Michaël Dudok de Wit


Michaël Dudok de Wit is a Dutch animator, director and illustrator based in London. He won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Father and Daughter and was nominated in the same category for The Monk and the Fish as well as for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for The Red Turtle.
WWW dudokdewit.co.uk

Early life and education

Michaël Dudok de Wit was born in Abcoude in the Netherlands. After his high school education in the Netherlands, he attended the Geneva School of Fine Arts. In 1978, he graduated from the West Surrey College of Art & Design with his first film The Interview. Dudok de Wit has a son, the journalist and writer Alex Dudok de Wit.

Career

After working for a year in Barcelona, he settled in London where he directs and animates award-winning commercials for television and cinema. In 1992, he created the short film Tom Sweep, followed by The Monk and the Fish, which was made in France with the studio Folimage. This film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film at the 67th Academy Awards, Best Short Animated Film at the 48th British Academy Film Awards and has won numerous prizes including a César Award for Best Short Film and the Cartoon d'or. Michael also writes and illustrates children's picture books and teaches animation at art colleges in England and abroad.
His film Father and Daughter won an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, the Grand Prix at Annecy, Grand Prix at Animafest Zagreb and dozens of other major awards. In 2006, he made the short film The Aroma of Tea, which was drawn entirely with tea. His films The Monk and the Fish and Father and Daughter were included in the Animation Show of Shows. In 2016, he released the feature-length film The Red Turtle. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film at the 89th Academy Awards.
De Wit became a recipient of the Winsor McCay Award in 2025.

Style

Since Tom Sweep, all Dudok de Wit's films have his trademark brush stroke drawing and his use of ink and watercolour.

Filmography

Animation

Commercials

Film and television animation contributions

Illustrations in books

  • "Snakes and Ladders"
  • "The History of Geneva"
  • "Oscar & Hoo"
  • "Oscar and Hoo Forever"
  • "Vader en dochter"
  • "Vier bevertjes in de nacht"
  • "Vier bevertjes en een kastanje"