El Funeral de Don Jején

Biography of Director Ruy Fernando Estrada Rivera:

Born in Guadalajara on July 28, 1980, Ruy Fernando Estrada Rivera always liked creating and sharing stories ever since he was a youngster. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Guadalajara in 2002 and a Masters in 3-D Animation and Post Production from the 3DMX Digital Technology University in 2007. He has had a successful career as an illustrator, comic artist and animation producer.

Ruy Fernando’s art is greatly influenced by the pre-Hispanic art and architecture of Luis Barragán Morfin from which he has taken his vibrant colors and meticulous attention to composition and rhythm.

He has won several awards for humor including: First Year, Young Caricaturist Contest (El Tren newspaper, 2005); first place Jules Verne Award in the Comic category (2006, Municipal Government of Guadalajara) and Honorable Mention, Paula Benavides Award 2013 (for his interactive book, “Sopa de Jal”).

In 2005, Ruy Fernando founded the Haini Studio, one of the most successful animation studios in western Mexico, where he directed the short film, El Funeral de Don Jején (for which he won second place in Animation at the Ecofilms Festival in 2013). He worked as art director on the short animated film, El Relato de Sam Brennan, which earned him a nomination for the Crystal Screen Award in 2009.

He has participated in numerous animation projects for film, television and web with such films as Nikte and La revolución de Juan Escopeta. He has published in various magazines such as MAD Mexico from 2007 to 2008; Ambition Studios Anthology (2005) and UDON Megaman Tribute (2011). Since 2005, his web-comic site, RESTAURANTE MACOATL, appears weekly in the Leisure supplement of the Milenio newspaper, Jalisco and on the web at: www.Macoatl.com.