Biography

Karl Rapley is an animation supervisor at Wētā FX. He was born and raised in Warkworth, New Zealand; as a child, he was inspired by films such as Jurassic Park and Terminator 2: Judgment Day- primarily their behind-the-scenes videos. Rapley joined Wētā FX at the end of 2006 as a junior previs artist on The Adventures of Tintin (2011). Over his first few years, he contributed to previs work and gradually rose through the ranks. After a few years, he was promoted to a senior artist role. Over time, Rapley's work expanded from previs and animation to major blockbuster films. He served as Lead Animator or Sequence Animation Supervisor on Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019). Later, he transitioned into Animation Supervisor roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with credits on Black Widow (2021) and The Marvels (2023). One of Rapley's signature achievements came with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), where he served as Animation Supervisor for what became a complex, creature-heavy final battle sequence. His work involved animating massive fantastical creatures — including dragons and demons — and coordinating water effects, magical ring animations, and interactions between actors, stunts, and digital doubles. For his role on Shang-Chi, Rapley, along with his colleagues at Wētā FX, was awarded the 2022 Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Character Animation in a Live Action Production.

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