John Kahrs, the former Pixar/Disney animator and director who won a Best Animated Short Film Oscar for Paperman in 2013, has joined Not To Scale’s newly opened Los Angeles office for exclusive commercial representation.
Kahrs has focused on animation for his entire professional career, beginning at Blue Sky Studios in New York in 1990. Kahrs moved to California in 1997 to join Pixar, where he worked as an animator on films including A Bug’s Life, The Incredibles and Monsters, Inc. In 2007 Kahrs relocated to Southern California and became part of the revitalization of Disney Feature Animation. At Disney he transitioned to a leadership role, working as animation director on Tangled. Kahrs went on to direct Paperman, using a ground-breaking hybrid technique that merged the best of 2D and 3D animation. The short went on to win the studio its first Best Animated Short Film Academy Award since 1969.
Kahrs’ talent for creating emotional, multi-layered and beautifully realized stories shines through in Paperman. The CG/hand-drawn animation hybrid tells the story of a young man working in New York whose life changes after a chance encounter with a beautiful girl on the train.
Most recently, Kahrs completed an animated film for the ride-share company Lyft. Titled June, the seven-minute short follows the story of a lonely, elderly widow in Chicago whose Lyft ride inspires her to become a rideshare driver and ultimately transforms her life. With over 7.5 million views on YouTube, Kahrs’ film demonstrates an ingenious use of color, light and shadow in a dynamic geometric world, again combining 2D and CG, with original, captivating character design and a moving soundtrack that draws you into June’s world.
Not To Scale is introducing Kahrs to the commercial industry, looking to bring his expertise to original and engaging branded content.
“I’ve always admired great commercials,” said Kahrs. “They are marvels of efficient storytelling and expert craftsmanship. To be honest, they are a huge inspiration for so much of my work, which is why I’m excited to be a part of Not To Scale and their new creative team here in Los Angeles. I think it’s a great fit. I’m eager to collaborate and create something special with this talented group of people.”
Dan O’Rourke, founder/EP at Not To Scale, said Kahrs “has that rare ability to create beguiling, heart-warming films and stories that continue to reward the audience long after viewing.”
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More