Jeff Fowler
Jeff Fowler is an American film director and animator. He is best known for directing the Sonic the Hedgehog film series. He was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Gopher Broke.
Career
Fowler chose to pursue a career as a computer animator during his high school years in the 1990s, when computer animation was being popularized in film. According to Fowler, the film Toy Story profoundly impacted him. Fowler attended the Ringling College of Art and Design, majoring in computer animation. His thesis, the short film Monkey's Pit, attracted the attention of Blur Studio co-founder Tim Miller, who offered him employment at Blur after his graduation from Ringling in 2002.Fowler was an animator for the 2003 short film Rockfish and the 2009 film Where the Wild Things Are. In 2004, he wrote, directed, storyboarded, did the art layout, and animated Gopher Broke, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. He also wrote and animated A Gentleman's Duel. Fowler worked on the CGI movie production for the 2005 video game Shadow the Hedgehog.
Later, he directed Sonic the Hedgehog, a film based on the video game series of the same name. The film was originally set to release in November 2019, but due to widespread criticism toward Sonic's design, it was delayed to February 14, 2020, to change the design. The new design for Sonic was revealed in November 2019, garnering far more positive responses from fans and critics. Fowler directed a sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog titled Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which released on April 8, 2022. He is set to direct a reboot of The Pink Panther, which is in development. He directed the pilot episode and executive-produced the TV series Knuckles, and directed Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which released in December 2024 to positive reviews.
Filmography
Director
Short film| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2002 | Monkey's Pit | University thesis project |
| 2004 | Gopher Broke | Also writer, storyboard artist, layout artist, and animator |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2020 | Sonic the Hedgehog | Feature directorial debut |
| 2022 | Sonic the Hedgehog 2 | Also cameo as news anchor |
| 2024 | Sonic the Hedgehog 3 | Also executive producer |
Television
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2024 | Knuckles | Miniseries Episode "The Warrior"; Also executive producer |
Other credits
Short film| Year | Title | Role |
| 2003 | Rockfish | Animator |
| 2006 | A Gentlemen's Duel | Writer and animator |
Video game
| Year | Title | Role |
| 2005 | Shadow the Hedgehog | CGI movie production |
Film
| Year | Title | Role |
| 2009 | Where the Wild Things Are | Animation research and development |