The Briefing Room

New York & Los Angeles – (May 5, 2008) – Animation Supervisor Matt Hackett has joined Riot/NY. Hackett was welcomed to Riot by the company’s Managing Director, Michael Taylor.

“We are truly privileged to have Matt Hackett join Riot/NY,” notes Taylor. “Working closely with Pink, Riot NY’s CG Supervisor, Matt’s expansive skill-set gives us additional strength as we continue to build our New York team.”

“Matt Hackett’s credentials and reel speak for themselves,” adds Riot/NY’s Executive Producer, D. Todd Davidovich. “As our momentum continues to grow, we are strategically hand-selecting candidates to join our team. We are confident that the New York market has the thirst for what we are, and will continue to offer, in terms of our finishing and VFX project-based creative services.”

Matt Hackett joins Riot with a wealth of knowledge, experience and creative talent. A graduate of the California Institute of the Arts, Matt’s first industry position was at award-winning Digital Domain on the blockbuster hit ‘Titanic’ in 1995. He then moved to Centropolis and worked on ‘Godzilla’ as the lead animator for the Babyzillas. A four-year term in Hawaii allowed him to work on ‘Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within’, followed by ‘The Animatrix: The Final Flight of the Osiris’. A return to Los Angeles in 2002 led him once again to Centropolis, where he worked on ‘Matrix’ 2 and 3 before moving on to Asylum. It was at Asylum that Hackett completed numerous films, commercials and pre-vis sequences for directors. The highlights included a collaboration with Peter Weir on ‘Master and Commander’, as well as work on ‘The Amityville Horror’, ‘Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle’, ‘Charlie & the Chocolate Factory’, and the trailer for ‘Transformers’.

During his time at Asylum, Hackett collaborated with Director Tony Scott on pre-visualization of the ferry explosion for ‘Déjà Vu.’ He also provided pre-vis for Director Jake Scott on a number of commercial projects. Commercial credits for Hackett include spots for such brands as Juicy Fruit and Propel (‘Stress Monster’ was a Bronze Clio winner and received a VES nomination for ‘Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Broadcast Program or Commercial’), as well as Chevy, Toyota, Nintendo and Budweiser. Hackett’s tenure at Asylum changed course briefly in 2003 when he was asked by Digital Domain to work on “an emotionally challenged robot” for ‘I,Robot’. Hackett served as Lead Animator for S.O.N.N.Y., responsible for the key emotional scenes of the character. ‘I,Robot’ was nominated for the Oscar in 2005 for Best Achievement in Visual Effects.

According to Hackett, it was a chance run-in with his industry friend and colleague, Pink, that peaked his interest in joining Riot/NY. “I had worked with Pink at Asylum back in the early days of our careers and ran into him on the street in Santa Monica. He was working at Riot in New York. I am originally from the east coast and had always wanted to return here one day. Then, when I saw what they are doing here in terms of a bi-coastal, digital pipeline, I wanted to join the team. I also learned about the strength and quality of the company, and I saw a very exciting, versatile opportunity.”

For Hackett, Riot/NY offers him the chance to work on a variety and diversity of projects from feature films, to commercials, to new media projects for the web. He is also able to work on either coast in-person or via the company’s digital pipeline, which allows the Riot teams in Los Angeles and New York to collaborate on the same projects simultaneously.

About Riot:

Riot is a creative studio with unparalleled resources – virtually unmatched both creatively and technologically. The Riot team dedicates itself to attentive creative collaboration, approaching each project holistically, drawing upon a deep knowledge of visual effects, color correction and live action experience.

Recent feature film credits for Riot include: Die Hard 4, Live Free or Die Hard, Hairspray, Dark is Rising, and Town Creek. Commercial campaigns and music videos recently completed at Riot include spots for Christina Aguilera, Sony, Volkswagen, Dodge, and Honda.

For more information, please contact Riot/NY: Brent Holt or D. Todd Davidovich (212) 907-1200; Riot/Los Angeles: Matthew McManus (310) 434-6000; and Riot/Atlanta: Buddy Hall (404) 237-9937.

www.rioting.com