We’re thrilled to welcome Ron Ames and Jesse Kobayashi to DNEG as In-House Filmmakers!
Having most recently led the delivery of 9,000 shots across multiple vendors for Amazon Studios’ The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, the Emmy-nominated Producers have joined DNEG in Los Angeles.
Ron and Jesse bring over 50 years of combined industry experience to their new roles and will provide filmmaking, production, and technical expertise and advice, working directly with our crews to improve and advance our service offerings, and with our clients to help navigate the digital production process and provide creative solutions to filmmaking challenges.
Throughout his illustrious career, Ron Ames has been involved in every phase of film production, as a First Assistant Director, Producer, VFX Producer, Post-Production Supervisor and as a Producer of Film Technology. Since working on his first feature film, Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator, Ron’s expertise has been integral to more than 20 productions including Avatar, The Departed, Star Trek: Into Darkness and Star Trek: Beyond, and Avengers: Age of Ultron. On Rings of Power, Ron produced all the technology departments, from camera capture to final exhibition, including VFX, post-production and sound.
With over 20 years of experience in the industry, Jesse Kobayashi began as a filmmaker before shifting focus to the integration of creativity and technology. At both Laser Pacific and Warner Bros post facilities, he worked on the transition of dailies from film to digital before overseeing VFX production on over a dozen features and television shows as an executive for Legendary Pictures. As a client-side VFX Producer, Jesse’s credits include Krampus, Warcraft, and Pacific Rim Uprising.
Talking about his new role, Ron said:
“Both Jesse and I have worked with Namit and DNEG on a number of occasions over the years, most recently on Amazon StudiosThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Watching DNEG grow over the last decade to become the biggest player in the visual effects industry has been incredible. There are huge opportunities and efficiencies to be found at the confluence of art-making and film technology, leveraging cloud-based production, game-engine integration, and unlocking the power of metadata, relational database and ontology systems. Jesse and I are excited to bring the benefits of our years of experience to the amazingly talented teams at DNEG and to work closely with filmmakers to rethink the conventions of contemporary production.”
DNEG Chairman and CEO Namit Malhotra added:
“I have always been impressed with the experience, ideas, and clarity of purpose that Ron and Jesse bring to the huge-scale productions that they have managed in the past. From streamlining operations through the deployment of new technologies, to fostering seamless inter-departmental collaboration and promoting a healthy work-life balance for their crews, they have always ensured timely and budget-conscious delivery of their work. In their new roles at DNEG, they will bring the benefits of this experience and knowledge to our in-house teams and will work closely with our clients to unlock new efficiencies and new technologies in the digital production process as we considerably ramp up our operations following the industry-wide disruption in 2023.”
Welcome to the team, Ron & Jesse!
Read more about the news at Variety.