Cyriak

{{About other people|British artist Cyriak Harris|Cyriak|Cyriacus (name)}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Cyriak

| image = Cyriak in 2010 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Cyriak in 2010

| birth_name = Cyriak Harris

| birth_place =

| nationality = English

| other_names = Cyriak Harris
Mutated Monty{{Cite web|url=https://b3ta.com/users/profile.php?id=29846|title=b3ta.com user mutated monty|website=b3ta.com}}
Mouldy

| occupation = {{Hlist|Animator|composer}}

| years_active = 2004–present

| website = {{URL|http://cyriak.co.uk}}

| module = {{Infobox YouTube personality

|embed=yes

| channel_handle = cyriak

| years_active = 2006–present

| genre = {{flatlist|

| subscribers = 2.91 million (combined)

| subscriber_date = 16 January 2025

| views = 852 million (combined)

| associated_acts = {{flatlist|

}}

| silver_button = yes | silver_year = 2011{{Citation|title=cyriak's Channel|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/cyriak//|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110303105302/https://www.youtube.com/user/cyriak//|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 March 2011|language=en|access-date=3 March 2011}}

| gold_button = yes | gold_year = 2018{{Cite web|url=https://socialblade.com/youtube/user/cyriak|title=Cyriak's YouTube stats|last=|first=|date=|website=Social Blade|access-date=}}

}}

| module2 = {{Infobox musical artist

| embed = yes

| years_active =

| genre = Electronic

| label = None

}}

Cyriak Harris, known mononymously as Cyriak ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɪr|i|æ|k}}),{{cite web|title=Cyriak - Name's Meaning of Cyriak|website=name-doctor.com|url=http://www.name-doctor.com/name-cyriak-meaning-of-cyriak-28942.html|accessdate=11 February 2019}} his B3ta username Mutated Monty, and Mouldy in the Doom community, is an English freelance animator, artist, composer, and author from Brighton. He is known for his surreal and bizarre short web animations with the frequent use of the Droste effect.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/31/cyriak-youtube-online-animator|title=The surreal YouTube genius of Cyriak|last=Bradshaw|first=Peter|authorlink=Peter Bradshaw|date=31 March 2010|work=The Guardian|accessdate=20 July 2010|quote=growing cult following for his brilliant bursts of surrealism and drollery ... notably winning awards for his sting designs for E4, and for TV ads ... miniaturist genius}}

Animations

Cyriak has been a regular contributor to the British website B3ta since 2004.{{cite web |title = B3ta member profile |publisher = B3ta.com |date = |url = http://www.b3ta.com/users/profile.php?id=29846 |accessdate = 9 December 2007}} His YouTube channel was launched in March 2006.

Cyriak's YouTube account features a compilation of his animations, which have been popular throughout the blogosphere and noted by Wired's Eliot Van Buskirk.{{cite web |last = Van Buskirk |first = Eliot |title = Friday Fun: Cyriak's Animation Mix |publisher = Wired.com |date = 20 October 2006 |url = http://blog.wired.com/music/2006/10/friday_fun_cyri.html |accessdate = 9 December 2007}} Most of his videos are made with Adobe After Effects and FL Studio.{{cite web | url=http://www.image-line.com/documents/powerusers.php?entry_id=1322691369 | title=Power Users List - Cyriak Harris (animator) | publisher=Image-Line | accessdate=12 October 2016 | archive-date=21 July 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190721123005/https://www.image-line.com/documents/powerusers.php?entry_id=1322691369 | url-status=dead }} Cyriak's animation "MOO" has featured on the front page of Wired. His 2009 video "poo pants" features an animated sample of broadcaster Alan Titchmarsh singing a repeated refrain (a pitch-shifted excerpt from children's music artist Ann Austin's "The Poo Song") from the bowls of a series of toilets, some of which fly through space.

As a freelance animator, he has been commissioned by the video sharing website Sumo TV, and a music video for Grand Popo Football Club, among others.{{Cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/uk/movies/idents/42729/20-fantastic-film-and-tv-idents|title=20 fantastic film and TV idents|date=27 January 2017}}

Cyriak made the "Spaceology" animation in the third episode of the fourth season of the TV series The IT Crowd and the "Goth to Boss" animation in the sixth episode.{{cite web|title=IT Crowd – Spaceology|url=http://cyriak.co.uk/animation/projects/it-crowd-spaceology/|website=Cyriak|accessdate=5 February 2017}}{{cite web|last1=Holmes|first1=Kevin|title=Mind Melting Animation|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/mind-melting-animation/|website=The Creators Project|access-date=5 February 2017|date=13 September 2010}} In 2015 he created the opening credits for the Netflix series W/ Bob & David.{{cite web|author=Joe Berkowitz |url=http://www.fastcocreate.com/3053922/how-digital-artist-cyriak-gave-w-bob-david-the-trippiest-opening-credits-ever |title=How Digital Artist Cyriak Gave "W/ Bob & David" The Trippiest Opening Credits Ever |publisher=Fast Company |date=24 November 2015 |accessdate=5 December 2014}}

