Ricard Cussó is a Spanish/Australian, award-winning director and co-founder of Brisbane animation house Cosmic Dino Studio. He is best known for directing the 3D-animated feature Scarygirl (2023), and the beloved franchise Tales From Sanctuary City, all produced by award-winning production company Like A Photon Creative and distributed by Universal Pictures.

Ricard’s career began in live entertainment, directing for the American company The Sudden Impact! Entertainment, where he designed and led large-scale theatrical attractions based on Hollywood blockbusters like Ghostbusters and Terminator. Over five years, his productions toured across Australia, Asia, and Latin America, captivating audiences worldwide.

He made his feature film directorial debut in 2020 with The Wishmas Tree, followed by Combat Wombat (2020) and Daisy Quokka: World’s Scariest Animal (2021). After that, Ricard co-founded Cosmic Dino Studio with writer-producer Ryan Greaves, all while directing Scarygirl—a thrilling co-production between Like A Photon Creative and Highly Spirited. The film, featuring an all-star cast including Sam Neill, Tim Minchin, Jillian Nguyen, Remy Hii, and Anna Torv, premiered worldwide on Halloween 2023 and earned Ricard the Best Direction in Animation award from the Australian Directors Guild.

In 2022, Ricard expanded the Tales from Sanctuary City universe with two new films: Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back (2024) and The Sloth Lane (2024), securing another Best Director in Animation win in 2024. Now, he is directing the festive film Santa.com (2025) alongside the highly anticipated screen adaptation of the New York Times bestseller The Pout-Pout Fish (2025), starring Nick Offerman, Amy Sedaris, and Jordin Sparks—a film poised to further cement his status as one of Australia’s leading animated feature film directors.