The studio’s move further supports its Canadian clients in VFX, feature animation, and games while tapping local talent.
Independent, self-funded animation studio Steamroller Studios has announced its expansion to British Columbia, Canada with a local, remotely connected staff of 18 with plans to increase to 35 by June.
The creative studio, owned by founders Jalil Sadool (CCO), Keith Lackey, CEO of affiliate Steamroller Technologies, and Adam Meyer (CDO), specializes in animation, serving clients such as Sony, Paramount, Apple, Blizzard Entertainment, Epic Games, Framestore, DNEG, and others. Aaron Gilman joined the company in 2021 as CEO.
“We have a number of clients in B.C. and are currently increasing our team size to work on an animated feature film with a major studio,” said Gilman. “We have not opened a physical office in Vancouver. This is a strategic decision to assess the health of the expansion and the ongoing hesitation of the industry as it continues to recover from the Hollywood strikes.”
Gilman continued, “Our staff are currently working remotely as is a common practice post-COVID in the animation and VFX industry. We will assess adopting a physical space after at least a year of seeing how things grow and develop for Steamroller in B.C. Our hope is to continue to grow the studio in B.C. and if all goes well, we would like to see a team size of approximately 45 by year's end.”
Steamroller Studios, with facilities also in Florida and Mauritius, has expanded its offerings via its I.P. development division to provide storyboard, concept and character design, layout, and rigging services to clients. In addition, the studio plans to offer its real-time pipeline, leveraging Unreal Engine, to clients as part of an overall strategic one-stop shop growth plan.
“We are beyond excited to be expanding to my hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia,” added Gilman. “There is an incredible source of talent in Canada. We are also continuing to grow our relationships with our Canadian clients and look forward to supporting them in VFX, feature animation, and games.”
The studio is developing its own IP with almost a dozen properties in various stages of development. The pilot episode of Spice Frontier, based on its award-winning 2019 short film, is expected to be the next to reach completion.
Source: Steamroller Studios
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
