Michel Rioux

Background

About Michel Rioux

A leader in the entertainment industry with more than 35 years of experience, Michel has established himself as a trusted partner for some of the world’s largest and most successful entertainment giants. Currently, General Producer - Production, Business & Operations (GP) at Big Lab, NEON’s Global Design Studio, Michel manages and oversees production, operations and business development for all new immersive creations across all mediums and media at Big Lab. His responsibilities include: advising on project feasibility from pitch through to production, building up NEON’s production and operation capabilities, hiring key production staff for new creations, advising on new hires including immersive story directors and designers, creating production budgets and acquiring intellectual property rights. Before joining NEON, Michel was General Manager of the Creation Team at Hanai World, a sprawling, social, mixed reality, free-to-play metaverse spearheaded by visionaries, Guy Laliberté and Alex Kipman. Prior to his arrival at HW, Michel was a key member of several high-profile projects including: Executive Producer for the creation of a new division for Balich Wonder Studios, a live entertainment company located in Milan, Italy; Executive Producer for the development of a new resident casino & resort theatre-show in Japan; Executive Producer on Hommage aux Heros, a sprawling immersive memorial park dedicated to D-Day in Normandie, France; Project Director and Production Director on X – The Land of Fantasy, a Cirque du Soleil show in Hangzhou, China; and Executive Production Director for Dragone Entertainment in China where Michel contributed significantly to the development of the ambitious, cutting-edge Han Show. Over the course of his career with Cirque du Soleil, Michel rose to Senior Production Manager where he oversaw Production Management of CdS shows while participating in the development of CdS’s shows in China. Michel was one of the main architects for Cirque du Soleil’s ZAIA, in Macau, and the hit Las Vegas resident show, Michael Jackson ONE. When he is not travelling the globe, working alongside some of the world’s greatest creators, and overseeing the production of immersive experiences, Michel is collaborating with GFA PYRO, the award-winning, internationally acclaimed, fireworks design company he founded in 1985. Michel volunteers for St. John Ambulance and the Canadian Red Cross. Michel has been a Member of the Board of the Joseph-François-Perrault Foundation since 2018.