BIOGRAPHY
Frederic Siegel (born 1991 in Cham, Zug) is a Swiss animation director, illustrator and visual artist, working both in Zurich and Bern.
He studied animation at the Lucerne School of Art & Design and graduated in 2015 with the short film Ruben Leaves, which was screened at international film festivals like Annecy, Dok Leipzig and Encounters in Bristol. It won several awards, including the Swiss Film Award for the best graduation film in 2016.
In 2017 he co-founded the Zurich-based animation collective Team Tumult and is collaborating with his colleagues on commissioned work and personal projects ever since. Together they produced the short film The Lonely Orbit, an allegorical story about loneliness in times of modern communication. After premiering at NIFFF Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival and Guanajuato International Film Festival, the film went on to be long-listed for the Oscars Academy Awards in 2021.
In his work, Frederic Siegel regularly explores the turbulent inner worlds of ordinary characters, who are influenced by technology, societal pressure and other mental challenges. He is conveying his fluid sense of reality by utilizing digital hand-drawn animation and limited but vivid color palettes.
Aside from his work as an animator, he is teaching animation basics in the Multimedia Production program at the FHGR Fachhochschule Graubünden and FHB Berner Fachhochschule.
CONTACT
contact@fredericsiegel.ch
FILMOGRAPHY SHORTFILMS (SELECTION)
20?? TV (In Production)
2019 The Lonely Orbit
2018 Honour
FILMOGRAPHY COMMISSIONS & MUSICVIDEOS (SELECTION)
2022 Annecy Festival Partners Trailer (Commissioned Shortfilm)
2019 TED-Ed - Cosmic Dust (Commissioned Shortfilm)
2018 Dear Habib (Commissioned Shortfilm)
2018 Mind Invaders - Too Mad (Musicvideo)
2017 Krapfen - Schööf (Musicvideo)
2017 Freitag - Big Buddy Blue (Commissioned Shortfilm)
2016 Oben - Panda Lux (Musicvideo)
2014 2 Magnete - Murphy Left (Musicvideo)
AWARDS & MENTIONS
The Lonely ORbit
2020 Highly Commended Award, Cardiff Animation Festival UK
2020 Best International Short, 2nd Place, Chilemonos CL
2020 Youth Jury Award, Nuit du Court Métrage CH
2020 Prix Opale, Delémont Hollywood CH
2020 Luzerner Filmpreis, 2nd Place, Upcoming Film Makers CH
2019 The Favourite Film of the Student Jury, Primanima PL
2019 Best Animated Short, SITGES Fantastic Film Festival, ES (OSCAR® Qualifying)
2019 Special Mention, Animatou, CH
2019 Fantastic Swiss Award, Fantoche, CH
2019 Swiss Youth Award, Fantoche, CH
Mind Invaders
2019 Best Swiss Video Clip, Online Audience Award - m4music festival, CH
2019 Best Video Clip, Roanne Animation Festival, FR
Freitag - Big buddy blue
2019 Best Promotional or Advertising Animation, Anima Córdoba, ES
2018 Best Commercial Animation, Panama Animation Fest, PAN
2018 Best Commissioned Film Award, Linoleum Festival, UKR
2018 Young Audience Jury Award, Festival du Film d’Animation de Savigny, CH
Ruben Leaves
2017 Best Student Film, Be There! Corfu Animation Festival, GR
2016 Succès Zürich, 2nd Place, Cadrage 2016, CH
2016 Audience Award, Festival Cine de Madrid, ES
2016 Best Mini Short, Sapporo Short Film Festival, JP
2016 Anca Student Award, Fest Anca, SK
2016 Best Animated Film, Sehsüchte, DE
2016 Best Graduation Film, Swiss Film Award, CH
2016 Best International Student Film, 2nd Place, KingstOOn, JA
2016 Best Animation, ZOOM Zblizenia, PL
2016 Honorable Mention, Anim!Arte, BR
2015 Winner, Chronicle Creative Trigger, MX
2015 Special Mention, Balkanima, SRB
2015 Best Animation Short, Ffwrnes Ffilm Ffest, UK
2015 WOW-Prize, UPCOMING FILMMAKERS, CH
2015 Swiss Special Mention, Fantoche, CH
2015 Best Student Film, FESA'15, SRB
TEACHING / VISITING LECTURER
Living Lines Workshop, Lucerne CH, Since 2020
Lucerne School of Art & Design (Switzerland), AfterEffects Animation, March-April 2018
University of Applied Sciences of the Grisons (Switzerland), 2D Animation, Since 2016
RESIDENCIES
Atelierstipendium Kanton Zug, Art Residency in New York City USA, September-December 2022
Open Workshop, Residency at The Animation Workshop Viborg. DK, November-December 2021
TALKS & Juries
Le Poulpe Festival, Talk "The Life of an Animator in Switzerland", Payerne CH, September 2023
Fantoche - International Animation Festival, Selection Comittee International Competition, 2023
Fantoche - International Animation Festival, Talk "Creativity & Cashflow", Baden CH, September 2021
Castellinaria - International Young Film Festival, Masterclass, Bellinzona CH, November 2019
Zuger Filmtage, Jury Shortfilm Competition, Zug CH, November 2019
Linoleum Festival, Jury Commissioned Film Competition, Kiev UKR, September 2019
Berufsschule Aarau, Kulturfenster, December 2018
Lucerne School of Art & Design, Lecture, March 2018
OTHER WORK EXPERIENCE
Ulmi Film, YK Animation Studio, Layout Artist on "BOX", January - February 2023
YK Animation Studio, Background Artist on "Mr. Pete & the Iron Horse", January - June 2020
Vaudeville Studios, Internship, June - December 2015
SELECTED PRESS & ONLINE FEATURES