George Merkert

George Merkert has produced animation and visual effects for numerous motion pictures in addition to more than 100 music videos, TV commercials and other short films. After graduating from The Colorado College with a BA in English Literature he spent several years working as a cowboy, a ski instructor, an oil field roughneck, a movie theater projectionist and a taxi driver. He attended film school at The Film School of Half Moon Bay and then began his media career with Colossal Pictures in San Francisco where he served as Executive Producer and General Manager. After leaving Colossal he continued his career as a freelance producer. During a stint with MetroLight Studios he produced the Academy Award winning Skeleton Sequence for the motion picture Total Recall. While with Boss Studios he produced the Clio nominated "Flying Van" commercials for DHL Airways. He also produced commercials for Apogee Films and Industrial Light and Magic. He joined Sony Pictures Imageworks in 1993 and while there produced animation and visual effects for many motion pictures including My Life, In The Line Of Fire, Johnny Mnemonic, Wolf, The Ghost And The Darkness and the Academy Award nominated Starship Troopers. He also served as Executive Producer for the company. In 1998 he became Executive Producer for Pacific Data Images where he supervised production of animation and visual effects for Forces Of Nature, Supernova and The Legend Of Bagger Vance. Mr. Merkert is an avid ski racer and a back country skier. He also competes in the new sport of inline downhill in which inline skaters race down courses set on paved mountain roads. He was the US National Inline Downhill Champion in 2001, 2002 and 2004. Mr. Merkert currently produces animation and visual effects for motion pictures and writes and develops screenplays.