RICK RIFLE

Production Design | Art Direction

I first became aware of design shortly after the original Star Wars came out.  Like most kids, I wanted those toys and I was lucky enough to have parents that obliged (to a degree).  I spent hours coming up with new plots and storylines, re-enacting them with my land speeder, sand crawler and assorted action figures.  Ultimately, my assortment of toys wasn’t quite fitting the scope of my imagination and so I did what most (as yet unknown) burgeoning juvenile designers did:  I made my own “set pieces” to flesh out the adventures!  Glass cigar tubes would become columns for a palace on Alderon, assorted bottles and containers were a distant city scape on a yet-unknown planet, and when I got tired of Princess Leia having only one costume, I found that some toilet paper, tape and scissors could create a vast wardrobe fit for a royal visit to Cloud City.  Occasionally, my metaphors would get mixed and the Micronauts or a team from Battlestar Galactica would find their way into the storyline.

Fast-forward to today and I’m still making my fantasies into reality.  I pursued theatrical design at Florida State University which instilled in me a serious appreciation for strong characters and good storytelling.  Later, I added design for film at New York University.  I occasionally dabble in costumes and (whenever possible) I like to do my own drafting, build my own model sets and paint my own renderings.  If I’m really lucky (and time permits) I get to do some of my own scenic art or make a specialized prop or two!  A background in theatrical design is hard to shake.

While I am local to Los Angeles, I can easily travel for a show.  I even have some significant international experience as an art director.  I am a member of the Art Director’s Guild local 800.

Thank you for looking through my galleries and I would encourage you to reach out to me via email if you should want to have a further conversation or see more work samples.

RR