VR specialist River Studios announces team from YouTube, Hollywood

Mike Rothenberg

Virtual reality studio, River Studios, has officially launched and announced details of its leadership team, which includes staffers who have worked for the likes of YouTube and Disney.

The LA-based studio was born out of technology venture capital firm Rothenberg Ventures and was founded by Harvard Business School graduate Mike Rothenberg, who takes the CEO role.

Included in the team that joins Rothenberg in LA is executive director Andy Stack, who previously worked as head of creator technology at YouTube Spaces; actor, director and editor Sam Macaroni, who becomes head of production for River Studios LA; and executive producer and director Brinton Bryan, who has worked as a crew member on films such as Into the Wild and Hanna Montana: The Movie.

A team of developers based out of Halifax, Canada is being led by technical director Devin Horsman – the founder and director of Twisted Oak Studios, which was acquired by River Studios last year.

Meanwhile, River Studios is also employing a team of storytellers and creators in San Francisco, including Ewan Johnson, who has worked in the animation department on films such as Toy Story 2, Monsters Inc. and How to Train Your Dragon.

In a statement posted on the company’s website, River Studios said it aims to “push the boundaries of the virtual reality ecosystem in a big way”.

The studio writes, produces, post-produces and develops virtual reality experiences – including live action videos, computer-generated animations and interactive worlds.