With an eye to bolstering its animated IP, Vancouver-based Thunderbird has appointed Matthew Berkowitz to the newly created position of head of development, Atomic Cartoons.
Based in Thunderbird’s L.A. office and reporting to Atomic president Jennifer Twiner-McCarron, Berkowitz will be tasked with developing and expanding the company’s slate of original IP and coproductions.
Berkowitz previously spent seven years with Arc Productions, where he most recently held the role of director, creative and business development. He has also worked at Starz Animation, Film Roman and Strike Entertainment.
Among Atomic Cartoons’ recent projects are Beat Bugs, which the Vancouver-based animation house coproduces with Australia- and U.S.-based production company, Grace: A Storytelling Company and Sydney-headquartered Beyond Screen Production. The second season of the Canada/Australia copro is set to bow on Netflix internationally on Nov. 18.
Thunderbird earlier this month inked a first-look deal with Skybound North, a L.A.-based multimedia company led by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and executive producer David Alpert. The deal gives Thunderbird an early look at both animated and non-animated projects being developed by Skybound. The L.A. company recently opened a Vancouver office, appointing former Rainmaker Entertainment president Catherine Winder to lead the company’s operations in the city.