Karl is a New Zealand born Director, Designer, and Story/Previs Supervisor with experience in both development and production.
He has supervised teams of animation professionals and film crews on a number of award-winning projects. Past partners include Nickelodeon Animation Studios, Dreamworks TV, ITV Studios, and Weta Workshop Ltd.
Proficient in traditional storyboarding and CG pre-visualisation (with experience combining both techniques in production), Karl has also led the research and development of ambitious story/previs pipelines.
If you'd like to know more, please feel free to get in touch.
““Karl Essex is one of the most impressive people that I have worked with in over 25 years of broadcast and animation co-production. Through his dedication, excellent team management and sheer hard work he impressed every member of the global team and soon became the show’s leading director, ultimately directing 15 episodes as well as the 2-part series finale. From the UK, vastly experienced and award-winning post-production partners and commissioners would always immediately recognise and praise any episode that Karl directed.
If you’re lucky enough to be considering working with Karl, work with Karl.””
“Karl is the person you want at the wheel. He is a natural visual storyteller with wide ranging skills... an incredibly impressive work ethic, an in-depth knowledge of the medium and an absolute commitment to getting the best work on the screen. He faces down any production challenge with a calm creativity, ensuring momentum and good humour.
All of these skills are deployed with a great amount of kindness and positivity, making sure that everyone on the crew is supported, inspired and moving in the right direction.”
““Karl directed 15 episodes, and the two-part finale of the final season. In itself this should tell you all you need to know about the quality of his work and high regard that Karl was held in by everyone he worked with.
As well as overseeing and directing the CG aspects of the show, his work involved highly technical live-action shoots with practical effects, storyboarding and planning, and addressing extensive notes from the stakeholders in the show, including Sir Richard Taylor (Weta Workshop founder) and ITV... I would work with Karl again in a second if the opportunity arose.””
““If I could choose one person to walk with me through some filmmaking hell it would be Karl.
I was constantly impressed with the thoughtful preparation he brought to each show and the way he balanced the capabilities of the team and the realities of the schedule to pursue the best we could deliver. Karl always brought a calm ingenuity in dealing with the unexpected and would always find the best way forward from any situation... Karl’s intelligence, imagination and his dedication to artistry and storytelling will deeply enrich any project he is a part of.””