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Kirk R. Thatcher


Kirk R. Thatcher is an American writer/producer, television and film director, an internet video director, a creature designer, and a production designer.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Kirk Thatcher grew up, "just like most guys in the effects industry, just doing stuff in the kitchen sink and in the garage." In high school, he met Joe Johnston, a production designer for Star Wars. Johnston would later work with Thatcher on his first job in the industry, as a technical assistant on the ILM creature crew of Return of the Jedi.

Kirk Thatcher began his career at eighteen, leaving UCLA Film School to work at George Lucas' special effects facility, Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), in the early 1980s. While there, Thatcher designed, built, and puppeteered creatures for the films Return of the Jedi, Star Trek II, Star Trek III, E.T., Poltergeist, and Gremlins. He left ILM to form a rock video production company with David Fincher called "Z Street Films". Thatcher was the production designer on Fincher's first music videos and spent over a year creating the look for a number of Rick Springfield and The Motels videos. Subsequently, Thatcher was hired by Leonard Nimoy to associate produce Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. He also portrayed "Punk on the Bus," the character who was seen rocking out to the song "I Hate You" in the film, which Thatcher wrote and performed for the film, recording it with sound designer Mark Mangini.


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