Gaumont Grows Animation Division with New Appointments
Gaumont expanded its animation and family division and promoted Terry Kalagian to senior vice-president of the group. Kimberly Dennison was also appointed to the newly created role of vice-president of creative development in the U.S. office, working alongside Gaelle Guiny, vice-president of creative development, France.
Kalagian and Guiny, along with Nicolas Atlan, president of animation and family, have been instrumental in attracting multiple new projects for development including Touch the Earth and Heal The Earth from The New York Times bestselling children’s book authors Julian Lennon and Bart Davis respectively; creator, writer, and illustrator Stan Sakai’s comic book series Usagi Yojimbo; Molly and the Cryptos, with France Television; Bionic Max, with Gulli; and The Star Shards Chronicles, based on the young adult novels by The New York Times bestselling author Neal Shusterman. Other projects include Do Re & Mi, an animated musical series for preschoolers featuring original tracks performed by executive producers and creators Kristen Bell (Disney’s Frozen), Jackie Tohn (Glow, Season 8 American Idol finalist) and other surprise guests. On the adult side, Atlan and Kalagian are developing animated shows with such talent as Colin Quinn and Maz Jobrani. Projects in development for theatrical release include the animated feature High in the Clouds (based on the book authored by Sir Paul McCartney and Philip Ardagh and illustrated by Geoff Dunbar), and Plunder, a family treasure hunting adventure from award-winning writers Leo Chu and Eric Garcia.
Dennison joins the team as vice-president of creative development working on series and movie projects for a range of audiences, reporting to Kalagian. Prior to joining Gaumont, Dennison served as director of development for Walt Disney TV Animation where she developed both original and Disney-branded properties. Over the course of her career, Dennison has served as a network executive, and has developed, produced, and voice directed a range of animated projects for studios and networks including Walt Disney, the Hub Network, and Rainmaker Entertainment.
Guru Studio Ups Louise Jones to VP, Finance and Business Affairs
Guru Studio promoted Louise Jones to vice-president of finance and business affairs.
In this new executive position, Jones will expand her role as the director of finance to oversee key activities across the entertainment business including strategic planning, business affairs, production financing, and accounting.
Prior to joining Guru Studio in 2012, Jones worked in the assurance practice at Ernst & Young. She has also served as the director of finance for Halfire Entertainment, and got her start in the entertainment industry as a production accountant for Just for Laughs, supporting comedy festivals and live tours.
Jones is a CPA and Chartered Accountant and serves on the Board of Directors for the Computer Animation Studios of Ontario.
Louise Jones’ appointment comes at a time of rapid expansion for the company, with a number of executive hires announced in recent months to support the brand development of Guru’s original IP including the recent foray into licensing for Netflix series True and the Rainbow Kingdom.