Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Nickelodeon Animation Announces New Exec Appointments

Nickelodeon Animation Studios has penciled in animation industry vet Brian Keane for its newly created post of Executive Vice President (EVP) Production & Operations.

Brian Keane

Keane, who spent a decade-plus as EVP/COO of Blue Sky Studios, will oversee plans to scale, manage and support productions across Nickelodeon series, movies and its Studio business in Burbank and New York. He will be based in Nickelodeon Animation’s offices in NYC and report to Nickelodeon Animation president Ramsey Naito.

Under the new structure, head of physical production Angelique Yen will report to Keane.

“Brian’s love of animation, operational expertise and producorial spirit will greatly contribute to Nickelodeon’s culture and success,” Naito said in a statement. “Keane and Yen’s partnership fortifies our studio’s mission to produce and deliver the highest quality content for kids and families everywhere across multiple platforms.”

“I have always admired Nickelodeon’s irreverent and creator-driven spirit, and I’m so excited to be joining the studio at a time of global growth and evolution,” Keane said. “I look forward to working with the Nick team on this transformative chapter ahead.”

Jennie Monica, left, and Kara Lord Piersimoni

Additionally, two new positions have been created reporting to Yen: Jennie Monica has been appointed Vice President (VP), Series Production and Kara Lord Piersimoni will join as Vice President of Production for Nickelodeon Movies. In these roles, Monica joins the production team managing animated series, and Lord Piersimoni will manage all aspects of physical production for movies. Dean Hoff, Vice President Series Production, Andrew Huebner, Vice President, Series Production and Patty Henry-Robinson, Vice President Series Production will continue reporting to Yen.

As Executive Vice President of Production and Operations, Brian Keane will support Nickelodeon’s ambitious growth plans by partnering closely with creative and production leaders to deliver high quality content. He will diversify and optimize the studio culture and productivity while managing the continuous advancement of the animation studio. Prior to joining Nickelodeon, Keane served as Chief Operating Officer/Executive Vice President at Blue Sky and held a range of other leadership positions at the company, including General Manager/Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer/Vice President. During his tenure, he worked on all of the Blue Sky films released to date including the Ice Age and Rio movies, Spies in Disguise, Ferdinand, The Peanuts Movie and Horton Hears A Who.

Emmy Award winner Jennie Monica, Vice President, Series Production, currently holds the position of co-executive producer on SpongeBob SquarePants. She began her career at Nickelodeon in 1998 on the beloved property and over the years has held many roles on the SpongeBob SquarePants movie and TV series franchise from casting and music supervisor to production manager, line producer and producer. Monica also served as casting and music supervisor on ChalkzoneThe Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, The X’sCatscratchHolly Hobbie & Friends, among other shows.

New Vice President of Production for Nickelodeon Movies, Kara Lord Piersimoni, joined Nickelodeon in 2019 and previously served as a line producer on The Loud House and Rise of TMNT, Prior to Nick, she most recently served as Vice President of Production at Guru Studios, where she ensured creative and financial support of all productions, including feature film, TV series, shorts, commercials, games and new media endeavors. Prior to Guru Studios, she was Senior Director at Sparkhouse Studios/1517 Media Group where she also served as executive producer of the award-winning Dove Seal recipient short films The Story of Christmas and The Story of Easter, and executive producer of Whirl. Lord Piersimoni has also held positions at Disney Feature Animation, Disneytoon Studios, STARZ Animation, Digital Domain Media Group and Warner Animation Group/LEGO.


Originally published: Tuesday, January 26, 2021 at 19:16 GMT.


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