Otmar Gutmann

"My objective with Pingu was to show what is fundamental to my sense in the whole animal world, namely the simple thing that we are nothing without the other. The use of a penguin allows, besides being sympathetic, to vary on topics as diverse as ecology, global warming, lack of resources. In short, the scarcity of men and food that an integral economic world could bring.”

"The most important thing is simple stories with a clear idea.”

Otmar Gutmann (April 24, 1937 - October 13, 1993) was a German-born Swiss television producer, animator, director, writer and the founder of The Pygos Group. He is perhaps best known for being the co-creator of Pingu alongside Erika Brueggemann.

He started as an amateur in the mid-1960s. As a professional, he only made one personal work, Aventures (1978). It was based on the piece of music by Gyorgy Ligeti, and he brought the sculptural universe of Lubomir Stepan to life as an exploration of human condition. In 1980, he was one of the leading animators of the plasticine characters Frédéric and Frédéri from "Lucy the Menace of Street".  Later, in 1986, he created Pingu and eventually, it became a major success.

Gutmann died of a heart attack at his home on October 13, 1993, after completing Season 2 of Pingu. He was buried at Russikon Cemetery. However, his company (The Pygos Group) decided to keep producing Pingu episodes with a new team of crew members. In 2000, the company collapsed and all its assets were sold to HiT Entertainment in 2001.

Gallery

Otmar Gutmann standing in front of a giant Pingu balloon (Source: Keystone)

Otmar Gutmann's Signature (Photo courtesy of Mikael Shields on Twitter)

Otmar’s gravestone