Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer
By MAGNOLIA LAFLEUR | Reporter
While Palisadian Chuck Peil never originally sought out to work in animation, his inspiration to switch careers came after watching a show that hit him like “a lightning bolt,” forever changing the course of his life.
“After I watched a Cirque du Soleil, the feeling I had afterwards, such inspiration, I knew I wanted to make others feel that way,” he said to the Palisadian-Post. “And like so many things, once you are determined and are focused upon something you’re passionate about, everything will begin to line up. The things you seek begin to seek you.”
Born in Arkansas, raised in Detroit and now a Palisadian resident of over 10 years, Peil has made a major dent in the animation industry as an executive producer and founding member of animation studio Reel FX. He has worked on a number of films including “The Book of Life,” “Rumble,” “Scoob!” and “Free Birds.”
His latest project “Back to the Outback” takes viewers to the plains of Australia to unveil an escape from the zoo to the outback from Australia’s bugs, reptiles and crawley creatures.
“The thing that I enjoy most about the animation process is that we literally build a functioning city from [the] ground up and take a nebulous idea, [breathe] life into it and [create] a story from nothing,” Peil said.
Peil shared that getting to this point wasn’t easy, but he never gave up. He said he worked countless hours with the other four founding members of Reel FX, including his best friend Brandon Oldenburg.
Peil recalled 11 years ago when he and Oldenburg would take trips to LA once a month, cruise Pacific Coast Highway to Sunset Boulevard, and bounce from door to door to “crack into the Hollywood scene.”
“That drive up the coast, seeing the [Santa Monica] pier and then the group of surfers at PCH and Sunset is seared into my mind,” he said.
“We would take Sunset through the Palisades and I was just blown away by the beauty of the town … And thought to myself … ‘Wouldn’t it be amazing to live here one day?’”
With three main studios, two in Dallas—where the company began— one in Montreal, and one in Hollywood, there were a lot of changes that Reel FX’s team had to work through when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
The company was in the middle of producing three films for three different studios, including “Scoob!” for Warner Brothers, “Rumble” for Paramount Pictures and “Back to the Outback” with Netflix. Peil said having 500 people pivot to working from home was a challenging feat, but he and his team were able to complete all three animations that were each in different phases of production.
“Having a team that is rooted in the creative culture is fantastic. The true measure of a vibrant culture is one that isn’t manufactured as a company edict, but instead bubbles up from curiosity, chemistry and raw creativity,” Peil said to the Post. “It was as true 25 years ago when I was one of five, as it is today as one of 500. The incredibly talented and passionate people I collaborate with daily, be it within Reel FX or with our partners, leaves me in awe.”
From inspiration, to hard work and a vision, Peil said his and the company’s success is due to their passion and their ability to stay focused through the storms.
“Envision the reality that others can’t see, don’t listen to the naysayers,” Peil said. “Imagine the ultimate success and not the possibility of failure.”
Palisadians can catch Peil’s “Back To The Outback,” which is currently showing at the Bay Theater at Palisades Village.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
