Last week, Netflix officially opened Netflix Animation Studios (NAS) Vancouver, a 110,600-square-foot space that signals just how serious the streamer is about animation—and about B.C..
The opening was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring a mix of government and industry leaders, including Vancouver’s deputy mayor Sarah Kirby-Yung, Netflix’s chairman of film Dan Lin, and head of feature animation, Hannah Minghella, B.C.’s minister of tourism Anne Kang, and minister of finance, Brenda Bailey.
“This is an exciting new chapter for our studio,” Minghella said at the launch. “Our new Vancouver hub is an investment in the long-term growth of Netflix Animation Studios globally.”
The scale backs that up. More than 450 people are already working out of the Vancouver studio, and the construction of the contributed over $50 million to B.C.’s GDP, according to a recent press statement by Netflix. Once fully up and running, the studio is expected to generate around $100 million in economic impact every year.
The space has been designed as a purpose-built studio that brings together artists, animators and production teams in one place, with a mix of high-tech tools and collaborative workspaces. The goal: make it easier to take a project from early concept all the way through to final production without missing a beat. Netflix’s in-house VFX arm, Eyeline Studios, is expected to join the Vancouver site soon, turning it into a combined animation and visual effects hub.
Alongside its production infrastructure, the studio features casual sitting areas, a foosball table and an expansive patio with sweeping views of the Vancouver skyline. There’s plenty of indoor greenery throughout, as well as larger-than-life murals of the studio’s most iconic characters.
One of the first major projects out of the studio will be Steps, a reimagining of Cinderella told from the perspective of her stepsisters, featuring voices from Ali Wong, Stephanie Hsu and Amanda Seyfried.
“We’re proud of what we’ve created here and even more excited about the work to come,” said Amir Nasrabadi, COO at NAS, pointing to Vancouver’s deep pool of animation talent as a big reason the company chose to expand here.
That talent has already been behind some of Netflix’s recent animated hits, including Leo and Thelma the Unicorn, both of which performed strongly on the platform globally. And animation is just one part of Netflix’s growing footprint in B.C.—live-action productions like Avatar: The Last Airbender and Virgin River have also generated significant economic impact in the province.
