Tomm Moore is one of those 'rare birds' of animation whose works simply lift you up and cuddle you in a beautiful heart-warming story. Focussed on folklore and mythology and rendered in lovingly hand drawn 2-D animation, his productions are considered some of the "finest works of animation produced in the recent years". As one of the co-founders of Cartoon Saloon animation studio, he has land a hand in creating The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea and, more recently, The Wolfwalkers.
His education was primarily in practical skill training to become a hand-drawn animator. During his final year at Ballyfermot in 1999, Moore co-founded the Cartoon Saloon animation studio with Paul Young and Nora Twomey. The studio was responsible for creating the television series Skunk Fu!.
His first animated feature film, which he co-directed with Nora Twomey, was The Secret of Kells. The film was a hand-drawn animation, set in 9th century Ireland, and partially based on and inspired by early Christian history and legends. In 2014 he completed his second animation feature, Song of the Sea. Like its predecessor, the film made use of traditional animation techniques and is was based on Irish folklore, specifically selkies.
The final instalment of “Irish folklore trilogy” was Wolfwalkers. It made its world premiere as an official selection of the 45th Toronto International Film Festival, and, similar to the first two parts, grabbed an Academy-Award nomination as well as several awards at international festivals. With visual references to pre-Celtic imagery and Studio Ghibli alike — and some catchy songs — Wolfwalkers was an instant classic for all ages.
Talking about his features, Moore says “We wanted to make family films primarily aimed at children, but with enough depth to appeal to adults as well. Seeing the world through the eyes of a child allows us to play with the space between imagination and reality where children often naturally dwell.”