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Game Changer
State's Pixofactor gains firm toehold
in video game and intellectual
property development.
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"Hiring local talent and investing local
money into a rapidly growing market will
bring jobs and infrastructure to our local
- Sean Hurwitz
economy. ),
Monica Luoma
Special to the Jewish News
T
he news from Michigan's bleak
economy is not all bad. Some
of it is actually inspiring and
optimistic. The great thing about tough
times is that often it spurs creativity,
tenacity and opportunity. In fact, the
state's dismal economy can be credited
for many people finding or creating
new business opportunities, reinventing
themselves in the process.
That was the case for Sean Hurwitz,
CEO of Royal Oak-based Pixofactor
Entertainment, a full-development stu-
dio specializing in video game, mobile
application development, visual effects
and animation.
Pursuing A Niche
When Hurwitz, 41, and his partners at
Pixofactor launched the company, they
didn't set out to produce films. Instead,
they quickly learned that the digital
intellectual property development indus-
try included in the film tax credit, was
relatively untapped in Michigan.
The potential, as he saw it, was to
develop and monetize entertainment
content across multiple platforms —
such as video game consoles, mobile
phones, tablets, as well as PCs and
Macs. In 2009, he opened PixoFactor
Entertainment.
PixoFactor employs a 25-member
team of programmers, artists, develop-
ers, producers and directors and plans
for 20-40 additional hires this year. Last
year, the company moved into a larger
production studio on Sixth Street in
Royal Oak. With little competition in
the state, and the lucrative tax credit,
Hurwitz sees tremendous growth and
earning opportunity.
"With the paradigm shifts in content
distribution and monetization, we are in
the thick of it here in Michigan',' he said.
"Hiring local talent and investing local
money into a rapidly growing market
will bring jobs and infrastructure to our
local economy"
Last October, Pixofactor made history
Game Changer on page 22
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February 17 2011
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