Cyriak has directed a number of music videos, including videos for Bonobo's "Cirrus"{{Cite web|url=http://cyriak.co.uk/animation/|title=CYRIAK|language=en-US|access-date=24 October 2019}} and Bloc Party's "Ratchet" in 2013,{{cite web |url=http://www.lostateminor.com/2013/07/02/music-video-for-bloc-partys-ratchet-more-crazy-work-from-cyriak/ |title=Music video for Bloc Party's Ratchet: More crazy work from Cyriak » Lost At E Minor: For creative people |publisher=Lost At E Minor |date=2 July 2013 |accessdate=16 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930084617/http://www.lostateminor.com/2013/07/02/music-video-for-bloc-partys-ratchet-more-crazy-work-from-cyriak/ |archive-date=30 September 2017 |url-status=dead }} Flying Lotus's "Putty Boy Strut" in 2014,{{cite AV media |people=Cyriak (director), Flying Lotus (composer) |date= 25 June 2014 |title= Putty Boy Strut |medium=YouTube |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1KOb4_XK84 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/_1KOb4_XK84| archive-date=12 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=30 September 2017}}{{cbignore}} Run the Jewels’s "Meowpurrdy" in 2016, and Sparks' "The Existential Threat" in 2020.{{cite AV media |people=Cyriak (director), Sparks (composer) |date= 3 July 2020 |title= The Existential Threat |medium=YouTube |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLxPIOxgkM0 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/dLxPIOxgkM0| archive-date=12 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=3 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} His videos "Baaa" and "meow mix" have amassed more than 100 million views. Other popular uploads on his channel include "Welcome to Kitty City," "Cycles," and "7 billion."

Music and other activities

Long before Harris started creating animations, he composed a considerable amount of surreal music.{{cite web | url=https://www.grafill.no/magasin/cyriak-harris | title=INTERVIEW: CYRIAK HARRIS | date=7 April 2012 | publisher=grafill.no | accessdate=7 April 2012}}

On 19 August 2008, Harris uploaded a music video of the song "My Territory" by Grand Popo Football Club. It features a landscape that has been made entirely out of a woman's body, and is a metaphor for consumerism and the treatment of the female body.{{Cite web|title=YouTube|url=https://www.youtube.com/|access-date=25 November 2021|website=www.youtube.com|language=en}} On 9 September 2009, British illusionist Derren Brown, live on UK television, claimed to predict the National Lottery numbers. Cyriak uploaded a possible explanation, to his YouTube channel, which gained half a million views within a week and attention from national press.{{Cite web|url=https://metro.co.uk/2009/09/16/amateur-youtube-sleuth-reveals-derren-browns-lottery-numbers-trick-410771/|title=Amateur YouTube sleuth reveals Derren Brown's lottery numbers trick|date=16 September 2009}}

In September 2010 he appeared at "Flash on the Beach" in Brighton and in September 2014 appeared at "Reasons to be Creative", also in Brighton.{{Cite web|url=https://reasons.to/2014/brighton/speakers/cyriak-harris|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129203847/https://reasons.to/2014/brighton/speakers/cyriak-harris|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 January 2020|title=Reasons.to 2019|website=Reasons to}}

In December 2013, he released the mod "Going Down" for the 1994 first-person shooter Doom II.{{Cite web|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/the-cult-of-doom-the-thriving-mod-scene-behind-ids-classic/|title=The cult of Doom: the thriving mod scene behind id's classic|last=Hamilton|first=Andi|date=10 December 2018|website=PC Gamer|access-date=5 January 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.techradar.com/news/the-10-best-doom-mods-you-should-play-on-its-25th-birthday|title=The 10 best Doom mods you should play on its 25th birthday|last=Zak|first=Robert|date=10 December 2018|website=TechRadar|access-date=5 January 2020}}

In March 2018, he started working on a partly crowd-funded book Horse Destroys the Universe.{{Cite book|url=https://unbound.com/books/horse-destroys-the-universe|title=Horse Destroys the Universe|isbn=9781783527601|via=unbound.com|last1=Harris|first1=Cyriak|date=August 2019|publisher=Unbound }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/Horse-Destroys-Universe-Cyriak-Harris-ebook/dp/B07NRYZQBB|title=Horse Destroys the Universe|first=Cyriak|last=Harris|date=22 August 2019|publisher=Unbound|via=Amazon}} The book was published in September 2019. It is about scientists who experiment on a horse named Buttercup until they are given superhuman intelligence, until they eventually become an omnipotent being and destroy the universe.

