Visual effects company Framestore Ltd has appointed Steve Norris as managingdirector of its film interests. Norris will join Framestorein late November after leaving the post he has held for the past nine years, asBritish Film Commissioner with the UK Film Council.

In that role, he had beenresponsible for bringing international productions, such as The Da Vinci Codeand Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, to the UK.

The UK Film Council saidplans were underway to search for Norris' replacement as commissioner.

Framestore has recently worked on films such as the Harry Potter series, Superman Returns, X-Men: The Last Stand andThe Constant Gardener.

William Sargent,Framestore's chief executive, said: "The appointmentof Steve Norris is a major coup for our company and his reputation amongstleading film makers throughout the world, and particularly in the USA, will greatly enhance our ability to achieve ourlong-term ambitions in the global film industry."

Norris added: "This is atime of fast and exciting development in the film industry and Framestore is the perfect place from which to exploit thisnew world."

John Woodward, CEO of the Film Council, said: "We will miss Steve enormously, he has been a truly brilliant Film Commissioner and a terrific colleague. He has been central in bringing a huge amount of film production into the UK over the years and also for steering the US studios and the UK production sector deftly through a very rocky patch last year."