‘Gnomeo & Juliet’ co-producer was most recently working on Illumination Entertainment’s upcoming animated feature ‘Sing’ for Universal Pictures.
Igor Khait
Veteran animation producer Igor Khait died at his home in Los Angeles on Monday, March 28 following a year-long battle with pancreatic cancer, according to a report by Variety. He was 52.
With a career in film and television spanning 25 years, Khait got his start in 1989 at Amblin Entertainment, and eventually worked at many of the industry’s top animation studios, mentoring many others along the way.
Until recently, Khait had been in Paris working as a co-producer on Illumination Entertainment’s upcoming animated feature Sing for Universal Pictures. He also served as co-producer on the Touchstone/Rocket Pictures 2011 animated musical comedy Gnomeo & Juliet, and as story department co-producer on The LEGO Movie for Warner Bros. Other producer credits include Everyone’s Hero from IDT Entertainment/Starz Animation and Disney’s Leroy and Stitch, and Khait also served as associate producer on the Walt Disney Animation Studios-produced Brother Bear, which was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated feature in 2004.
Khait was production manager on Disney’s Atlantis, the Lost Empire, Warner Bros.’ Quest for Camelot and Paramount’s Bebe’s Kids. He worked in production on the CBS animated series Family Dog, executive produced by Steven Spielberg and Tim Burton, and on the animated Christmas special A Wish for Wings That Work, based on the Bloom County comic strip.
A graduate of the fine art program at UC Santa Cruz, Khait received a second B.A. in film graphics and animation from CalArts in Valencia, CA. He is survived by his wife Gayle, daughter Isabelle and son Elias; as well as his mother and sister.
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