On 8 February 2020, Cyriak showcased his music for the first time, as he performed as a disc jockey at the Zanzibar Club in Liverpool.{{cite web|title=Chemtrail Party Mix: Cyriak, DJ Gurl Power, Bongo and Furness, Monad|url=https://www.residentadvisor.net/events/1340859|website=Residentadvisor|accessdate=3 January 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://melodicdistraction.com/event/chemtrail-party-mix-cyriak-dj-gurl-power-bongo-furness/|title=CHEMTRAIL PARTY MIX: CYRIAK / DJ GURL POWER / BONGO & FURNESS|date=12 December 2019|work=Melodicdistraction|access-date=12 December 2019|language=en|archive-date=30 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200130004642/https://melodicdistraction.com/event/chemtrail-party-mix-cyriak-dj-gurl-power-bongo-furness/|url-status=dead}}

In August 2022, he released another Doom II mod titled "Overboard".{{Cite web |title=Overboard |url=https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Overboard |access-date=2023-03-09 |website=DoomWiki.org |language=en}}

Awards and recognition

On 3 December 2009, Cyriak was announced as the winner of the 2009 E Stings competition, run by television channel E4, with £5,000 for his video Recursive Culture.{{Cite web |url=http://www.e4.com/estings/2009finalists.html |title=E4 Finalists |access-date=11 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013071336/http://www.e4.com/estings/2009finalists.html |archive-date=13 October 2012 |url-status=dead }}

In 2006 he also received a special mention in the results of a Photoshop contest run by the technology series Click.{{cite news |author = |title = Click Online competition results |publisher = BBC News |date = 12 May 2006 |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/4946120.stm |accessdate = 9 December 2007}}

In 2012 and 2014 he was awarded with two Cacowards, an annual online awards ceremony which honours the year's most prominent modifications of Doom, being recognized for his outstanding level design and sophisticated technical approach to achieving complex sequences and impressive comedic timing.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/alt-doom-mod-stalker/|title=The Doom Mod That Best Describes Our Uncanny Reality|last=Ryerson|first=Liz|date=29 January 2018|website=Vice|access-date=5 January 2020}}{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Doomworld -- The 19th Annual Cacowards|url=https://www.doomworld.com/19years/best3.php|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130107021336/http://www.doomworld.com:80/19years/best3.php |archive-date=7 January 2013 |access-date=27 December 2020|website=Doomworld}}{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Doomworld -- The 21st Annual Cacowards|url=https://www.doomworld.com/21years/best1.php|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141225013423/http://www.doomworld.com:80/21years/best1.php |archive-date=25 December 2014 |access-date=27 December 2020|website=Doomworld}}

In 2022 he was awarded with another Cacoward for his mod "Overboard", which was praised for its silliness and fast-paced gameplay.{{Cite web |title=Top Ten - Page 3 |url=https://www.doomworld.com/cacowards/2022/best3/ |access-date=2023-03-09 |website=Doomworld |language=en-US}}

McDonald's advertisement feud

In 2016, Cyriak accused fast food chain McDonald's of plagiarizing his animated video "cows & cows & cows". The studio that animated the advertisement, Buenos Aires-based Juan Solo, openly admitted that they used Cyriak's work as "reference". After Cyriak's tweets about the theft went viral, the advert was pulled. The original video, featuring dancing cows, had received more than 67 million views.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cartoonbrew.com/advertising/mcdonalds-pulls-commercial-copied-work-animator-cyriak-142092.html|title=McDonald's Pulls Commercial That Copied The Work of Animator Cyriak|date=4 August 2016}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.thedrum.com/news/2016/08/04/animator-accuses-mcdonald-s-plagiarising-his-viral-and-surreal-dancing-cow-video|title=Animator accuses McDonald's of plagiarising his viral (and surreal) dancing cow video|date=4 August 2016}}

Filmography

class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" \|+ List of music videos directed, showing year released and artist{{Cite web \|title=Cyriak Harris {{!}} Animation Department, Additional Crew, Director \|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3382694/ \|access-date=2023-07-14 \|website=IMDb \|language=en-US}}
Year ! Song ! Artist
2007 \| "Beggin' (Pilooski Re-Edit)" \| Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
2008 \| "My Territory" \| Grand Popo Football Club
2010 \| "We Got More" \| Eskmo
2011 \| "True Loves (Cereal Spiller Remix)" \| Hooray for Earth
rowspan="2"\| 2012 \| "Yellow Bridges" \| El Ten Eleven
"Putty Boy Strut" \| Flying Lotus
rowspan="2"\| 2013 \| "Cirrus" \| Bonobo
"Ratchet" \| Bloc Party
2015 \|"Wind and Rains is Cold" \|Cardiacs
2015 \|"There's Good Cud" \|Cardiacs
2015 \| "Occupy" \| Gong
2016 \| "Meowpurrdy" \| Run the Jewels
2017 \| "UFOholic (Acid Abduction Mix)" \| Denki Groove
2019 \| "Like and Subscribe" \| Adam Buxton
2020 \| "The Existential Threat" \| Sparks
2022 \| "Betray" \| Light
2024 \| "Polkamania" ("Helena Polka" segment) \| "Weird Al" Yankovic

class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ List of music videos directed, showing year released and artist{{Cite web |title=Cyriak Harris {{!}} Animation Department, Additional Crew, Director |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3382694/ |access-date=2023-07-14 |website=IMDb |language=en-US}}

Year

! Song

! Artist

2007

| "Beggin' (Pilooski Re-Edit)"

| Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

2008

| "My Territory"

| Grand Popo Football Club

2010

| "We Got More"

| Eskmo