Ian's Story:

From Disney's Happy Place to Marty's Capy Place

Ian Wegher-Thompson was born in Thousand Oaks, CA on December 16, 1993.  He was 10 pounds 4 ounces when he was born and grew to stand 6’6” tall.  He had a lifelong fascination with Disney, Jim Henson's Muppets, and Fred Rogers' Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Among the many pearls of wisdom Fred Rogers imparted was, "What is essential to life is invisible to the eye." This philosophy deeply influenced Ian, teaching him about the invisible essentials of caring, happiness, and to "look for the helpers" in life. Children, young adults, then adults, and parents grew up with Fred guiding them to see what is truly important in life.

It took many years and the support of countless wonderful helpers for Ian to bring his vision to fruition. His journey was marked by perseverance and courage, allowing him to connect deeply with a community of artists. Exceptional Minds in Sherman Oaks, Actors for Autism (AFA Hub) in Burbank and Newbury Park, Ride-On Therapeutic Horsemanship, Special Olympics, the Real People Program, Always on Stage, and Moorpark College all played a role in nurturing Ian's artistic growth.

Ian's talent as a voice actor was unparalleled, with an ability to mimic and create voices with exceptional detail. This skill led him to meet some of the greats in the voice acting industry. When Spectrum Laboratory organized a workshop, Tom Kenny volunteered his time, leading to a memorable session where Ian shared his ideas about Marty Capybara and Capy Studios. The two of them spontaneously started improvising, with Ian voicing Marty and Tom doing SpongeBob SquarePants. Their playful session concluded with both doing the signature SpongeBob laugh, after which Tom pointed to Ian and exclaimed, "He's Better!"

Ian also had the opportunity to meet renowned animators and artists like Butch Hartman and Lauren Faust. His enthusiasm for puppetry was further fueled when Jim Henson Studios in LA generously opened their doors to AFA Hub students. Ian's greatest thrills included trying out Jim Henson's Waldo, a hand-operated puppet that allowed puppeteers to remotely control computer-generated characters.

As a person with autism, Ian greatly utilized the services provided through the CA State Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) and the Tri-Counties Regional Center throughout his childhood and young adult life.  About a year before his diagnosis with brain cancer in 2020, Ian approached the Tri-Counties Regional Center, a resource unique to the State of California that provides services and support for individuals with developmental disabilities. With their backing, Ian was able to hire Cooper Berella as a producer mentor to help him bring his professional and creative visions to life.

Ian's original creative team at Cappy Studios included Cooper Berella, Faith and Grace Butterfield, Cameron Friend, Gordon Durich, and Ian's amazing sister, Theresa Corinne. Theresa not only selflessly loved, supported, and encouraged Ian with his vision through many extremely challenging years, she also co-wrote the theme song "Welcome to Marty's Place" with him. She performed the vocal tracks with accompaniment and recording provided by her colleague Garth Herberg, Co-founder and Head of Music Programs at Spectrum Laboratory.  Ian also studied voice acting with Cathy McAuley and film with Jason Weissbrod (Co-founder) at Spectrum Laboratory.  Another key mentor for Ian, who encouraged and inspired him to bring his creative ideas to life was Moira MacDonald.  Ian had the great fortune to study puppetry and stage lighting design with Moira at Moorpark College.  Moira, an extraordinary multidisciplinary theater artist and filmmaker, is lovingly creating the Marty Capybara puppet based on Ian’s designs and descriptions.  Now, many more have joined the "Capy Crew." Capy Studios is very grateful to host paid Work Experiences through the CA Department of Rehabilitation and paid Internships through the CA Regional Centers. Capy Studios is committed to maintaining these collaborations as core to our business plan for all future projects.

Capybaras, while being the world's largest rodent, are known for their gentle and laid-back nature.  They have become a viral sensation as the 'chillest' animal on the planet. Ian foresaw this popularity years ago when he came up with the character of Marty Capybara and decided to create Cappy Studios.

Marty's Place uniquely features the puppeteer as a central character; he is slightly older than Ian's live-action counterpart and serves as his mentor. Dressed in black, he is fully visible to the audience, not concealed by scenery, much like in live performances. He speaks in Marty's voice while puppeteering, but uses his own voice for other lines, enhancing the interactive feel. This method was inspired by Ian's firsthand observations of puppeteers engaging with children in live settings, maintaining the character's magic while introducing novel dynamics. This approach pays homage to innovators like Fred Rogers and Jim Henson, who expanded the traditional puppet show from a small, box-like stage where the performer was hidden to using the television frame as a new stage. This allowed for special effects and editing, transforming the simple puppet theater into a broader, more dynamic canvas. Marty's Place aims to push these boundaries further by experimenting with virtual reality, as it becomes more accessible, to explore new storytelling techniques and interactive experiences.

The first project Ian decided to take on with Cappy Studios was "Marty's Place." Marty's Place is a delightful children's show in the spirit of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, including live action, animation, puppetry, and music, centering around Ian's original character of Marty Capybara.

In the pilot episode, a live-action character named Ian co-hosts a children’s TV show with his puppet friend Marty Capybara.  The setting is Ian’s tiny animation studio, which is in a modest studio apartment number 143 (an easter egg for Mr. Rogers Neighborhood superfans), called Cappy Studios. Every episode starts out with Ian entering the front door, greeting Marty and the puppeteer, and singing a jolly but calming duet with Marty of the theme song, "Welcome to Marty's Place," inviting viewers into a happy world designed for “’cappy’ little people like you."

The pilot episode is titled "Love Is Patient". Puppet Marty gets transformed into an animated Marty, who travels into Ian’s drawing tablet, exploring an underwater, creative wonderland in a peaceful lagoon in the Amazon. Marty tells a delightful, animated story about the theme of the episode, followed by a musical transition. Then Marty leads the child viewers into a very calm and peaceful reflection about the story and the lesson they've just learned.

This was Ian's vision: to create an artistic space where people could gather to produce beautiful programming and deliver that programming to children in a caring, respectful, and non-condescending way.  Just like his inspiration, Fred Rogers, Ian was excited to see the new technologies and the possibilities that they provide to help children learn to be good, loving, happy people.

Ian's exceptionally unique creative talent is no longer available to us, but he has sown the seed. We do have his vision; we can create "Marty's Place."