“Colourful eyegasm celebrates all that Will Vinton Studios achieved” VARIETY

“The tribute Vinton deserves – and the introduction most of us need” THE WRAP

“A fascinating saga, especially for fans of animation” THE WASHINGTON POST

“ A lively and illuminating tribute” THE NEW YORK TIMES

"A reminder of a master artist and visionary who revolutionised an art form"
AUSTIN CHRONICLE

Altitude announce that the extraordinary documentary CLAYDREAM is being released in the UK on Altitude.film and other digital platforms from 21 November.

A little hunk of clay goes a long way in this fascinating and hugely entertaining look at the life and career of pioneering animator Will Vinton in Marq Evan’s acclaimed film CLAYDREAM, where youthful ambition in freewheeling 1960s Portland comes face-to-face with the corporate behemoth.

After winning an Oscar in the mid-1970s, Vinton looked set for a glittering career - he made the first full-length claymation feature film, collaborated with Hollywood megastars and set up a huge studio employing over 300 animators. But he hadn’t reckoned on death threats from former friends, claymation falling out of fashion, and business deals that would see him lose everything. Like Altitude’s recent release KURT VONNEGUT: UNSTUCK IN TIME, this is a revealing, warts-and-all look at a notable, unorthodox and game-changing artist.

Utilising a wealth of archive footage, interviews with everyone concerned in the compelling story, and plenty of examples of Vinton’s extraordinary animations, CLAYDREAM is a bittersweet, must-see examination of the often fraught relationship between art and commerce, the creator and the accountant. It’s a profoundly moving portrait of a complex man driven by burning ambition, whose groundbreaking, painstaking claymation technique remains influential to this day

SYNOPSIS: Known as the father of "Claymation”, and poised to become the Walt Disney of the modern age, Will Vinton revolutionised the animation business during the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. Winning the 1974 Oscar for Best Animated Short film, Closed Mondays proved a pivotal stepping stone which allowed Vinton to push the boundaries of stop-motion filmmaking using plasticine clay.

Earning an additional four Academy Award nominations, Will Vinton Studios would go on to become a household name as the creator of the iconic advertising campaigns behind the California Raisins, Domino’s The Noid, and the digital M&M characters.

But after 30 years of being the unrivalled king of clay, Will Vinton’s carefully sculpted American dream began to crumble after the entrance of an at-first promising outside investor. Like an entrepreneurial David vs. Goliath story, CLAYDREAM explores Will Vinton's rise to fame and eventual demise under the foot of Nike’s Phil Knight.

CLAYDREAM IS RELEASED ON ALTITUDE.FILM AND OTHER DIGITAL PLATFORMS FROM 21 NOVEMBER

ABOUT ALTITUDE
Altitude Media Group is the independent UK based studio launched in 2012 by chairman Will Clarke and joint-CEO Andy Mayson. The group comprises of Altitude Film Production, Altitude Film Sales with Managing Director Mike Runagall, Altitude Film Distribution with Managing Director Lia Devlin, Altitude Factual with Managing Director Paul Sowerbutts and Altitude Television. Since 2020, US based investment group 30WEST have held a significant minority stake in the group.

Since launching in 2013 Altitude Film Distribution have proudly supported talented filmmakers and given their films the dynamic and bold releases they deserve.

To date Altitude have championed over 150 films, ranging from the Academy and BAFTA award-winners, MOONLIGHT, ROCKS, MINARI, 20 FEET FROM STARDOM, AMY, I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO through to critically acclaimed THE FLORIDA PROJECT, DIEGO MARADONA, LADY MACBETH, BEAST, THE RIDER, LES MISÉRABLES, WHITNEY and more.

Altitude’s recent releases include feature documentary THE PRINCESS from Academy Award-nominee Ed Perkins,Ari Folman’s WHERE IS ANNE FRANK, KURT VONNEGUT: UNSTUCK IN TIME from acclaimed director Bob Weide, Clio Barnard’s BIFA award-winning ALI & AVA, Blerta Basholli’s triple Sundance Film Festival-winner HIVE, Palme D’Or winner TITANE from writer and director Julia Ducournau, Oliver Stone’s JFK REVISITED: THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS, Alex Winter’s ZAPPA, , Russell Crowe thriller UNHINGED, , HORRIBLE HISTORIES: THE MOVIE – ROTTEN ROMANS, Jonah Hill’s MID90S and Brian Welsh’s BEATS. In 2020 Altitude partnered with the WWF on the global event release of DAVID ATTENBOROUGH: A LIFE ON OUR PLANET, which became the widest ever released documentary in the UK and Ireland.

Forthcoming releases include HUNT, directed by and starring SQUID GAMES’ Lee Jung-jae, Venice Golden Lion winner ALL THE BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED from Academy Award-winning director Laura Poitras, Georgia Oakley’s acclaimed and powerful debut BLUE JEAN, acclaimed Sheryl Crow documentary SHERYL, CLAYDREAM profiling the creator of claymation Will Vinton, BUTCHER’S CROSSING starring Nicolas Cage and Fred Hechinger, supernatural thriller TALK TO ME, the debut feature from film-making duo RackaRacka, MAD ABOUT THE BOY – THE NOËL COWARD STORY from writer and director Barnaby Thompson, and the yet to be titled feature documentary on iconic British filmmaking duo Powell & Pressburger narrated by Martin Scorsese and directed by David Hinton.