Sonny Tilders
Design Director & CEOSonny’s career has spanned nearly 30 years in which he has designed and built creatures and contraptions, models and special effects for film, theatre, exhibitions, major events and theme parks.
In 2006 Sonny led the creature design and build team for Walking with Dinosaurs – the Arena Spectacular. Sixteen life-size animated dinosaurs were created to a level of realism and sophistication of movement never before seen in live theatre. Following the international success of the show, Creature Technology Co. was formed, of which Sonny became CEO and Design Director.
Awarded a Special Tony Award™ as Creature Designer for the Kong Puppet for King Kong: Alive on Broadway, this creation epitomised Sonny's passion for combining compelling audience experiences with the technical design knowhow developed over a lifetime spent in workshops making 'stuff'. Working with teams of talented people with disparate disciplines to make the seemingly impossible possible is what gets him out of bed each day.
Executive
Sonny Tilders
Design Director & CEOThe awe-inspiring 1.1 tonne, 20-foot-tall King Kong animatronic puppet was designed and built by Sonny and his team at Creature Technology Co. in their Melbourne, Australia workshop. In Australia, the creation of the King Kong puppet was recognized with a prestigious Helpmann award for Outstanding Theatrical Achievement, and in New York a 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Puppet Design and a 2019 Outer Critics Circle Special Achievement Award to add to the Special Tony Award presented to Sonny and Creature Technology Co.
From its theatrical roots, Creature Technology Co. has evolved and expanded over its first 13 years, bringing its technologically advanced animatronic creature and puppet design to a variety of entertainment fields across the globe. Highlights include the company successfully designing and building 3 giant animatronic mascots for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games, witnessed by billions, as well as creating stunning dinosaurs for blockbuster international touring phenomenon Jurassic World: The Exhibition. More recently the company has commenced a significant collaboration with Universal Studios to bring their remarkable creations to a whole new sector of live entertainment.
Dean Flynn
General ManagerRichard Mckenna
Chief EngineerMalcolm Place
Production ManagerMarc Warshall
Chief Financial OfficerDamian Guiney
Director, Partnerships & DevelopmentPrior to joining us, Damian spent many years as General Manager in Digital Agencies and brings his knowledge from this fast-paced, highly competitive environment of pixels to our world of real life dinosaurs, dragons and apes.
Production
Kathy Fox
Senior ProducerJo Banks
Senior DesignerJohn Hempel
Project ManagerNavin Thanumurthy
Project ManagerGraeme Haddon
ProducerRobert McNaught
Creative ProducerAlex McNeilly
Software Delivery LeadDigital
Paul Fleer
Head of Digital DesignBen Forster
Senior Animator/DesignerClaire Harrison
Technical ArtistBrent King
Router & 3D Printer OperatorIsabella Cutri
Industrial DesignerLawrence Mercieca
3D ArtistEngineering
Brendan Butcher
Head of Engineering DepartmentStephen Wilkie
Service & Support Manager / Senior Mechanical EngineerJosh Gallo
Senior Mechanical EngineerMichael Bais
Senior Mechanical EngineerLeon Wong
Mechanical EngineerDiego Leiva
Mechanical EngineerSandrine Cameron
Mechanical EngineerSteve Handscombe
Mechanical EngineerMatt Soundias
Mechanical EngineerMatt Zwarts
Mechanical EngineerLucas Casey
Mechanical EngineerEddy Fathi
CAD DrafterNatasha Fisher
Graduate Mechanical EngineerZoe Van Vegten
Graduate Mechanical EngineerGeorge El Akouri
Technical WriterMichael Larratt
Electrical Engineering Team LeadMartin Sell
Senior Electrical EngineerElijah Phillips
Electrical EngineerPaul Farrell
Electrical CAD DrafterOlivia (Qiaoqin) Zhou
Electrical EngineerKaren Souter
Control Systems Engineering Team Lead & Principal EngineerRob Crittenden
Control Systems Engineering Team LeadJacob Gillies
Senior Control Systems EngineerNick Aronnax
Control Systems EngineerSam Weston
Control Systems EngineerWill Norcott
Control Systems EngineerNoel Basten
Control Systems EngineerJames Howell
Control Systems EngineerPeter Lindsey
ElectricianMatt Cooper
ElectricianEngineering Fabrication
Chip Wardale
Head Of Engineering FabricationAlex Toa
Leading Hand - Engineering FabricationTim Collard
Senior Mechanical FabricatorLorne Denis
Senior Mechanical FabricatorAndrew Thilby
Senior Model MakerThomas Wilkinson
General HandAndrew Hustwaite
Mechanical FabricatorSculptural Fabrication
Nerissa Box
Head of Sculptural FabricationJenny O'Keefe
Team Leader - Sculptural FabricationJody Overhill
Team Leader - Sculptural FabricationLisa Calwell
Sculptor/Mould MakerTorie Nimmervoll
Mould Maker, Colour & Figure FinishCourtney Clarke
Sculptural FabricatorPeri Jenkins
Sculptural FabricatorJoanna Gust
Sculptural FabricatorBridie Wilkinson
Sculptural FabricatorFinance & Administration
Carly Davey
Office ManagerDavid Higley
Finance ManagerSam Harding
Purchasing ManagerChristophe Dubillon
Inventory Co-ordinatorShane Johnson
Facilities & Safety CoordinatorDanielle Fernandez
Assistant AccountantVale
Paul Smits
At CTC Paul leaves behind a team of colleagues and friends who adored his beautiful, gentle, funny nature, and his enormous talent for sculpture and colour. We’ll miss his classic movie quotes, his impersonations, the way he sang and talked to himself while he worked. We’ll miss the laughs and we’ll miss the quirky soul who made our workplace and the world a better place just by being in it.
Paul’s profile will remain here to honour the beautiful work he performed at CTC and the amazing contribution he made to our lives.