Matt Willis-Jones pictured with the queen of the avant-garde and our villain in La Mirada: Alaska! (2024)

Matt Willis-Jones with Quimera, La Mirada's explosive anti hero.

"I make pictures, sometimes they move."

Matt Willis-Jones is a writer / director known for blending the classical and the experimental with inventive humour and spectacular images. 

While attending film school in the 90s, Matt was perhaps the worst Lab Assistant in the history of the Columbia College Sound Department. In his defence, they had acquired a new Mac for the purpose of logging equipment rentals, but he noticed it had Photoshop installed and proceeded to spend 100% of his time at work making digital paintings - several of which went on to be shown at an exhibit of emerging digital artists at the MCA Chicago (1998). Following that exhibit he was asked: "Can you make these move? If you can I'll give you a job” - a question which prompted a 15+ year career in post-production (just as well because the sound department certainly didn’t want him anymore).

In 2001 he moved back to London, working as a 2D VFX artist for Passion Pictures and Double Negative (Captain Scarlet, Batman Begins), before moving to Oslo to finish the cult animation Free Jimmy (Un Certain Regard - Cannes 2006) and the Oscar winning Peter and the Wolf (2007). 

In 2008 Matt's experimental short film 'ABC' was his first festival screening and since then he has written and/or directed several award winning shorts, web series and music videos as well as writing screenplays for other directors. 

​Matt is presently in pre-production on his feature ‘La Mirada’ starring the Spanish pop icon, Alaska and the luchadora Quimera.