Ramsey Naito has been named President of Nickelodeon Animation. Naito will report to ViacomCBS Kids & Family President Brian Robbins, who announced the appointment. “Ramsey has led the transformation of our Animation Studio through the combination of impeccable creative vision and on-point business instincts, and her appointment to President reflects the scope of talent and soul she brings to our organization,” Robbins said.
In her new role, Naito oversees the network’s animation content across all formats and platforms, including linear, digital, TV movies, theatrical motion pictures, and SVOD. Based in Nickelodeon’s Burbank, California studio, she joined Nickelodeon in 2018 and has since overseen a large scale studio of animation content and production in scale and creativity. “In very short order, she has re-energized and rebuilt our animation teams while bringing in a string of new talent, storytellers, artists, production teams, and voice actors to elevate Nick’s overall animation output and leadership position even further," Robbins said.
In 2019, Naito oversaw the network’s multi-year output deal with Netflix to produce original animated feature films and television series, based both on the Nickelodeon library of characters as well as all-new IP for kids and families globally. This deal marked an expansion of the existing relationship between the companies.
Naito has played a crucial role in creating new projects, gathering talented creatives, and strengthening key partnerships. She manages the day-to-day operations of Nickelodeon’s current series and development slate, overseeing the network’s key franchises including "SpongeBob SquarePants," "The Casagrandes," "The Loud House," "Baby Shark," "Blue’s Clues & You!," "Santiago of the Seas," the upcoming "Rugrats" reboot and the recently announced original series "Middlemost Post."
Naito has brought in more than 500 new employees across dozens of animation productions, and since employees began working remotely in March, over 150 new positions have been filled with studio productions operating virtually at 100%. Before Nickelodeon, Naito oversaw production on Paramount Pictures’ upcoming theatrical Sponge on the Run, slated to debut on CBS All Access early 2021.
Some of the projects Naito has contributed to include “Star Trek: Prodigy” from Nickelodeon and CBS Television Studios, book adaptation “Real Pigeons Fight Crime,” produced by James Corden and Ben Winston, “Big Nate,” “Tiny Chef,” in partnership with Imagine Kids+Family; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theatrical motion picture in partnership with Point Grey Pictures’ Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver, helmed by Jeff Rowe, and "PAW Patrol: The Movie" targeting a 2021 release; and the first-ever SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff “Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years.”