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Rafael Motamayor

Rafael Motamayor

Rafael Motamayor is a freelance writer specializing in animation and below-the-line coverage with experience in the field since 2018. Aside from reviews and critical analysis, he provides making-of features and in-depth interviews, including a profile on Guillermo del Toro's career in animation, and a guide to the hugely popular anime "Attack on Titan". As a longtime fan of animation, he has championed and covered everything from the biggest Disney and DreamWorks releases to seasonal anime shows and independent features. As Guillermo del Toro once said, "Animation is a medium, not a genre." Rafael believes in the power of animation to tell all kinds of stories and works to spotlight the medium to new audiences. Has interviewed such creators as "Neon Genesis Evangelion" Hideaki Anno, Guillermo del Toro, "Vinland Saga" creator Makoto Yukimura, and "Attack on Titan" creator Hajime Isayama.

Honors include being part of a team of writers that won an award from the New York Press Club for a feature about the 100 best animated sequences in history. In addition to contributing to IndieWire, he has written for publications like The New York Times, Vulture, IGN, British GQ, Polygon, Inverse, /Film and others, writing quick news, in-depth reporting, Q&A interviews, critical analysis, reviews, and more. He received a BA in Journalism from the University of Stavanger, and an MA in Documentary Production from the University of Stavanger. A Venezuelan native, he is currently based in Stavanger, Norway. He is on social media and can be found on Twitter (@RafaelMotamayor).

Latest by Rafael Motamayor
Jurassic World Chaos Theory
Getting Animated
The showrunners tell IndieWire about mixing '70s conspiracy thrillers with killer dinos in the animated follow-up to "Camp Cretaceous."
'Haikyuu!! The Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump'
Film Review
The popular anime franchise gets a rushed but still thrilling feature film.
(L-R): Crosshair, Echo, Wrecker, Hunter and Tech in a scene from STAR WARS: THE BAD BATCH, exclusively on Disney+. © 2021 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.
Getting Animated
Cinematography lighting & VFX director Joel Aron talks about keeping ILM's hand-made feeling alive in CG animation for the Disney+ series. 
Blood of Zeus (L to R) Lara Pulver as Persephone and Fred Tatasciore as Hades in Blood of Zeus. Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX © 2024
Getting Animated
The animated Netflix series asks the question, "But what if Hades and Persephone were actually in love?"
Randall Boggs in Season 2 of Monsters at Work
Plus, inside the surprise return of a "Monsters Inc" favorite; not even the scripts used the character's true name.
GARFIELD, (aka THE GARFIELD MOVIE), Garfield (voice: Chris Pratt), 2024.  © Columbia Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection
Getting Animated
From "Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim" to "Inside Out 2" and, yes, "Garfield," the year in animated features is looking strong.
THE IDEA OF YOU, from left: Nicholas Galitzine, Anne Hathaway, 2024.  /©Amazon Prime /Courtesy Everett Collection
Film Review
The adaptation of the viral 2017 novel offers poignant commentary in a fresh take on the rom-com genre.
Música
SXSW
SXSW: Vine and YouTube star Rudy Mancuso makes a bold leap into big pictures with this winning Prime Video debut.
Ross Marquand (The Immortal), Jay Pharaoh (Bulletproof),
Khary Payton (Black Samson), Ross Marquand (Robot), Walton Goggins (Cecil Stedman), Monster Girl, Grey Griffin (Shrinking Ray), Jason Mantzoukas (Rex Splode), Melise (Dupli-Kate)
The first thing to go? Walk and talks: "Absolute nightmares."
Sydney Sweeney in 'Immaculate'
SXSW
But still somehow better than "The Nun."
CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET, (aka CHICKEN RUN 2), from left: Frizzle (voice: Josie Sedgwick-Davies), Molly (voice: Bella Ramsey), 2023. © Netflix /Courtesy Everett Collection
Getting Animated
The stop-motion sequel may come 23 years after the first film, but the filmmaking process was a much faster one.
Attack on Titan series finale
After a decade, the anime's series finale proves that it was always perfectly positioned to capture the zeitgeist.
Top of The Line Weekly
A weekly digest that captures the best of our Top of the Line coverage.

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