VANCOUVER — Cinesite Studios has appointed Tara Kemes general manager of its feature animation studio, here. She takes over from Nicole Stinn and will be responsible for the overall management of the studio, reporting to Cinesite Group CEO Antony Hunt.
Kemes started her industry career at Mainframe. She honed her leadership skills working as recruitment manager in the video game industry for Canada’s Relic Entertainment and Nexon, among others, before re-joining the new Rainmaker Entertainment in 2009 to build the team for its first animated feature film, Escape from Planet Earth. Until 2017, she continued her career progression with Rainmaker, successfully taking on the new role of VP, culture & talent, and spearheading the company’s commitment to a strong workplace community and the development and expansion of its creative and technical teams. She has continued to demonstrate her passion for nurturing talent throughout her professional career by teaching part-time at the Vancouver Film School.
The Vancouver facility is busy working on The Addams Family for MGM and remains one of the city’s leading feature animation studios. Kemes will oversee the continued expansion and strengthen Cinesite’s profile within British Columbia. Launching under the Cinesite brand in March 2017 with a core staff of 65, Cinesite Studios’ Vancouver facility now boasts close to 100 employees, with plans to continue expanding the crew even further to over 200 artists.
“In a very short time, Cinesite Studios has made a real commitment to the feature animation business by bringing world-class creative leadership and artists into its studios,” Kemes comments. “I feel privileged to join the growing team in Vancouver at such an exciting time as they take on Top-tier projects, and I look forward to creating a fulfilling and supportive environment for all and playing a key role in the studio’s continuing success.”
“We are delighted to have Tara join us,” adds Cinesite Group CEO Antony Hunt. “She will be instrumental in spearheading our expansion and throughput of exciting animated projects at our Vancouver studio. Tara’s extensive operational experience and instincts for developing talent strikes that special leadership balance; I know that we’re going to benefit greatly from having her on board to continue our focus on the needs of our clients and crew.”