Millie and Lou is the creation of husband and wife team, Mandy Wong and Rory Cooke, both artists who have worked in the London animation industry for over 15 years, collectively contributing to over 40 productions.
From a young age, Mandy dreamt up stories about her toys and made little magazines to keep her parents informed about what they were up to.
Mandy is now an Art Director, Character Designer, Illustrator, VFX Look Dev Artist and Toy Maker. Her work can be seen in television, movies and prints. As a Key Look Dev Artist, Mandy has used her eye for detail to bring life to iconic characters such as Wonder Woman and The Terminator in high end VFX Companies including Industrial Light & Magic and Moving Picture Company. As an Art Director for Blue Zoo Animation Studio and Character Designer Mandy has built Millie and Lou’s world, filling it with fantastical characters.
When Rory was little he would try to make his family laugh by making cartoons using any animation technique he had access to, whether it was pausing and unpausing his dad’s camcorder or hitting spacebar really fast on Powerpoint. This eventually led to him learning professional animation skills, becoming a highly skilled CG Artist specialising in Assets and Animation Production.
As Head of Assets at Emmy and BAFTA-winning studio Blue Zoo, he was an integral part of every production, mentoring artists to produce the incredible characters, props and environments seen in all of their productions. After show running Millie and Lou with Mandy, Rory is now directing a show for Ritzy Animation.
It’s always been Mandy and Rory's dream to create a cartoon series that is filled with everything they love. ‘Millie and Lou’ has come from their passion for monster movies, collectable toys, Japanese character goods and traditional cel animation.
Millie and Lou’s emphasis on making friends has been drawn from Mandy’s own experience of being sent to England when she was 11. Unable to speak English left her struggling to fit in. However, thanks to some amazing friends she was able to build confidence and become the person she wanted to be.
The struggle of being different and trying to fit in is very relatable to many children from all kinds of backgrounds. Millie and Lou opens up a world that shows how just a small act of kindness can often break down barriers and have such a powerful impact on someone’s life.
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