Animortal Studio
- Open roles
- 0
- Founded
- 2014
- Employees
- N/A
- Offices
- 2
About Animortal Studio
Animortal Studio is an independent UK stop-motion animation studio and physical model-production facility established to make feature-length animated work. Founded operationally in 2014 by animator and writer-director Mike Mort, investor and chartered accountant Randhir Singh Heer, and entrepreneur Rupert Lywood, it developed around the production of Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires.
The studio transformed a former loudspeaker factory in Bridgend, South Wales into a purpose-built production base with 27 animation stages, an art department, puppet-fabrication workshop, set-construction capability and digital cinematography infrastructure. Its work combines hand-sculpted puppets, armature engineering, miniature environments, practical effects and motion-control photography.
Stop-motion production
Animortal's feature workflow was designed for high-detail animation filmed in singles at 24 frames per second, rather than the more common practice of shooting doubles at 12 fps. For Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires, the team created miniature 1986 Los Angeles sets and 425 individually crafted puppets while scaling to a large project crew of artists and technicians.
Its services span full stop-motion feature and short-form production, commercial animation, puppet fabrication and maintenance, miniature-set design and construction, carpentry and dressing, lighting, digital cinematography, and third-party set construction for external productions.
Screen work
The studio's debut feature, Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires, premiered at Annecy in 2018 and later received theatrical distribution in 2021. Animortal also provided miniature-set construction services for Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs, produced the E4 Mecha Monster promotional ident, and is connected with the earlier short Chuck Steel: Raging Balls of Steel Justice that established the character.
Animortal remains an active company with project-based operations, retaining a London management base and its South Wales production legacy between major feature slates.
More about Animortal Studio
Recognition and leadership
- Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires won the Fantasia Gold Audience Award.
- Co-founder Mike Mort is described as a two-time BAFTA-winning animator and writer-director. The company remains governed by its three founding partners: Mort, Randhir Singh Heer and Rupert Lywood.
Production collaboration
During the production of Chuck Steel, Animortal drew on artists and technicians including nearby University of South Wales recruits and veterans of Aardman Animations, Mackinnon & Saunders and Wes Anderson productions.
Notable credits
4 creditsOffices
Where Animortal Studio is based
- London, England, United Kingdom
London offices
HeadquartersAbout this office
**Office** Status: active Headquarters Address: 41 Dover Street, London, W1S 4NS, United Kingdom Commercial head office for management, executive production, financing and business development. --- **Office** Status: active Address: 55 Loudoun Road, St. John's Wood, London, NW8 0DL, United Kingdom Registered corporate office for statutory administration.
- Bridgend, Wales, United Kingdom
Bridgend office
About this office
Purpose-built 24,000 sq. ft stop-motion production facility with animation stages, art department, puppet workshop and digital cinematography infrastructure.
Open roles
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