studio founded by artist Bill Barminski and director Christopher Louie. They work in multiple mediums including film, television, art and sculpture. Their film work has screened at several film festivals, including the Sundance Film Festival and the Los Angeles Film Festival where in 2012 the festival hosted a retrospective of their work. Their artwork has been showcased in several installations and galleries in Los Angeles, New York and London. In 2014, to much critical success, they worked with the world-renowned Cleveland Orchestra and staged the first ever interactive animated version of The Cunning Little Vixen opera.

Contents

History

Walter Robot began as a robot they built to star in a music video for the Modest Mouse's "Missed the Boat" green screen competition. [1] Walter Robot won the competition [2] and went on to direct music videos for several notable artists including Kid Cudi, Gnarls Barkley, [3] Vitalic, Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20 and Death Cab for Cutie. [4] In addition to their music videos they have worked with commercial clients ranging from Nokia, Play-Doh, MTV, Wendy's, Lexus and American Express.

Their video "Grapevine Fires" for Death Cab for Cutie was accepted into the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival where it won Audience Award for Best Music Video. [5] Shortly after the success of the "Grapevine Fires" video they teamed again with Death Cab for Cutie for their song "Meet Me on the Equinox" which was the premiere single for The Twilight Saga: New Moon (soundtrack). In 2012 they also directed the video for Death Cab for Cutie's "Underneath the Sycamore" (which included a clip of the "Grapevine Fires" video within this video).

A retrospective of their work was hosted by the 2012 Los Angeles Film Festival in two screenings titled, THUNDERDOME (Walter Robot vs. The Daniels). [6]

As well as their music videos they have completed several successful viral videos and short films. A short film they did in collaboration with Los Angeles Times journalist Joel Stein was accepted to screen at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. [7] They also worked with Academy Award-nominated and Emmy Award winner, director Jeffrey Blitz, on the documentary Lucky , which premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.

For feature films and TV they are represented at William Morris Endeavor for whom they directed and produced a short film titled, The Transfer. [8]

They are currently developing several feature film, television and artistic properties. One of which includes Mojowski 77  ; a surreal neo-noir set in an alternate Los Angeles filled with robots and cardboard guns. The cardboard guns have been displayed as artwork in several art gallery shows that opened in 2011. [9] [10] And a video they directed/animated for Death Cab for Cutie's "Underneath the Sycamore" previews the animated TV show version of Mojowski 77, and also features a clip from their earlier video for "Grapevine Fires".

In September 2012 they collaborated on an art show titled This Side Up. [11] The show was hosted by the Robert Berman Gallery at Bergamot Station in Santa Monica, California. The art show featured video installation, cardboard sculpture as well as paintings and drawings.

Videography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danger Mouse (musician)</span> American musician and producer (born 1977)

Brian Joseph Burton, known professionally as Danger Mouse, is an American musician and record producer. He came to prominence in 2004 when he released The Grey Album, which combined vocal performances from Jay-Z's The Black Album with instrumentals from the Beatles' The Beatles, also known as The White Album. In 2008, Esquire named him one of the "75 most influential people of the 21st century".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death Cab for Cutie</span> American rock band

Death Cab for Cutie is an American rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. Death Cab for Cutie's music has been classified as indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard, Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper, Zac Rae, and Jason McGerr (drums).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lex Records</span> British record label

Lex Records is a British independent record label based in Camden, London, England.

Robert Hales is a graphic designer and music video director from the United Kingdom. Hales has directed music videos by artists such as Westlife, Bridgit Mendler, Avril Lavigne, Tame Impala, Jet, The Veronicas, Fuel, Stereophonics, The Donnas, Justin Timberlake, Nine Inch Nails, Death Cab For Cutie, Miley Cyrus, Gnarls Barkley, Imagine Dragons and Crowded House. Robert Hales has co-directed the video for Nine Inch Nails' "Starfuckers, Inc.", but he designed the artwork for the CD single of Nine Inch Nails' "The Day the World Went Away."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Milk</span> American entrepreneur

Chris Milk is an American entrepreneur, innovator, director, photographer, and immersive artist. He is co-founder and CEO of Within, a virtual reality technology company, and co-founder of Here Be Dragons, a virtual reality production company. Milk began his career directing music videos and commercials for leading artists and brands, and in subsequent years became best known for bridging the gap between emerging technologies and new mediums for storytelling.

Jeff Antebi is an American entrepreneur in the arts, best known as the founder of Waxploitation Records and for his photographic works from war and conflict zones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gnarls Barkley</span> American soul duo

Gnarls Barkley are an American soul duo, composed of singer-songwriter CeeLo Green and producer Danger Mouse. They released their debut studio album, St. Elsewhere, in 2006. It contained their hit single "Crazy", which peaked at number two on the US Hot 100 and topped the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated at the 2007 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, and was platinum certified for shipping over 1,000,000 records. St. Elsewhere also received a nomination for Album of the Year. The Odd Couple, their second studio album, was scheduled for release in April 2008, but due to a leak of the album over the internet, they decided to release it early. The album in its entirety received similarly positive reviews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Barminski</span> American artist and filmmaker

