Umesh Shukla

Umesh Shukla is the founder and chief creative officer of Auryn Inc, a company that brings together his training as a Graphic Designer, his award winning work in the field of animation and special effects, and his vision to expand the styles available for visual story tellers. This combination has resulted in ground breaking technology development at Auryn. With a world class team of co-founders and technologists, Auryn has become a much talked about children’s picture book app developer.

In the directorial realm, his animated short film “Still I Rise,” inspired by the life and death of John Merrick (The Elephant Man), toured festivals around the globe, earning awards and critical praise as “a truly magical and masterful tour de force.” He is also the director of “The Girl Who Cried Flowers,” (Scholastic/Weston Woods) “Almond Blossoms,” (Microcinema) and “In Winter Still” (Possible Films).

Umesh’s passion for story telling and creative exploration can also be seen in Pushpuck Comics, a series of comics that Umesh is creating during the spare time he can forage once the sun has set. These comics are well received and already have a good following. According to Umesh, he loves getting back in touch with his Indian roots and also enjoys creative explorations that explore his rich Indian heritage. Pushpuck comics are being published in India by Eurobooks.

“After reading the stories, I can say that Umesh Shukla is a modern-day Valmiki.” -Hinduism.about.com

Umesh is also the author of recently published children picture book Love You Back!. This book is gifted to our grandmothers as an acknowledgment of the love, caring and generosity they shower us with in our childhood and always.

Umesh’s creative explorations can also be seen in a series of toys he has designed. The series called RoadKLZ is not for the faint of heart. This series has a large number of followers who find the designs “creepy and cute” at the same time.

“Grostesque? Absolutely. Tasteless? Maybe. Genius? Without doubt.” Forces of Geek

Umesh was also recognized as one of 25 digital leaders for 2011 in emerging entertainment space by Producers Guild of America and Variety magazine.

Over the years, Umesh has presented at animation and business conferences including SIGGGRAPH and has been widely covered by leading national and international magazines. He has taught at Cal Arts, designed courses for the Art Institute, and has served as a judge at animation festivals.