Biography of Robert Stromberg

Robert Stromberg grew up in Carlsbad, California, in a creative family connected to the film industry. As a child, Stromberg watched his father, a low-budget film director, collaborate with Oscar-award-winning special effects artist Phil Tippet, inspiring Stromberg's passion for film and special effects. Stromberg even assisted his father in creating claymation films and commercials.

When Stromberg was in elementary school, famed Disney animator Bruce McIntyre became an art teacher at Stromberg's school. Under McIntyre's instruction, Stromberg developed his natural talents for painting and design; however, his life's goal was to become a film director, which he accomplished in 2014 with his directorial debut, Maleficent. In addition to directing the film, the highest-grossing project for a first-time director, Stromberg personally created paintings and character art for the film.

Before Maleficent, Stromberg worked at Illusion Arts, a visual effects design company, painting "mattes" (layered strips of film that create a single image) mainly for the Star Trek series. After years of working as a professional painter, Stromberg became one of the first artists in Hollywood to create digital art. With this crucial experience, Stromberg launched his own visual effects company before moving to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of directing films. He worked on over 100 projects in the special effects department and as a Production Designer on Oscar-winning films such as Avatar (2009) and Alice in Wonderland (2010).

Stromberg has been nominated for dozens of prestigious honors for his work in special effects and won several awards, such as the Academy Award for Best Art Director for Avatar and Alice in Wonderland, five Emmy Awards, and a BAFTA Film Award. Currently, Stromberg is affiliated with Ridley Scott's production company, RSA Films.