Cliff Garbutt

Cliff has more than twenty five years of digital animation industry experience and has held the following positions: Producer, Director, Animation Director, Artistic Director, Lead Story Developer, Lead Animator, Technical Director, Special Effects Director, Lead Modeler. He has done extensive story boarding, illustration design and animation for major US Television Networks such as NBC, CBS, and ESPN and Advertising Agencies such as McCann Erickson NY, and BBDO, as well as character development for 3D animation in both television series and feature film. Cliff has supervised full-scale digital edits and composites utilizing multi-layered live action and CG elements combined with computer-generated imagery and special effects. He has also directed large scale animation productions involving large teams of animators and professionals, for clients such as Disney Interactive, Motion Works Group, Nelvana and Nokia. Cliff has a 'pre-digital' background of four years working with traditional animation, cel, drawing and clay animation, and has been trusted to direct the animation of some of Disney's premier 'flagship' characters: Snow White & Cinderella, Buzz Lightyear and the cast from Toy Story, as well as the gang from 'Winnie the Pooh' and 'Finding Nemo' on 5 series and video game projects for Disney Interactive. In 2006, Cliff teamed up with Chinese company; Wuhan Digital Media, to develop and direct a feature movie; '7 Celsius'; of which a trailer has been completed and is available for viewing. Cliff has also directed short films for WDM, including the 'Sea Elfettes', a pop music video for kids, various American character animation series, film and special effects projects for various American Clients: So! Animation NY, Lava Studios, Miami, 'Camp Film's in Hollywood. Cliff is writing and developing a feature film based on 'The Lost Continent of Terrapin' game design, which won the X-Box Asia Development prize in 2004, and has recently completed 'Baza Baza', an animated sci-fi adventure series for kids ages 8-12, which he co-developed and co-directed for Wuhan Digital Media. In March 2016 Cliff returned to Vancouver to head up the new Animation Division of Leap Creative Group, A well-established award winning Vancouver Advertising and Design Agency.

Cliff's achievements and awards include: 2004 X-Box Asia Development Prize for 'The Lost Continent of Terrapin' Game Design. 1991 Florida EMMY for Individual Achievement: Telemundo Sports - Telemundo Network 1990 National EMMY for Graphic Design: Superbowl XX1V Open - CBS Sports 1989 Named one of North America's "Top Videographic Artists" - Videography Magazine. 1988 Cover design for Millimeter Magazine's SIGGRAPH Animation Issue 1987 BDA award for 'Best Industrial Promo': Broadcast Designers Association. 1986 Co-Created Canada's first digitally created postage stamp celebrating CBC's 50th Anniversary