It’s All About the Action for Divya D’Souza and Her Work on Hit Flick ‘Pixels’

Divya D’Souza wanted to be a producer simply because she loves movies. For this Canadian filmmaker, every twist and turn in her life brought her just where she needed to be. She takes her diverse background as an Indian immigrant and Canadian citizen, as well as being a strong female, and brings it into her work, right at the heart of the filmmaking process. 

D’Souza’s commendable work ethic and raw talent have allowed her to rise to the top of the Canadian film industry, and she is a recognized name in the United States, working with all-stars such as Colin Farrell and Kate Beckinsale in Total Recall and Adam Sandler and Chris Columbus in Pixels.

“I really love the body of work Adam Sandler has done, and also the director Chris Columbus. Plus, I greatly respect that they each own their own production company, Adam’s Happy Madison and Chris’s 1492 Pictures,” says D’Souza.

Pixels is a sci-fi action, telling the story of when aliens misinterpret video feeds of classic arcade games as a declaration of war and attack the Earth in the form of the video games. The story was another selling point for D’Souza, who liked that the main characters were childhood friends coming together. And as a big fan of arcade games herself, she knew it would be a fun project to be a part of. 

“It felt great working on something with a new twist that I hadn’t exactly seen before do so well. Also, the merging of two different genres, comedy and action, works so well,” says D’Souza.

With D’Souza’s expertise in time management, scheduling and problem solving, she was an asset in making the film the success it is today. She ensured everything moved along as scheduled, worked with the many guest actors on making sure they were on time and ready to shoot, and worked closely with the cast and crew confirming everyone had what they needed. 

“The cast was fantastic along with the director Chris Columbus. I also really loved working with the producers from Happy Madison and from 1492. They are very knowledgeable producers who have worked in the industry for numerous years successfully. The producers from 1492 were Academy Award nominated for the movie they produced, The Help,” she says.

Pixels was released theatrically by Columbia Pictures (via Sony Pictures Releasing) in the United States on July 24, 2015, in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D formats. It grossed over USD$244 million worldwide against a production budget of between $88 million and $129 million. It is still making people laugh, available to stream on Netflix in 190 countries around the world.

D’Souza is proud to have made such an impact on this popular film and thrilled that she could impress her seasoned crew.