Silver Spoon augments their real-time animation and virtual production capabilities with new production team hires. The appointments follow the studio’s plans to expand operations to Los Angeles in addition to their New York base, as the company continues to grow and innovate in real-time production. The virtual production boom during the pandemic saw Silver Spoon support projects such as the Super Bowl, CBS’s March Madness, and Fox’s avatar singing show ‘Alter Ego’.
Tao Li joins Silver Spoon as its director of technology and innovation after over a decade’s experience in audiovisual programming. After starting out in technical programming roles on cruise ships, Tao then worked across the board in entertainment, from cultural establishments such as the MET Museum and theatre productions in Broadway to audio-visual (AV) rental companies. Before joining Silver Spoon, Tao worked under Lucid Creative as the Director of Technical Productions, mounting concert shows with artists like Madonna, Shakira, Fleetwood Mac, and Childish Gambino. Drawing from technical capabilities across visual mediums, Tao will ensure that Silver Spoon remains cutting-edge in its implementation of new technologies across their real-time productions.
Discussing his new post, Tao said: “I’m excited to be joining Silver Spoon and diving deeper into the emerging industry of virtual production and real-time content. I believe Silver Spoon’s work will continue to set us apart as industry leaders while developing new capabilities and technologies – and hope to deliver some industry firsts in the process!”
Silver Spoon’s new lead systems designer, Matthew Houstle, joins the team after a decade in the live entertainment industry. Having worked as a disguise programmer on many award-winning Broadway shows, Matthew’s project highlights in his career include Beetlejuice: The Musical, and recently working on projection mapping the Brooklyn Bridge for a New York City Covid Memorial Ceremony. Before joining Silver Spoon, Matthew recently worked as an AV Technologist designing AV systems at NBBJ | ESI Design. In the new role, Matthew’s aim is to expand Silver Spoon’s capacity in audio-visual entertainment in an exciting emerging strand of the industry.
Matthew stated: “We are in a magical time of innovation and expansion in the augmented reality space, and Silver Spoon is right at the front of it all. I’m excited to grow and learn with Silver Spoon, and contribute my skills, ideas, and passion to this world.”
Dan Pack, managing director at Silver Spoon, commented on the recent growth: “With increasing demand for innovative virtual production elements in previously traditional broadcast sectors, Silver Spoon aims to lead at the forefront of new technologies and content creation. This expanded team is just a glimpse at how we are maximising both our technological and creative delivery, and we’re looking forward to not only seeing how the industry develops, but pushing that development independently.”
