Phil Mulloy

Phil Mulloy
Phil Mulloy at an Animation Workshop in Trondheim, March 2005
Born	1948 (age 68–69) Wallasey, England
Nationality	British
Education	Ravensbourne College, Royal College of Art
Known for	Animation

Phil Mulloy (born 1948) is a British animator of Irish ancestry. He was born in Wallasey, Merseyside and studied both painting and filmmaking. Mulloy worked as a screenwriter and director of live-action films until the late 1980s before becoming an animator. His animations have been described as "satirical grotesque" and often portray the dark side of human nature and contemporary social, political, and religious values in a humorous and at times, shocking way. His visual style is distinctive in its use of primitive, often skeletal figures and minimalist backgrounds. Mulloy has made over 30 animated films many of which are in themed groupings based on Hollywood genres. Mulloy has won many international awards for his work and has conducted several workshops for young animators.

Mulloy was born in Wallasey to an Irish father, Michael Mulloy, who migrated to Liverpool to work on the docks and an English mother named Elizabeth.

Mulloy studied painting at Ravensbourne College followed by film at the Royal College of Art graduating in 1973.

Mulloy's 1982 drama film Mark Gertler: Fragments of a Biography won the British Film Institute's Grierson Award.

Mulloy created many of MTV's iconic idents during the 1980s and 90s. These included the much lauded Boxers to Lovers in which two boxers, depicted as crude stick figures, stop fighting and embrace one another, only to find themselves engulfed by the furious crowd of spectators baying for blood.

Mulloy produced the Cowboys series in 1991 with funding from Channel Four and the Arts Council. The series consists of six 3-minute-long films on 35 mm: Slim Pickin's, That's Nothin', Murder!, High Noon, The Conformist and Outrage. The shorts brought Mulloy to the attention of audiences in the UK and internationally.