Iceland Welcomes Framestore

Framestore, the digital images company, has opened an office in an unusual location, Iceland.
Under the leadership of Dadi Einarsson, Lead Animation Supervisor and Framestore veteran, a small outpost of talented individuals has recently opened an office just off Reykjavik's Parliament Square.
For the last few months they've been quietly setting up an operation designed to complement Framestore's London output in a variety of ways.
Einarsson's team is part of the Australia project, working with colleagues in London on a huge VFX sequence for the upcoming Baz Luhrmann epic.
William Sargent, Framestore's Joint Chief Executive Officer said: "Framestore is a highly successful company that has been growing pretty steadily for over 20 years.
"Recently we've begun looking at ways in which we might de-centralise some of the work we do. There are many approaches to this, and I'm always interested in exploring original ideas.
"Dadi impressed me as someone with all the necessary initiative, drive and know-how to carry it through."
Einarsson grew up in Iceland with animation in his DNA: "My mother and her partner were both traditional animators," he said.
"So when I was starting out, I borrowed their college notes, attempted to translate them into 3D and produced CG character animation and visual effects for Icelandic and Swedish TV."
Ten years ago, he took the plunge and relocated to London. A peripatetic existence saw him moving from studio to studio in London, including a spell at Framestore working on Dinotopia and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. After a period in New York, Einarsson returned to Framestore in 2006, where his work has included the role of Animation Supervisor on the Academy Award winning VFX for The Golden Compass.
Of his Reykjavik return, Einarsson said: "It felt like the right time to go back home. Iceland has all the ingredients needed for a visual effects and animation studio and there's a huge level of interest in Framestore opening here.
"There is a strong history of film here on the production side, and there are also an amazing number of talented individuals here who have studied animation or worked in visual effects both here in Iceland and abroad. They will thrive on the kinds of projects that Framestore has to offer."
(BMcC)