Animating SCARYGIRL – Panel Discussion with the Creators

Sunday 11 February

11am AEST

Fifteen years in the making, meet the creators of Scarygirl. Based on the work of Australian artist, Nathan Jurevicius, Scarygirl began as vinyl toys in the early 2000s and has since spawned graphic novels, video games, and now a feature film. The animated adventure-fantasy film follows Arkie, as she attempts to rescue her father from evil scientist Dr Maybee. Join host Kristen Souvlis and panel featuring creator Nathan Jurevicius, producer Sophie Byrne, directors Ricard Cussó and Tania Vincent and actor Remy Hii for a discussion about this spooky kid’s franchise.

Featuring

Kristen Souvlis

Kristen Souvlis is a multi-award-winning producer with a strong focus on the development, financing and production of television, feature film and digital content and platforms for children.

After 10 years of experience developing and producing for TOTALLY WILD, H2O: JUST ADD WATER, MAKO MERMAIDS and VIKINGS: ATHELSTAN’S JOURNAL and organizations like the BBC, Sesame Street USA, ZDF Enterprises and The History Channel, Kristen went on to co-found the multi award-winning film, television and digital production company, Like A Photon Creative.

As the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Like A Photon Creative, Kristen has built a production and digital studio from the ground up, produced award-winning games and apps, and developed, financed and produced an Australian-first feature film franchise with Universal Content Group.THE WISHMAS TREE, COMBAT WOMBAT and DAISY QUOKKA, the first three feature films of the franchise, were released theatrically in over 175 territories in 2020. The next three films of the franchise are due for worldwide release in 2024.

Sophie Byrne

Sophie Byrne is an award-winning film and TV producer with over 30 years of industry experience both in London and Melbourne and is best known for her work on the initial pilot and original music videos for the hugely successful concept band GORILLAZ, the expansion of the cult brand SCARYGIRL and for producing the Academy Award®-winning animated short The Lost Thing.

Her production company, Highly Spirited is the offspring of Oscar winning production company Passion Pictures Australia. Based in Melbourne, Highly Spirited has many high end independent film, TV and new media projects in various stages of development and production including: an animated feature film based on Nathan Jurevicius’s acclaimed SCARYGIRL concept (currently in post-production with co-producers Like A Photon Creative), a high end TV series TALES FROM OUTER SUBURBIA with co-production partners Flying Bark Productions based on Shaun Tan’s award winning childrens’ book of the same name, and a music driven kids TV series based on AFL star Eddie Bett’s best selling picture books, EDDIES Lil HOMIES.

Highly Spirited was also a Supervising Producer of Ari Folman’s (Waltz with Bashir) recent 2D animated feature film, WHERE IS ANNE FRANK.

Nathan Jurevicius

Nathan Jurevicius is an Australian illustrator, director, toy designer, author, and concept artist. His work has appeared in numerous publications, advertising campaigns, and galleries.

He specializes in creating immersive worlds inhabited by unique characters. His most acclaimed concept is Scarygirl, an ever-evolving plethora of characters manifested through limited edition figures, video games, and animation.

Nathan’s also known for the Australian Academy Award-winning ‘PELEDA’ universe, part of his ongoing owl-centric Lithuanian mythology series that includes collaborations with Kidrobot and IKEA.

Ricard Cussó

Ricard Cussó is a Spanish/ Australian feature film director known for directing Universal Pictures’ 3D animated feature trilogy Tales From Sanctuary City, comprise of The Wishmas Tree (2020), Combat Wombat (2020) and Daisy Ouokka: World’s Scariest Animal (2021), all produced by award-winning production company Like A Photon Creative.

On his directorial journey, Ricard directed for the American entertainment company The Sudden Impact! Entertainment, specialising in live theatrical shows worldwide. For many years Ricard directed and designed live attractions for Hollywood blockbuster films such as Ghostbusters and the Terminator, touring Australia, Asia, and Latin America territories.

After directing the Tales From Sanctuary City trilogy, Ricard took on the directorial helm of Scarygirl, a thrilling co-production by Highly Spirited and Like a Photon Creative. Set to be released worldwide on Halloween 2023, this highly anticipated project features a star-studded cast including Sam Neill, Tim Minchin, Jillian Nguyen, Remy Hii, and Anna Torv.

Currently, Ricard is immersed in the production of his next two animated features: Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back and The Sloth Lane. These captivating films are set to expand Universal Pictures’ Tales from Sanctuary City franchise, solidifying Ricard’s position as one of the leading animated feature film directors in Australia.

Tania Vincent

Tania Vincent is a director, screenwriter, and animator with more than 16 years of experience in the animation industry. Over the years she has worked on TV shows, AAA computer games and advertising campaigns for companies such as Lego, Disney, Warner Brothers, Marvel, and Pixar.

In 2020, she was selected for the Imagine Impact screenwriting initiative, which led to her live-action family adventure feature being sold to Netflix US. From there she wrote & directed an 18-part, 2D animated mini-series that promotes emotional intelligence for pre-schoolers called Smiling Mind Creek, which was created in conjunction with the children’s charity, Smiling Mind.
Most recently, Tania has co-directed two animated feature films set for release in 2023; Scarygirl, an animated feature based on an Australian graphic novel and Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back.

Remy Hii

Remy Hii is a professional actor, avid film photographer, and budding home chef. Remy was most recently seen in the Netflix series WELLMANIA and voicing the role of Bunniguru in the animated feature film SCARYGIRL.

His other screen credits include the Netflix feature film PRINCESS SWITCH 3: ROMANCING THE STAR, ABC series’ AFTERTASTE and HARROW, acclaimed animated Netflix series ARCANE, Marvel Studio’s SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME, Netflix epic drama MARCO POLO and Warner Bros. feature CRAZY RICH ASIANS.

In 2013, Remy Hii starred in the SBS drama BETTER MAN for which he received the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Outstanding Newcomer and an AACTA Award nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama for his role in the production.
Remy’s stage credits include GWB Entertainment’s 2:22 A GHOST STORY, Ensemble Theatre’s SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER and Sydney Theatre Company’s adaption of THE TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL and THE GOLDEN AGE.

Scarygirl is a VicScreen supported production