Gennady Borisovich Tartakovsky (January 17, 1970) is an American
animatorAn animator is an artist who creates multiple images called frames and Key frames that form an illusion of movement called animation when rapidly displayed. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an animation piece requires the...
,
directorAn animation director is the director in charge of all aspects of the animation process during the production of an animated film or animated segment for a live-action film...
,
writerA writer is anyone who creates a written work, though the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, as well as those who have written in many different forms.-Profession:...
and
producerThe primary role of a television producer is to control all aspects of production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
.
Genndy Tartakovsky was born on January 17, 1970, in
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
, in the then-USSR to Jewish parents. His father, Boris, worked as a dentist for government officials and a Russian hockey team. His mother, Miriam, was an assistant principal at a school. He also has a brother, Alex, who is 2 years older and is currently a computer consultant in Chicago.
Gennady Borisovich Tartakovsky (January 17, 1970) is an American
animatorAn animator is an artist who creates multiple images called frames and Key frames that form an illusion of movement called animation when rapidly displayed. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an animation piece requires the...
,
directorAn animation director is the director in charge of all aspects of the animation process during the production of an animated film or animated segment for a live-action film...
,
writerA writer is anyone who creates a written work, though the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, as well as those who have written in many different forms.-Profession:...
and
producerThe primary role of a television producer is to control all aspects of production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
.
Biography
Genndy Tartakovsky was born on January 17, 1970, in
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
, in the then-USSR to Jewish parents. His father, Boris, worked as a dentist for government officials and a Russian hockey team. His mother, Miriam, was an assistant principal at a school. He also has a brother, Alex, who is 2 years older and is currently a computer consultant in Chicago. Tartakovsky's family moved to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
when he was seven due to concerns about the effect of
anti-SemitismAntisemitism is prejudice against or hostility towards Jews, often rooted in hatred of their ethnic background, culture, or religion....
on their children's lives. Originally settling in
Columbus, OhioColumbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...
the family later moved to
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
. He was greatly influenced by the comics he found there. The first book he bought was a
Super FriendsSuper Friends is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes, which ran from 1973 to 1986 on ABC as part of its Saturday morning cartoon lineup...
comic at a
7-Eleven7-Eleven is an international chain of convenience stores and the largest chain store with more than 32,000 outlets operating around the world, surpassing the previous record-holder McDonald’s Corporation by approximately 1,000 retail stores...
.
Before coming to the United States, however, his family first moved to Italy, where he lived next to a German family. There, Tartakovsky says he was first drawn to art, inspired by a neighbor's daughter. Tartakovsky later commented, "I remember, I was horrible at it. For the life of me, I couldn't draw a circle."
Genndy began attending Chicago's Eugene Field Elementary School in the third grade. School was hard for him because he felt that everyone recognized him as a foreigner. He went on to attend Chicago's prestigious
Lane Technical College Prep High SchoolAlbert G. Lane Technical College Preparatory High School , is a public, four-year, magnet high school located on the northwest side of Chicago. Lane is one of the oldest schools in the city and has an enrollment of over four thousand students...
(a.k.a. Lane Tech), and says he never felt he fit in until he was a
sophomoreSophomore is a term used in the United States to describe a student in the 2nd year of study ....
there.
When he was 16, his father died of a heart attack. He felt that his father was very strict and was an old fashioned man, but Genndy's relationship with his father was very special to him. After the death of his father, Genndy and his family moved to government-funded housing, and he began working while still attending high school.
To satisfy his ambitious family, Genndy tried to take an advertising class, because they were encouraging him to be a businessman. However, he signed up late, and therefore did not have any choice over his classes. He was assigned to take an animation class, and this led to his study of film at Chicago's
Columbia CollegeColumbia College Chicago is the largest arts and media college in the United States with over 12,500 students pursuing degrees within 120 undergraduate and graduate programs...
before moving to
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
to study animation at the
California Institute of the ArtsThe California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, California, in Los Angeles County, California. CalArts is authorized by the state of California to grant Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts in the visual, performing, and literary arts...
(with his friend, Robert Renzetti) and there he met the other classmate,
Craig McCrackenCraig McCracken is an American animator mostly known as the creator of the cartoon series The Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends.-Biography:...
. It was at the California Institute of the Arts where Tartakovsky directed and animated two student films -- one of which became the basis for
Dexter's LaboratoryDexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
.
Reportedly, after two years at Cal Arts, Tartakovsky got a job in
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
on
Batman: The Animated SeriesBatman: The Animated Series is an American animated series adaptation of the comic book series starring the DC Comics superhero, Batman. The series is noted for being the first to take place in the DC Animated Universe. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation.The visual style of the series is...
and
The CriticThe Critic was an American animated series revolving around the life of movie critic Jay Sherman, voiced by actor Jon Lovitz. It was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss, both of whom had worked as writers on The Simpsons. The Critic had 23 episodes produced, first broadcast on ABC in 1994, finishing...
