Karen Rupert Toliver has joined Netflix as vice president of animated film. She is an American film producer who has worked with major movie studios like Walt Disney Animation Studios, Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox Animation. She has been the lead producer in films such as ‘Ferdinand’, ‘Curious George’ and ‘Meet The Robinsons’.
Toliver became popular in 2020 while working for Sony Animated Pictures and winning the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film which she co-produced with Stacey Newton, Monica Young, Mathew Cherry, David Steward and Carl Reed.
This award made Karen Rupert Toliver the First Black Woman to win an Oscar in the animation category.
The movie followed the life of a girl named Zuri, who is faced with the problem of styling her hair for an occasion. She meets her father for help and although he also has no experience with hair styling, he takes on the challenge to learn.
In an interview with WBEZ, Toliver said, “I’ve been in animation for many years and have never been able to work on something so personal to me and about the black family that … hasn’t really been represented in animation.”
Karen Rupert Toliver’s Career Progression
Toliver began her career in Walt Disney Pictures as an assistant and helped with the production of the series, ‘Mighty Ducks’.
Afterwards, she was promoted to Production Executive for Walt Disney Animated Studios where she worked on ‘Meet The Robinsons’ and ‘Chicken Little’.
She joined 20th Century Fox Animation and after ten years and with movies like ‘Rio’ and ‘Ice Age’, she moved to Sony Pictures Animation as Senior Vice President of Creative Development.
Two years later, she became the Executive VP of the same Creative Development and was in charge of acquiring new talent, creative storytelling and authentic intellectual material.
Today, Toliver is the Vice President of Animated Film at Netflix.
According to Variety, She will officially resume in March and work directly with Melissa Cobbs, the VP of the Kids and Family Division- as well as fellow VP Gregg Taylor.
Speaking to Variety, she said, “It has been an absolute dream working with Kristine Belson and her game-changing team at Sony Pictures Animation. The experience has been instrumental in shaping how I approach producing. Storytelling in animation continues to evolve and expand, and I am excited to join the team at Netflix to continue breaking new ground.”
Melissa Cobb also added, “We are thrilled to welcome Karen to Netflix where she will be a key partner in creating our ambitious slate of animated feature films, An executive with exceptional passion for animation, Karen possesses a strong vision for the future of storytelling in the medium and we can’t wait to see it come to life.”
At Sony Pictures Animations, Toliver also worked on “The Mitchells vs The Machines”, the 2021 movie production which was nominated for an Oscar.
Rachael Obadiaru is a writer who specializes in content writing, copywriting, blogging, and fictional storytelling. She is a feminist and an advocate for the inclusion of marginalized groups. She spends her free time creating a nuisance on Twitter while snacking on pringles and snuggling with her cats.
