J. Allen Williams

J. Allen Williams
Born Jeffery Allen Williams
(1960-09-27) September 27, 1960
Biloxi, Mississippi, U.S.
Other names Jeff Williams
Carmen Wilder
Occupation Animator, writer, director
Years active 1980–present
Website www.parallaxstudio.com

Jeffery Allen Williams (born September 27, 1960) is an American animator, writer, producer, musician, and director. Williams founded Parallax Studio in Nixa, Missouri, and presently (2013) continues in the capacity of its CEO.[1]

Williams wrote, animated, edited, produced, and directed the independent science fiction computer game Darkstar: The Interactive Movie.

Early life

Williams was born in Biloxi, Mississippi. He later moved to Kansas City, Missouri where he attended the Kansas City Art Institute. He started a musical group using the stage name "Carmen Wilder" and began working with musicians Bill Bruce, Jimmy Pitts, Brent Frazier, and James Lee Dillard – all of whom would later participate in creating the Darkstar soundtrack.[2]

Career

Darkstar: The Interactive Movie

Williams is most known for having independently created the computer game Darkstar: The Interactive Movie over the course of a decade. In an interview with Tom Chick at Fidget.com, Williams described his role in the massive production:

“ And then right at 2000, I decided I was going to do something and I began production. And it just got bigger and bigger and bigger to the point that it kind of did itself. It kind of went out of control. I just wrote the thing and because I'm just one guy doing most of this – I mean, I've probably involved a hundred people to help me, doing sound and camera and all different things, but I bring them in as contract type stuff. But I'm kind of hands-on with every single thing, so that's the bottleneck. One guy being OCD and having to keep control over the whole thing.[3] ”

Darkstar features actor Clive Robertson (Sunset Beach),[4] the original cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000,[5] animations by artist Richard Corben,[6] and the final work of the late actor Peter Graves who narrated the game. Darkstar was released on November 5, 2010 through the Darkstar website and as a downloadable program through Strategy First.

Williams designed various costumes and props for Darkstar. He is one of the three credited composers of the soundtrack, alongside Jimmy Pitts and Bill Bruce.[7]

Everything

In April 2014, the Williams and Parallax Studio launched a Kickstarter campaign with a goal of $12,500 to raise funds for an upcoming film Everything, to be written and directed by Williams.[8][9] The campaign closed on May 10, 2014 having successfully raised $12,585.[10]

Personal life

Williams lives in Nixa, Missouri. He has a son, Chance, and a daughter, Maggie. Maggie Williams provided voice talent in Darkstar for the quirky robot MAGS (Motorized Automated Girl for Simon), a character that she also created.

References

External links

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