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Bill Davis
Bill Davis
	Davis in 2007
Born	May 1949 (age 75); Venice, Los Angeles, California
Occupation(s)	artist, creative director
Known for	Adventure games
Spouse	Betty Tikker Davis

William Robert Davis, aka Bill Davis (born May 1949 in Venice, California), is an American illustrator, animation director and designer, graphic designer and painter. He was the creative director at Sierra On-Line and Rocket Science Games during the 1990s. Davis is the founder and creative director of Mother Productions, a graphic design firm which creates animation, motion graphics, logos and other graphic designs for on-air and online purposes.^[1]

As the creative director at Sierra On-Line, Davis significantly advanced video game design by incorporating Hollywood production techniques. He introduced storyboarding, hand-drawn animations, and advanced animation methods, and he established the role of art director to enhance the coherence and artistic quality of PC games.

Career

Davis attended the California Institute of the Arts, where he graduated in 1971 with a BFA degree and high honors.

Television

Davis was a lead graphic designer for NBC and received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design and Title Sequences for his animated title and segue films on NBC, The First 50 Years: A Closer Look in 1978.^[2] He created over 200 "More to Come" on-air slides for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and he designed the logo for The Gong Show.^[3] Later, Davis worked as an animation director and designer for Kurtz & Friends.

Sierra On-Line

The Spring 1991 edition of Sierra Magazine featured *Jones in the Fast Lane* illustrated by Bill Davis. This game showcased the rotoscoping and storyboarding techniques that Davis introduced.

Bill Davis was appointed as vice-president of development and the first creative director of Sierra On-Line in July 1989.^[4] Davis influenced Sierra's game design and contributed to setting new standards in the gaming industry, especially in the areas of game art and animation.^[5]

By the late 1980s, Sierra On-Line, led by Ken Williams, adopted emerging technologies such as CD-ROMs, sound cards, and VGA displays. These technologies allowed Sierra to elevate the theatrical quality of their games, making them more similar to animated or live-action films. Bill Davis, recruited from Hollywood, was brought in to adapt the company's creative approach and production techniques to these new capabilities.^[5]

During his tenure, Bill Davis introduced storyboarding — a method adapted from film production — into Sierra's game development process. This technique enhanced the planning and execution of game production, leading to more consistent and visually engaging games. It also facilitated the expansion of production teams without proportionately extending project timelines.^[5]

Davis introduced traditional media such as painting and sculpting into Sierra's game design, moving away from the prevalent low-resolution digital creation methods. Under Davis, artists drew backgrounds and animations by hand before scanning them into games, achieving sharper, more realistic visuals. Davis introduced advanced animation techniques, such as rotoscoping and squash and stretch, to improve the realism and expressiveness of character movements in Sierra’s games.^[5]

Davis also recognized the need for more structured management of art in game production. In response, he established the role of art director at Sierra to oversee and unify the visual components of games, which aimed to maintain a consistent style across various projects. Additionally, Davis responded to the increasing demands for high-quality animation by outsourcing animation work to international studios, a practice adapted from traditional animation that was relatively new to video games.^[5]

Davis proposed cubist influences and a cartoonish style for Leisure Suit Larry's transition to VGA graphics.

He advocated for maintaining a consistent art style across different Sierra game series, marking a shift from previous practices where each game might have a distinct visual style. This approach aimed to strengthen Sierra’s brand identity through visual cohesion. Davis also sought to match specific artistic styles with the themes of different games.^[5] For example, Davis explored using cubism for Leisure Suit Larry to match the game's quirky nature. He persuaded creator Al Lowe to adopt a cartoonish style for Larry, enhancing the game's wild visual humor. ^[6]

Other Pursuits

In 1996, Davis left Sierra to become vice-president of development and creative director for Rocket Science Games.^[7]

Personal life

Davis lives in Oakhurst, California with his wife, Betty Tikker Davis.^[8]

Games

Name	Year	Credited with	Publisher
Oil's Well (DOS)	1990	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire	1990	creative director	Sierra On-Line
King's Quest V: Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder!	1990	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Space Quest IV: Roger Wilco and the Time Rippers	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Space Quest I: Roger Wilco in the Sarien Encounter	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Mixed-Up Mother Goose (VGA)	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Leisure Suit Larry 5: Passionate Patti Does a Little Undercover Work	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Police Quest III: The Kindred	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Castle of Dr. Brain	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Jones in the Fast Lane	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
EcoQuest: The Search for Cetus	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Conquests of the Longbow: The Legend of Robin Hood	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Hoyle: Official Book of Games - Volume 3	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Mixed-Up Fairy Tales	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Leisure Suit Larry 1: In the Land of the Lounge Lizards	1991	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Quest for Glory I: So You Want To Be A Hero	1992	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Police Quest: In Pursuit of the Death Angel	1992	creative director	Sierra On-Line
The Dagger of Amon Ra	1992	creative director	Sierra On-Line
Slater & Charlie Go Camping	1993	director, producer, art director, writer	Sierra On-Line
Pepper's Adventures in Time	1993	original concept	Sierra On-Line
Rocket Jockey	1996	executive producer	SegaSoft
Obsidian	1997	studio creative director	SegaSoft
The Space Bar	1997	executive producer	Rocket Science Games, SegaSoft
Jewel Quest Mysteries: Trail of the Midnight Heart	2009	art director	iWin
Jewel Quest IV: Heritage	2009	art director	iWin
Jewel Quest Mysteries: The Seventh Gate	2011	art director	iWin

References

^ Fera, Rae Ann (2001-09-01). "Davis Births Mother". boardsmag.com. Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ "Emmy Awards 1978". IMDb. Archived from the original on 2009-05-11. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ "Sierra Art Trails Featured Artist: Trowzers Akimbo". Sierra Sun Times. 2014-10-03. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
^ Smithe, Nancy (Spring 1990). "Bill Davis, Creative Director". Sierra News Magazine. 3 (1). Sierra Entertainment: 16.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Shawn Mills (2017-11-10). "A Sierra Retrospective: Part 4 - Works of Art". Retrieved 2024-04-13.
^ Lorelei Shannon (Summer 1991). "Larry's New Look". Sierra/Dynamix News Magazine: 7.
^ "Rocket Science Games on new trajectory with strong studio team" (Press release). Business Wire. 1996-02-13. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ "Emmy Award Winning Oakhurst Artist Bill Davis Creates Painting for Valley Children's Hospital". Sierra Sun Times. 2015-11-11. Retrieved 2024-04-13.