Richard Winkler Partner & Executive Producer, Curious Pictures
Boutique Studios: Reinventing the Scene
Fast Track Session 2

A Curious Pictures founder, and Executive Producer, Richard Winkler, has extensive hands-on production experience. An embassy brat who grew up in Africa, Europe and the Middle East, Richard went to high school in Rome and graduated from Dartmouth college with a BA in Anthropology. He began his filmmaking career overseas and has always focused on special effects, mixed media, animation and large format projects. Richard returned to the United States and worked for a variety of production companies in New York City- working his way up the production hierarchy. In addition he kept busy producing documentaries, commercials, TV movies of the week, and large format films such as, "On the Wing," an IMAX film for the Smithsonian Institution. In 1987, Winkler joined the New York animation company Broadcast Arts where he was Executive Producer for five years. At Curious, he supervises all long form content development and production and leads the company’s efforts into new ventures and diversification.

Curious Pictures is the largest animation studio in New York and the home to award winning creators of animated television series, television commercials and celebrated characters in picture books and television. Curious produces acclaimed hit TV shows, such as Codename: Kids Next Door and produced Sheep in the Big City for Cartoon Network, A Little Curious for HBO and Avenue Amy for Oxygen Network.

1. What kinds of projects do you do?
TV commercials, TV series, features, shorts, on - air promo and design

2. What animation techniques do you commonly use?
All of them

3. What is your target audience demographic?
pre-school to grown up.

4. What are you currently working on?
Codename:Kids Next Door, Little Einsteins, Mattel DTV's

5. Do you partner with independent directors?
Yes

6. Are you interested in co-productions/co-ventures?
Yes

7. Have you been involved in international co-productions/co-ventures in the past?
Yes, Canada

8. What is your favourite animated show on TV right now? (aside from your own work!)
Wonder Showzen

9. What new shows/ technologies/ approaches are you excited about and, perhaps, thinking of getting into?
Wireless

10. What is your company’s philosophy?
Great Work, Make Money, Have Fun