HALIFAX – Former Pixar Canada head Amir Nasrabadi is joining DHX Media in the new role of executive vice-president and general manager of its animation studio in Vancouver.
Nasrabadi brings over 20 years’ experience in production, operations, finance and strategy in the animation and visual effects industry, having held senior roles with Illumination, Paramount Animation, and The Walt Disney Studios before launching and running Pixar Canada in Vancouver in 2009.
Effective June 10, he will oversee all animation production at DHX Media’s studio, leading the Vancouver animation team in working closely with its creative, content and brands teams.
“As a well-known and respected figure in the animation community, who brings a wealth of industry experience, Amir is an ideal executive to lead the talented team at our Vancouver animation studio,” said DHX Media president Josh Scherba, in Monday’s announcement. “We believe Amir’s history as head of Pixar Canada in Vancouver, as well as his time in management with Illumination, Paramount and Disney will deliver tremendous value to our business. We couldn’t be more delighted that Amir is coming back to Vancouver, and we look forward to welcoming him to the DHX Media team.”
Located in Vancouver’s Olympic Village, DHX Media’s custom built 75,000 square foot animation studio opened in 2017 and current employs approximately 500 2D- and 3D-animation professionals. The studio produced over 1,800 minutes of animated content last year, including series The Deep, Mega Man: Fully Charged, Carmen Sandiego for Netflix, Peabody & Sherman and The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle for DreamWorks, and its first feature film My Little Pony: The Movie for Hasbro. The studio team is currently at work on new Peanuts content for Apple, as well as Chip and Potato for Netflix, Blaze and the Monster Machines for Nickelodeon, and Dorg Van Dango for Nickelodeon with Cartoon Saloon.
