Ryan Reynolds & Blake Lively’s Group Effort Initiative Partners With Dimension, DNEG 360 On UK Mentorship Program Rise Up

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively’s Group Effort Initiative has partnered with the studio Dimension and DNEG 360, the recent expansion of Dimension’s partnership with visual entertainment services company DNEG, to launch Rise Up, a new mentorship program offering UK residents from diverse backgrounds in-depth and hands-on professional experience working on set.

Opening August 1, the program will take place at Dimension’s new, multipurpose virtual production complex in London, in collaboration with DNEG 360 and Sunbelt Rentals. During their time there, trainees will be offered the opportunity to meet with prominent production executives, including those working on the upcoming Animal Friends, a starry live-action/animation hybrid feature currently in production at DNEG and co-produced by Legendary Entertainment, Prime Focus Studios, and Reynolds’ production company, Maximum Effort. Each will be provided accommodation and transportation, as well as a stipend.

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Stated Reynolds and Lively, “We are genuinely inspired by the UK’s creative community and proud to partner with Dimension and DNEG 360 on the Rise Up Initiative. Teaming up with best-in-class partners, we’re able to help trainees master cutting-edge virtual production technology and showcase the future of storytelling.”

Remarked Anna Lakshmi Sabapathy, Chief People Officer for Dimension and DNEG 360, “We are incredibly excited to host and sponsor the ‘Rise Up’ program in collaboration with GEI. We have an incredible team of talented staff who are thrilled to share their realtime and virtual production expertise with future trailblazers. The partnership represents our commitment to nurturing underrepresented talent in the entertainment industry and championing authentic stories, now and in the future.”

Added Carl Gist, a producer for Dimension and DNEG 360, “In alignment with our dedication to expand access and foster a more inclusive workforce, we couldn’t be more excited to bring this program to a new generation of diverse talent.”

Reynolds and Lively launched the GEI program in August 2020 to create a pathway for members of underrepresented communities in entertainment to gain real-life work experience. The organization has worked with local community-focused organizations to recruit trainees and is partnering with Dimension and DNEG 360 to ensure financial barriers will not impact Rise Up trainees’ professional development.

Dimension has recently worked on projects like Masters of the Air, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Here. Recent projects for DNEG include Dune: Part Two, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, The Garfield Movie and Furiosa, to name just a few. Indie British productions from Dimension and DNEG 360 set to shoot from this summer onward, as recently announced, include 2040, Campbeltown ’69 and Humanoid (with Cambridge Picture Company). Recently, the companies have also announced a number of sport and live event projects for brands and broadcasters.

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