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My name is Isabel Wiegand. I'm an animator, puppet maker and illustrator. I currently work as a freelance artist and I am co-director of Fantasmagorie Studio in Rome and Almost a Studio in Barcelona.
Since 2017, Isabell Wiegand is financing consultant for the ACE Producers Workshop. She is regularly teaching at filmschools such as the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, DFFB, Lillehammer.
Isabel Wiegand. animator, puppet maker and illustrator. Born in Ipswich, UK in 1992 and raised in Rome, Italy, I have always been interested in art and self expression in all its forms. In 2017 I graduated with honours in Sculpture at RUFA Rome University of Fine Arts.
1,103 Followers, 840 Following, 144 Posts - Isabel Wiegand (@isabel_wiegand) on Instagram: "Animator, puppet maker, illustrator, weirdo."
- About The Working Process
- Career
- Inspiration and Personal Life
- Plans For The Future
— Tell us, what does your job mainly consist of? What work processes take you more time and which do you enjoy the most?
My job varies depending on what project the studio is focusing on. I mainly switch between animation and puppet making depending on what is needed, and I’ve been co-director on two projects: Unraveled, a stop-motion animation student film done during my Master’s Degree at BAU, that I co-directed with Arden Colley, Asil Atay, and Kellie Fay and The Perfect Gift that I am co-directing with Paolo Carbone, stop motion animation project currently in production at Fantasmagorie Studio. UNRAVELED |...
— How do you manage the working process and people? What are the secrets of managing creative people to deliver projects on time?
At Fantasmagorie Studio, since it’s a small reality, we all manage the projects as a team. Everyone has their role of course, and everyone knows what they need to do. We arrange roles and we manage ourselves so that we are able to meet deadlines and it’s been always a pleasure to work with my colleagues so far.
— How are the processes in the team structured, who is responsible for what, and how the responsibilities are distributed?
Like I said everyone in our team has their role: Costanza Lettieri is our illustrator and she mainly takes care of character design, storyboarding, and background design, sometimes working in puppet making and prop making. Lara Hosking mainly takes care of character design, puppet making, and animation. Mario Cirillo is our director of photography and cinematographer, and also works on post-production. Mauro Di Bella takes care of administration, marketing and music composing. I focus mainly...
— How do you succeed in fulfilling yourself?
I find my job to be very fulfilling. I get to express myself creatively and do what I’m passionate about. I get to learn more and more with every new project and I constantly feel challenged to find new solutions to bring ideas to life.
— What influenced you to become an illustrator first and then — Co-director of two stop-motion animation studios?
I have always been passionate about art in general. My favorite game when I was a child was to draw and imagine stories, and it still is. When I started my Bachelor’s Degree in Sculpture I already knew I wanted to have a career in animation, but I discovered stop-motion during my second year. I remember I watched Coraline (Henry Selick, 2009, stop-motion animation) and I was completely mesmerized by the beauty and the atmosphere of the world they had created. There was something that struck m...
— You’ve participated in numerous film festivals and won several categories. Describe your emotions before and after.
I created Unraveled with Arden Colley, Asil Atay, and Kellie Fay, it was our graduation film for our Master in Stop-Motion Animation at Bau Design College of Barcelona. I remember when we started working on our final project, we wanted to make a film that would mean something to us and resonate with the audience. When we finally finished it, we all were really satisfied with the result. The process of making it was very hard and emotional, we faced several obstacles and overcame them all as a...
— What drives you?
What drives me is and has always been the desire to express myself, in hopes that someone can relate to some of the things I create. One of my favorite feelings is to relate to artwork or to be moved by it because it makes me feel less alone. Art gives us hope, understanding, relief, and a home. That’s what I hope to give with my work too.
— Where to look for inspiration?
I think inspiration can be found anywhere if you look at things from the right perspective. I find inspiration in people, in films, in music, in life experiences, or even in everyday tasks. Even grocery shopping can spark inspiration if you look at it in the right way!
— Who are you inspired by, the work of other studios?
There are so many amazing artists and studios that I find inspiring. Some of them are Laika Studios, Aardman Studios, Dadomani Studio, Studio Croma, Beast Animation, and many many more. I am also inspired by animators such as Cesar Diaz Melendez and Tim Allen. There are honestly so many artists that inspire me, that it would be impossible to mention them all.
— What are your plans for the future?
I plan to keep working on projects with Fantasmagorie Studio, lots of exciting things are ahead. Moreover, I want to get to know more people in the stop-motion and illustration industry, looking to collaborate on an international level. I’m also planning to develop a few personal projects that have been waiting to come to life for a while now.
— What would you recommend for aspiring illustrators, animators, and other creatives?
I think I would recommend the same thing that I recommend to myself: don’t get discouraged. If you know what you want to do and you’re passionate about it, keep trying. Keep improving your skills and get creative not only in what you do but even in searching for jobs. Keep learning, keep being curious, and keep finding new ways to express yourself. Stories and art will never die, people will always need them. ∗∗∗ More of Isabelle’s work can be found on her Vimeo channel or Instagram. Check ou...
What we do |. Having worked together on over 20 international co-productions, Isabell Wiegand and Sarah Nagel founded IN BETWEEN FILM in 2010, having come to the following conclusion: For an increasing number of European film producers, co-producing with other countries is the only way to gather the financing needed to realise their films.
Isabell Wiegand is known for The Square (2017), Spencer (2021) and Enter the Void (2009).