. While there, "he learned the trials of TV animation, labor intensive and cranking it out." Also, while in Spain, his mother died of cancer. Later, Tartakovsky worked at
Hanna-BarberaHanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. , was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
, drawing storyboards for the show
2 Stupid Dogs2 Stupid Dogs is an American animated television series created by Donovan Cook and produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and Turner Program Services that originally ran from September 11, 1993 to January 21, 1995 on TBS Superstation....
.
Craig McCrackenCraig McCracken is an American animator mostly known as the creator of the cartoon series The Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends.-Biography:...
showed his portfolio to
Hanna-BarberaHanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. , was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
and got the job art directing for the show
2 Stupid Dogs. They asked him if he knew anyone else, and he responded, saying that he knew that Robert Renzetti and Genndy Tartakovsky would be right for the job. This was a major turning point in Tartakovsky's career. Hanna-Barbera let Tartakovsky, McCracken, Renzetti, and
Paul RudishPaul Rudish is an American animator who helped create Dexter's Laboratory, The PowerPuff Girls, Samurai Jack, and the Clone Wars. He worked in Hanna-Barbera with Genndy Tartakovsky. Then he worked at Cartoon Network Studios with Genndy Tartakovsky. He was a co-art director of the Star Wars: Clone...
work in a trailer in the parking lot of the studio, and there, Tartakovsky started creating his best known works.
Tartakovsky is most well known for creating, writing, and directing the animated series
Dexter's LaboratoryDexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
and
Samurai JackSamurai Jack is a 4-time Emmy award-winning American animated television series created by animator Genndy Tartakovsky that aired on Cartoon Network from 2001 until 2004...
.
Dexter's Laboratory grew out of a student film with the same title that he produced while at the California Institute of the Arts. Tartakovksy also co-wrote and pencilled the 25th issue of the
Dexter's Laboratory comic book series, titled "Stubble Trouble". Additionally, he helped produce
The Powerpuff GirlsThe Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three kindergarten-aged girls who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network...
and has directed many episodes, serving as the animation director for
The Powerpuff Girls MovieThe Powerpuff Girls Movie is an animated feature-length film based on the Cartoon Network animated television series of the same name. Produced by Cartoon Network for Warner Bros., the film debuted in the US on July 5, 2002...
. All three projects were nominated repeatedly for Emmy Awards, with
Samurai Jack finally winning "Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour)" in 2004 (the same year he would win in the category for One Hour or More for
Star Wars: Clone Wars)
Star WarsStar Wars is an epic space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas. The first film in the franchise was originally released on May 25, 1977, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, spawning two immediate sequels, released at three-year intervals...
creator
George LucasGeorge Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, director and chairman of Lucasfilm Ltd. He is best known for being the creator of the epic sci-fi franchise Star Wars and joint creator of the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
hired Tartakovsky to direct
Star Wars: Clone Wars, a successful animated microseries depicting the
Clone WarsThe Clone Wars are a series of fictional intragalactic battles in George Lucas's science fiction saga Star Wars. The conflict is first mentioned in the film, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope , but no details are given , and the wars themselves are not featured until the second and third episodes of...
, taking place between
Attack of the ClonesStar Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is a 2002 space opera film directed by George Lucas and written by Lucas and Jonathan Hales. It is the fifth film to be released in the Star Wars saga and the second in terms of internal chronology....
and
Revenge of the SithStar Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is a 2005 space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. It is the sixth film released in the Star Wars saga and the third in terms of the series' internal chronology. It completes the entire Star Wars story.The film takes place three years after...
. The series has won three Emmy awards: two for "Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or More)" (in 2004 and 2005) and another for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation" (for background designer Justin Thompson in 2005). Tartakovsky has no plans to work on future
Star Wars projects.
To date, Tartakovsky has amassed 12 Emmy nominations and three wins. He has also been nominated four times for Annie Awards, winning once for The Star Wars Clone Wars Volume 2 series.
Recently, Tartakovsky has been made creative president of
The OrphanageThe Orphanage is a visual effects studio located in California. It has offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco. It was co-founded in 1999 by Stu Maschwitz, Jonathan Rothbart and Scott Stewart, who all previously worked at Industrial Light and Magic. Scott Kirsner at Hollywood Reporter...