Bill Barminski is an American self taught artist and filmmaker born in Chicago, Illinois. His work has been part of creative projects such as Banksy's Dismaland, Beyond The Streets and The Cunning Little Vixen, a new media production of the Leoš Janáček opera produced by the Cleveland Orchestra. He works in many mediums and starting in 2008 began producing cardboard sculptures that focus on white forms with pinstripe outlines to convey the notion of 3 dimensional drawings. In 2018 he was a participating artist in Beyond The Streets artshow curated by Roger Gastman. In 2019 Barminski created a cardboard living room where visitors were encouraged to play with the artwork for the New York City iteration of Beyond the Streets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)</span> 2008 single by Gnarls Barkley

"Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)", also known more commonly as "Run", is a song written and recorded by Gnarls Barkley. It is the first single to be released from the band's second album The Odd Couple. Released in February 2008 as a digital download in the UK and the US via the iTunes Store, a physical release of the single followed in the UK on March 31. The song features a sample from Keith Mansfield's "Junior Jet Set" from the KPM LP Flamboyant Themes and "Starting Out the Day" by Strawberry Alarm Clock. The song is featured in the film X-Men: First Class, as a playable song in the video game Dance Central 2, and is heard in promos for Disney-Pixar's Cars 2 and the eight series of CBBC's Raven. This song was number 34 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Will Possess Your Heart</span> 2008 single by Death Cab for Cutie

"I Will Possess Your Heart" is an alternative rock song recorded by the American band Death Cab for Cutie. The song depicts a one-sided obsessive relationship, which led Paste to name it one of the 25 creepiest songs about love. It is notable for its five-minute instrumental introduction as well as its music video which required location shooting across four continents. The song was the lead single from their sixth studio album, Narrow Stairs (2008).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death Cab for Cutie discography</span>

Death Cab for Cutie has released ten studio albums, five extended plays (EPs), a demo tape, a digital album, one live album, thirty-two singles, nine music videos, and two DVDs. Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie rock group from Bellingham, Washington and was formed in 1997 by Ben Gibbard as a side project from Pinwheel. After releasing a demo tape, he added guitarist Chris Walla, bassist Nick Harmer, and drummer Nathan Good to the band. Death Cab signed to Barsuk Records and released four extended plays (EPs) and four studio albums through the label. The fourth album, Transatlanticism, reached number 97 on the Billboard 200 and was eventually certified gold in the United States. The group also issued nine singles and a demo tape through Barsuk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pedestrian (band)</span> American rock band

Pedestrian is an alternative rock band based in Los Angeles, California, United States. The band was formed in late 2002 by guitarist/songwriter Joel Shearer.

"Grapevine Fires" is a song by American indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, the fourth single from their sixth studio album, Narrow Stairs, released February 3, 2009 on Atlantic Records.

Ace Norton is a Japanese American filmmaker and artist born and raised in Venice, California. Norton creates visuals on a variety of media platforms including music videos, commercials, fashion films, and movies. Norton also is known for his drawings, sculptures, and frequently commissioned installation work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 MTV Video Music Awards</span> Award ceremony

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, honoring the best music videos from the previous year between June 2008 to June 2009, were presented on September 13, 2009, at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City, and televised by MTV. The ceremony was hosted by Russell Brand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Farmer (director)</span>

Richard Farmer is a film, commercial and music video director. His directorial work has been shown in film festivals around the world, including the Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors' Showcase at Cannes Lions, and has garnered multiple MTV Video Music Awards and Best Short Film awards at both the Malibu International Film Festival and the BFI London Film Festival.

<i>Randy Parsons: American Luthier</i> 2011 American film

Randy Parsons: American Luthier is a 2011 documentary short film about Randy Parsons, an American luthier whose client list includes Jack White, Jimmy Page, Sammy Hagar, Death Cab for Cutie, Peter Frampton, Joe Perry, and Modest Mouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Ghosts of Beverly Drive</span> 2015 single by Death Cab for Cutie

"The Ghosts of Beverly Drive" is a song by American indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie. It is the second single from their eighth studio album Kintsugi.

Tim Nackashi is an American filmmaker, documentarian, and music video director. He is perhaps best known for his one-take music video for OK Go's WTF? and the documentary film Dirty Work co-directed by David Sampliner and executive produced by Edward Norton, which had its premier at the Sundance Film Festival.

The MTV Woodies is an annual music show presented by MTVU with awards voted on by fans.

References

  1. ↑ Interview in Promo Magazine re: Modest Mouse competition
  2. ↑ Modest Mouse "Missed the Boat" Vote
  3. ↑ BoingBoing presents Gnarls Barkley "Mystery Man"
  4. ↑ Death Cab for Cutie Loves Walter Robot
  5. ↑ L.A. Film Fest picks winners
  6. ↑ LAFF 2012, Walter Robot Retrospective
  7. ↑ 2009 Sundance Film Festival Announces Short Film Program
  8. ↑ THE TRANSFER (WME short film)
  9. ↑ I Haz Gun Show, Los Angeles
  10. ↑ POW Gallery, London
  11. ↑ THIS SIDE UP (art show)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.