Chris Kirshbaum is a highly regarded animator, teacher, public speaker, and entrepreneur whose work has appeared in 18 feature films, several shorts, and numerous dvd extras and holiday tv specials.
Chris started his career in animation in 1992 working with Bill Melendez as a character layout artist on the TV special “Frosty Returns”. He then was hired by Ted Turner as a special effects assistant for his fledgling feature animation company.
After two films at Turner, DreamWorks hired him to work on their first feature film, Prince of Egypt. That started a working relationship that spanned 18 years, 16 feature films, and numerous other endeavors.
In addition to animating at DreamWorks, Chris was also entrusted with developing new talent in
the studio by being involved in the DreamWorks training department. Outside of the studio, he has taught for 6 years at the online school iAnimate.net, and 7 years at the world renowned Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Hollywood.
His association with Gnomon has also resulted in a live public presentation of animation workflow and process as part of the Gnomon Workshop Live Series, as well as a series of instructional DVDs released by the Gnomon Workshop.
His public speaking has also taken him from Fortaleza, Brazil to Quebec City, and points in between, for presentations ranging from workflow demos to industry survival lectures.
When animation went international, Chris jumped on board. Now leading teams of new talent (and helping to get a fledgling animation studio off the ground) at Cinesite in Montreal, Chris is greatly enjoying his latest challenge in filmmaking.