An under-construction, 75,000,00-square-foot animation studio will anchor DHX Media’s (TSX: DHX.A) expansion plans for Vancouver.
The Halifax-based company specializing in children’s and family entertainment announced Friday (January 29) the new division, DHX Studios, would be led by chief content officer Ace Fipke.
Fipke was previously CEO of Vancouver animation studio Nerd Corps Entertainment until the company he co-founded was acquired by DHX Media in 2014 for $57 million.
“What we’re trying to do in DHX Studios is create IP (intellectual property) and then deliver it to the various mechanisms of this large, vertically integrated company,” Fipke said.
“There’s always been animation production here (in Vancouver), in Halifax and live action in Toronto…The idea of consolidating it all under a single business unit known as DHX Studios will help manage it across all those opportunities.”
Meanwhile, a 75,000-square-foot studio is set to open by the end of 2016 in Mount Pleasant on Fifth Avenue and Yukon Street.
DHX Studios plans to hire about 100 more workers in the coming months to work on TV shows including Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (based on the film), Slugterra and Supernoobs.
DHX Media employs about 700 workers throughout different offices in Vancouver. The new facilities will bring together workers from the 2D studio on Alexander Street and the 3D studio near Clark Drive, where Nerd Corps was based before it was acquired.
“The objective is one studio, one culture,” Fipke said.
“We’re really putting roots down here because we feel this is where the talent is.”
