TeamTO Opens Beijing Office

PARIS & BEIJING -- French CGI studio TeamTO has announced the opening of a new office in Beijing, China, headed by experienced film industry executive Shu Ye. The establishment of a local presence in the Chinese market is TeamTO’s latest significant corporate move, which follows the opening of a second production studio in France in 2008 and a Los Angeles-based office in the U.S. in 2011.

TeamTO’s Beijing office will serve as a conduit between its own studios and established Chinese content companies, to create premium content for global audiences. With 12 years of experience in the film industry and a masters in Film Marketing and Economy from the Sorbonne University, Beijing Office General Manager Shu Ye brings her established specialty in French-Chinese feature film co-production to the new venture.

“I am proud to welcome such a talented person to the heart of TeamTO’s executive team,” commented Guillaume Hellouin, Founder and President of TeamTO. “China is an extremely promising market, and TeamTO’s know-how and experience in producing global content offers significant value in this market, both as a co-producer and as an executive producer.”

Shu Ye’s career began as a sound editor and designer for top Chinese directors such as Tsui Hark, Zhang Yimou, Teng Huatao and Zhang Yibai, contributing to the nomination of Seven Swords and Curse of the Golden Flower for Best Sound at the Hong Kong Film Awards and the Golden Reel Awards. Shu Ye later became an associate at Beijing United Power Films, a Chinese distributor of high-end American and European films including The King’s Speech directed by Tom Hooper. As a producer of films and online series, she also represents several up and coming English-speaking Chinese talent as well as several French film makers.

“It is a real pleasure to have joined the TeamTO group,” added Shu Ye. “TeamTO’s decision to enter the Chinese film market, the second biggest in the world with 6 billion euros in revenue, comes at an ideal moment. Chinese companies are significantly increasing investment in animated films and series, while the government is actively supporting the development of animation co-production.”

TeamTO’s new office in Beijing is the latest in a series of corporate moves prompted by the company’s rapid growth since its launch eleven years ago. Key milestones include the opening of a renewed second studio in Bourg-lès-Valence last year, which doubled TeamTO’s staff and production capacity, following an LA office headed by industry veteran Lenora Hume 5 years ago. As has been the case in LA, the Beijing office will aim to establish creative and financial relationships and projects with leading domestic partners. Notable TeamTO projects that came to fruition as a result of Hume’s presence in the US include Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders and TeamTO’s feature film Yellowbird, featuring top Hollywood talent Seth Green, Elliott Gould, Christine Baranski and Dakota Fanning, and released theatrically in over 35 countries and in video almost worldwide.

TeamTO is known for producing some of the most sophisticated CGI animation in the market such as their own Emmy-winning series Angelo Rules, eOne’s PJ Masks, Disney’s Sofia the First, Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders, and Ubisoft’s Rabbids Invasion.

Source: TeamTO