Tyrus

Tyrus is a 2015 feature-length documentary directed by Pamela Tom about pioneering Chinese American artist Tyrus Wong who overcame a life of poverty, racism, and discrimination to become a renowned painter and Hollywood sketch artist. It was produced by Tom, Tamara Khalaf, and Gwen Wynne. The documentary reveals how the quiet beauty of Wong's eastern influenced paintings caught the eye of Walt Disney and became the inspiration for the classic animated feature Bambi (1942). For the next 25 years, Wong brought his artistry to Warner Brothers where his striking storyboards and set illustrations helped set the tone and drama for films such as Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), Rebel Without a Cause (1955), William Goldman's Harper (1966) and Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch. Wong died at the age of 106 on December 30, 2016, the oldest-known living Chinese American artist at the time of his death.