GREENWICH, CT—Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) today kicked off his 17 Towns in 17 Days tour of Connecticut's Fourth District by visiting Blue Sky Studios, the Academy Award-winning digital animation company based in Greenwich.
“Since moving to Connecticut, Blue Sky Studios has brought hundreds of jobs to Fairfield County and strengthened our region’s position as a leader in the growing digital media industry,” Himes said. “Blue Sky’s investment in Southwest Connecticut and the state’s incentives that attracted the company here have been a win-win for our economy. The creative talents and technological innovation that drive Blue Sky are truly a marvel, and I am thrilled that the company has made its home here in Greenwich.”
Since its founding in 1987, Blue Sky Studios, a division of 20th Century Fox, has created blockbusters including the “Ice Age” movie franchise, “Horton Hears A Who,” “Rio,” “Rio 2,” and “Peanuts,” which is slated for release in November 2015. Since moving to Greenwich from New York in January 2009, Blue Sky has doubled in size and taken an additional 40,000 square feet of office space. The company currently has a team of 500 full time employees, consisting of artists, computer scientists, production personnel, and administration.
Blue Sky Studios participates in Connecticut’s Digital Animation Production Company tax credit program. This program provides tax credits for eligible digital animation production expenses, spent exclusively in the state, to companies which qualify.
During his tour of Blue Sky Studios’ 146,000 square-foot facility, Himes met with artists and computer scientists who are involved throughout the production pipeline, from the early design stage of creating characters through the final rendered images. Each film takes approximately three years to create and involves the work of 300-350 people in the studio.