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Karen Keller graduated cum laude from UCLA with a BFA in graphic design. She did post graduate studies at Art Center College of Design and took private instruction for eight years from Hal Kramer, a noted painter and illustrator. She also attended several classes through UCLA Extension in Film Production Design, Art Directing, and Directing. After graduating, she was hired by Disney Feature Animation, starting on The Fox and the Hound as an assistant layout artist. She then assisted the director and producer of Tron, helping to set up the interface between the live action frames and the special effects to be overlaid on them. She worked on Mickey’s Christmas Carol and The Black Cauldron assisting in layout. She was promoted to journeyman layout artist on The Great Mouse Detective, and was solely responsible for training the newly hired layout assistants. She took a year off for maternity leave, and returned to Disney to work on the feature film, Oliver & Co. She then went to work for Walt Disney Imagineering as a Production Designer on a multimedia project for Tokyo Disneyland. Her responsibilities included story boarding, set design and supervision of construction, and Color Styling. She then returned to Disney Feature Animation as the Lead Layout artist on Tummy Trouble, a Roger Rabbit short. Bob Rogers Productions then hired her to Art Direct a twenty-minute IMAX format animated film for the Osaka Worlds Fair. She supervised the visual concept and design for Flower Planet, the first IMAX formatted animation ever, for which she was presented a Cine Golden Eagle award for excellence. She returned to Disney animation doing key layout design and workbooks for The Rescuers Down Under. She then worked in the Creative Development Department, styling and designing various potential projects in development, including The Lion King. She returned to animation production as key layout and workbook artist for Aladdin, Pocahontas, Fantasia 2000, Hercules, The Emperors New Groove, and Home on the Range. She additionally served on the Artistic Review Board at Disney Feature Animation for several years. She was asked to consult with the Artist Development Department at Disney Feature Animation, lecturing on Layout in the Production Process, Cinematic Visual Structure, Creative Perspective, and Cinematic Color Design. She also helped develop training material for the CGI group to facilitate the integration of 2D and 3D animation. She also teaches Layout and Scenic Design for the Animation Program at the Laguna College of Art and Design. In 2002, she founded Made in Paradise Productions, along with her business partner, Carol Police. She brings a wealth of expertise in animation layout design and cinematic style, story boarding, and editorial cutting. She works closely with the creative teams to establish an efficient, effective, and really cool looking cinematic style for each of their productions. Their clients include Toonacious Family Entertainment, Disneytoon Studios, and Universal Animation. karen.keller@madeinparadiseprod.com |
