Archive notice: This article was originally published on November 6, 2014. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
Thomas Haegele performed decisive pioneering work for the film and media location. Today, Baden-Württemberg is internationally one of the leading addresses for animation and visual effects.
Haegele studied visual communication, politics and journalism in Stuttgart, Wuppertal, Bochum and Tübingen. His work as a freelance animation filmmaker, as Creative Director at TC Studios and his teaching activity at the Stuttgart Academy of Fine Arts led in 1986 to the founding of one of Germany’s first production houses for professional computer animation.
In 1991, Haegele joined the then still-being-founded Filmakademie as one of its first employees. As professor of animation/digital image design, as authorised signatory and as a close colleague of Prof. Albrecht Ade, he played a decisive role in building the Filmakademie. Since 1994 he has been responsible for the concept and programme of the FMX, Conference on Animation, Effects, Games and Transmedia, today the most important professional event for digital moving-image media in Europe.
Since January 2002 he has headed the Institute of Animation, Visual Effects and Digital Postproduction at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, one of the world’s best and most renowned training institutions for animation and visual effects. Also since January 2002, he has been deputy managing director of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg GmbH.
The position of institute head will be advertised internationally until December 10, 2014. A decision on filling the position is expected at the beginning of the coming year.
In the upcoming DP anniversary issue, we have a detailed interview with Prof. Thomas Haegele in the magazine. In it, he looks back with us at the Filmakademie’s development since its founding and reveals his student-project highlights from the last 30 years. The 100th DP issue appears on December 5.
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