Cantilever Media Expands Animation Production Team

Independent U.K. production company Cantilever Media, producers of animated features The Amazing Maurice and Bollywoof and the 2D series Badjelly the Witch, is expanding its production team, promoting Carys Rowan to Head of Creative and appointing Darren Chouings as Production Manager.

The announcement swiftly follows Cantilever’s launch of its new U.K. kids and family animated feature
distribution company Kazoo Films, highlighting the company’s expansion and growth plans for 2025
and its slate, including Bollywoof and Badjelly the Witch as well as The Amazing Maurice 2.

Working with Founder and CEO Andrew Baker, Rowan will oversee all creative on Cantilever’s slate of animated projects, with Chouings working alongside managing all productions.

“2025 will be an exciting year for Cantilever Media as we start production on a number of new projects and so we need robust team to support our growth,” said Baker. “Carys has a wealth of experience in creating and producing stunning award-winning content and our slate couldn’t be in better hands with Darren as Production Manager.”

Rowan is a BAFTA-winning multi-platform producer with 20 years’ experience in digital media, specializing in animation, games and children’s content. At Cantilever, she will serve as Head of Creative for the company’s diverse IP slate and is currently producing Badjelly the Witch with Mukpuddy and Sphere for WildBrain and co-producing on the Sky Cinema animated feature Bollywoof alongside Newscope and Goodstory. Rowan has also worked on animated features The Amazing Maurice (Cantilever and Ulysses) and The Canterville Ghost (Space Age Films and Sprout Pictures).

Prior to joining Cantilever, Rowan worked at Plug-in Media, where she produced the award-winning preschool series Tee and Mo for CBeebies/TVO, earning a BAFTA for the musical Help Our Little World. During her time there, she also collaborated with major industry players such as Sesame Workshop, Nickelodeon and the BBC to develop cross-platform children’s IP.

In addition, Rowan has been selected as one of the 2025 mentees for the Women in Film & TV U.K. (WFTV) Four Nations Mentoring Scheme, for a six-month mentorship and peer-to-peer training.

Chouings’ career to date has included a multitude of creative roles spanning animation, contemporary arts curation and production management. Having started his own international arts events program PRISM in 2008, Chouings later took on production management roles at Sheffield Doc/Fest, Sensoria, Lovebytes and Algomech. As an experienced events professional, he is currently Head of Production for The Children’s Media Conference, and Curator of the award-winning children’s media exhibition “Playground.”

Chouings has previously worked for Cantilever Media as an Associate Producer and has supported projects including The Amazing Maurice, Bollywoof and Badjelly. He will now lead production as Production Manager for Cantilever and will be supporting various elements of the animation production pipeline.

www.cantilever.media