's Orphanage Animation Studios, an animation studio fabricated of
LucasfilmLucasfilm Limited is an American film production company founded by George Lucas in 1971, based in San Francisco, California. Lucas is the company's current chairman, and Micheline Chau is the president and COO....
veterans. The company hopes to one day rival animation giant
PixarPixar Animation Studios is a CGI animation production company based in Emeryville, California, United States. To date, the studio has earned twenty-two Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, and three Grammys, among many other awards, acknowledgments and achievements. It is one of the most critically...
, and believes that Tartakovsky can get them there. Their first feature will be the sequel to the 1982 classic
The Dark CrystalThe Dark Crystal is a 1982 fantasy film directed by puppeteers Jim Henson and Frank Oz, creators of The Muppet Show. Although still marketed as a family film, it was notably darker than previous material created by them. Characters for which they are famous do not appear, but some of the same...
.
Power of the Dark Crystal will be directed by Tartakovsky, and is set to be released in 2011.
Genndy recently helped create and directed animation on the pilot episode of
Korgoth of BarbariaKorgoth of Barbaria is a pilot episode for an American animated television series created by Aaron Springer, storyboard writer and director for Dexter's Laboratory, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy and SpongeBob SquarePants. The pilot episode first aired in the United States on June 3, 2006 at...
. The series was set for a complete first season on
Adult SwimAdult Swim, often stylized as [adult swim] and abbreviated as [as], is an adult-oriented cable television network that shares channel space with Cartoon Network from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM ET/PT in the United States and broadcasting in countries such as Australia and Japan...
, scheduled to air in spring of 2007, but it has been delayed. It is unconfirmed if the series will continue or if Genndy will be involved if it does.
A
Samurai Jack feature film will be produced by
Frederator FilmsFrederator Films is an animation studio founded by Fred Seibert as part of Frederator Studios, with producers Kevin Kolde and Eric Gardner on June 25, 2007. The studio's goal is to create animated genre features budgeted under $20 million...
, and will be written and directed by Tartakovsky.
He has been
storyboardStoryboards are graphic organizers such as a series of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence, including website interactivity....
ing
Iron Man II.
It was announced at Cartoon Network Upfront 2009 that a new show by Genndy, currently titled Sym-Bionic Titan, is in the works.
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2009/03/chung-tartakovk.html
Awards
His first professional cartoon creation, Dexter's Laboratory, received four Emmy nominations and an Annie Award. Clone Wars won two Emmy awards, while Samurai Jack won one.
What's Next?:
Tartakovsky is developing a new cartoon for Cartoon Network titled Sym-Bionic Titan. Plus, he has been tapped by The Jim Henson Company to direct Power of the Dark Crystal, the sequel to The Dark Crystal.
Director
- Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
(1996)
- The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three kindergarten-aged girls who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network...
(1998)
- Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack is a 4-time Emmy award-winning American animated television series created by animator Genndy Tartakovsky that aired on Cartoon Network from 2001 until 2004...
(2001)
- Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
- Power of the Dark Crystal (2011)
Producer
- Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
(1996)
- The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three kindergarten-aged girls who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network...
(1998)
- Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack is a 4-time Emmy award-winning American animated television series created by animator Genndy Tartakovsky that aired on Cartoon Network from 2001 until 2004...
(2001)
- The Flintstones: On the Rocks
The Flintstones: On the Rocks is an animated movie for television based on the popular animated franchise, The Flintstones, which aired in November 3, 2001 on Cartoon Network in the United States...
(2001)
- Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
Writer
- Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
(1996)
- The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three kindergarten-aged girls who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network...
(1998)
- Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack is a 4-time Emmy award-winning American animated television series created by animator Genndy Tartakovsky that aired on Cartoon Network from 2001 until 2004...
(2001)
- Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
Animator
- 2 Stupid Dogs
2 Stupid Dogs is an American animated television series created by Donovan Cook and produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and Turner Program Services that originally ran from September 11, 1993 to January 21, 1995 on TBS Superstation....
(1993)
- The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series about three kindergarten-aged girls who have superpowers. Created by animator Craig McCracken, the program was produced by Hanna-Barbera until 2001 when Cartoon Network Studios took over production for Cartoon Network...
(1998)
- Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
Storyboards
- 2 Stupid Dogs
2 Stupid Dogs is an American animated television series created by Donovan Cook and produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and Turner Program Services that originally ran from September 11, 1993 to January 21, 1995 on TBS Superstation....
(1993)
- Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory is an Annie Award-winning American animated series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios , about a boy genius named Dexter, who has a secret laboratory hidden behind a bookshelf in his bedroom...
(1996)
- Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003)
- Iron Man 2
Iron Man 2 is an upcoming 2010 superhero film, based on the Marvel Comics fictional character Iron Man. The film is directed by Jon Favreau, with Robert Downey Jr. reprising the title role...
(2010)
External links