CHRLX (formerly known as Charlex until 2014) is an American animation studio based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

that produces animation primarily for commercials.

History

Charlie Levi and

Alex Weil Alex Weil (July 31, 1951 – April 17, 2019) was the founder and executive creative director of the New York City based digital design and production studio Charlex (now CHRLX), which he founded alongside Charlie Levi (the company's name is a portm ...

founded Charlex (with the name being a portmentau of their first names) in 1979 "with $1,600 and a phone" to support their rock band and to work on commercials. When the band folded, Levi and Weil began working at Charlex full-time. In 1981, Charlex began producing an innovative weekly TV-ad campaign for the

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, and in 1984, they created

The Cars The Cars were an American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek ( rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), Elliot Easton (lead guitar), Greg Hawkes ( keyboard ...

' "

You Might Think "You Might Think" is a song by American rock band The Cars from their fifth studio album, ''Heartbeat City'' (1984). The track was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Mutt Lange and the Cars, with Ocasek also providing the lead vocals. The s ...

" music video, for which they were awarded the "Video of the Year" –the very first winner– at the

1984 MTV Video Music Awards The 1984 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 14, 1984. The inaugural ceremony honored the best music videos released between May 2, 1983 and May 2, 1984, and was hosted by Dan Aykroyd and Bette Midler at the Radio City Music Hall in New ...

. Both projects helped Charlex get more work throughout the 1980s, including network IDs for the Fred/Alan agency, commercials, and opening titles for various programs. In 1986 Charlex produced the groundbreaking Cherry Coke ad that featured multiple composited layers of digital video which was a technical tour de force at the time. In 1998, Charlex started using CHRLX as an alternative name for the company (removing the vowels from their name); the Charlex name was slowly phased out until 2014, although it is still CHRLX's legal name. In 2006, Charlex's short film '' One Rat Short'' received a Best of Show award at the SIGGRAPH 2006 Computer Animation Festival. CHRLX's co-founder Alex Weil died in 2019, but CHRLX continues to operate under the leadership of Chris Byrnes.

Filmography

Short films

*''Inner Tube'' (backgrounds and electronic effects; 1987) *'' One Rat Short'' (2006) *''Amarelinha'' (associate producer; 2007) *''ShapeShifter'' (2010)

Music videos

– "You Might Think" (1984) *

– "Heartbreak City" (transitional links; 1984) * Yes – '' 9012Live'' (1985)

Television/film

*''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...

'' (opening titles; 1984) *'' Mr. Wizard's World'' (opening titles; 1985) *''

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'' (opening titles; 1990) *''

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'' (show opening; 1990) *''

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Anniversary Special'' (video restoration; 1990) *''Real Mature'' (opening sequence; 1991) *''

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100% Weird'' (opening sequence; 1992) *''

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Home Video'' (opening titles; 1993) *''

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: Magic Man'' (opening graphics; 1998) *''

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'' (credit sequence design; 1999) *''

: Frozen in Time'' (opening graphics; 2000) *'' Capturing the Friedmans'' (visual effects; 2003) *''

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'' ("Windmills" animation; 2018)

Commercials

* American Express *

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* AOL *

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* Avis * Bass Weejuns *

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* Blue Bonnet Butter Blend *

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* Campbell Soup Company *

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* Dodge *

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* Dunkin' Donuts *

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* Gillette * Grey Goose * HA! TV Comedy Network *

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* Hanna-Barbera * Hannaford *

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of K ...

href="http://totallyjem.jemmagic.com/jemhasbrolicensing.html" TotallyJem! *

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* Healthy Choice *

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* IBM *

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* JEM *

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* Lifetime *

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* Maryland Lottery * Maxell *

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* Myers Rum Video Network *

* Nexium *

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* NFL *

/ Nick at Nite *

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*North Texas Municipal Water District * Ocean Spray *

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* Polaroid *

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*Seagram's Escapes *

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* Subway *

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REGZA *

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* VH1 *

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* White Mountain Cooler *

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External links

References

American animation studios Mass media companies established in 1979 Privately held companies based in New York City 1979 establishments in New York City {{animation-studio-stub