Dallas-based ReelFX is getting serious about feature animation. Last week, they named Aron Warner as the studio’s President of Animation. Warner will oversee the two films that the studio is currently producing: Jorge Gutierrez’s Book of Life, which we wrote about last month, and Turkeys, directed by Jimmy Hayward (Horton Hears a Who, Jonah Hex). More details about Warner’s appointment in the company’s press release:

Reel FX, a fully integrated movie studio that develops and produces both animated films and live action movies, announced today that Aron Warner, the Academy Award-winning producer of the animated blockbusters Shrek, Shrek 2 and Shrek the Third, has joined the growing movie studio as President of Animation.

Warner will oversee and expand Reel FX’s animation slate which already includes the day of the dead-themed project Book of Life (Guillermo del Toro producing/Jorge Gutierrez directing), which will be released in theaters by Fox Animation on October 10th, 2014, Turkeys (Jimmy Hayward directing) which will be released in theaters on November 14th, 2014 by Relativity Media and Beasts of Burden (Warner and Andrew Adamson producing).

Warner said: “Reel FX has the talent, technology and track record to create the highest-quality theatrical animated films for reasonable budgets. Our model allows us to take creative risks and has already attracted world-class filmmakers looking to tell unique and daring stories that appeal to audiences across the world. I am honored to be part of the Reel FX team and look forward to continuing to build upon our slate.”

Steve O’ Brien, Chairman and CEO of Reel FX said: “Aron Warner is one of the industry’s most respected and accomplished animation executives and he brings sustained success, years of experience and deep relationships to overseeing our studio’s growing feature film animation division. We are excited to work with him as we continue to build a studio that produces best in class animated movies.”

Warner and Reel FX have been working together on a variety of projects for the past few years. Warner’s team at Reel FX includes a wide range of producers and executives including Jeff Fierson, Head of Development, Brad Booker, Creative Producer of Reel FX’s Book of Life and Scott Mosier Creative Producer of Reel FX’s Turkeys.

Warner joined PDI/DreamWorks in 1997. During the production of Shrek, Warner also served as the Head of PDI/DreamWorks for two years, overseeing all production and operations for all of the computer animation affiliate’s feature film, commercial and visual effects projects. He first joined PDI as a producer on the computer animated comedy Antz. Before PDI, Warner held the post of vice president of production at Twentieth Century Fox, where he supervised production on such films as True Lies, Independence Day, The Ice Storm, The Crucible, Alien Resurrection, Volcano and the number one blockbuster of all time, Titanic.

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Amid Amidi

Amid Amidi is Cartoon Brew's Publisher and Editor-at-large.

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