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"What is it to work with love? Work is love made visible” we hear as we glimpse a couple rising in unison from the fruits of their labor. This scene from the animated feature film The Prophet, based on Kahlil Gibran’s celebrated work, could have well represented the founders of Bardel Entertainment Inc, a leading animation services provider in North America that contributed to the success of the movie.  From the time Delna Bhesania and husband Barry Ward started Bardel (the name was derived by conjoining the first syllable of their first names) 30 years ago they have steered their team with passion and innovation.
Over the years they have changed location — what started in a spare bedroom has progressed to three state-of-the-art studios, two in Vancouver and one in Kelowna, Canada with a capacity for over 700 employees; added dimension — moving from 2D to 3D (and even experimenting with 4D); and earned a reputation — as a full-service animation studio concurrently providing services for diverse US partners: Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, Disney, Warner Bros, and Cartoon Network — Adult Swim. Besides animation, whenever required they do storyboard (a series of drawings or pictures depicting changes to scenes and actions for movies, etc), design, art direction. Their current production slate includes award-winning series such as Dinotrux (Emmy 2016), All Hail King Julien (Emmy 2015), Puss in Boots, VeggieTales, Rick and Morty, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Jake and the Never Land Pirates, Teen Titans Go! and Angry Birds Blue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Conferred the Outstanding Zarathushti Entrepreneur of the Year award by the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce three months ago in Hong Kong, Bhesania commented in her email responses to Parsiana, "There is a very strong entrepreneurial spirit in the community. From what I have seen growing up and what I recently experienced when I was in Hong Kong, we Parsis forge our own path. This seems to run deep in us from our ancestral roots.”
It was Delna who convinced Barry to launch Bardel after attending a two-day course on "Visualize Your Future Career” wherein she had visualized herself opening an animation company. Looking for a career change after assisting children at camps and working for an ice rink, she had no exposure to the animation business then. Barry who was in the animation line thought it was "a crazy idea” to open a company in Vancouver considering that all the work was on the east coast. But with her determination, she secured her first assignment as a cel painter (celluloid artist working on 2D visuals). Using their savings of $ 2,500, buying a Xerox machine and gradually gaining trust and confidence in their ability to execute assignments, they were able to win over clients by delivering on their promises. Bardel Animation Coloring House opened its doors in 1987 with short films for Spike & Mike’s Animation Festival and commercials for Marv Newland’s International Rocketship. 
Starting as a small family business, making hand-crafted animation, they evolved into a digital studio and progressed to form their own technology department which designs their proprietary software  that gives them a headstart in animation. Delna, as the chief executive officer of the company, manages the studios’ corporate affairs, production and business development. Barry’s forte as president is to retain key relationships with major clients like DreamWorks, Nickelodeon, Disney and Warner Bros, as well as source and develop new business opportunities and strategic partnerships for the company.
It took Parsiana over two weeks to get Delna’s responses by email as she was tied up with Kidscreen, the world’s leading kids’ entertainment industry conference in mid February. "It’s a major hub for networking where Bardel meets with potential clients. The conference she’s attending is very busy, usually with meetings booked back to back,” we were informed by Ashley Evans, community and communications manager at the company. The trailer to Hanni and the Wild Woods, which Bardel had helped develop, was shown at Kidscreen, noted Evans. Whilst awaiting Delna’s personal inputs we were sent background information on the company and its founders and recommended to watch a 2015 interview with Delna by Accelerate Okanagan, a leading business promoter, headquartered in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, for tech companies in the startup or growing phases.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bardel is the only studio simultaneously working on feature films, prime time series, kids and preschool television, as well as projects for SVOD (subscription video on demand) and VOD (video on demand) platforms, states their website. Referring to their exponential growth, Delna admitted that "the hardest thing was realizing you can’t do it all.” Their core business being animation, they left other things like distribution and gaming to their partner firms. Once she learnt to delegate it "gave me the bandwidth to keep growing the company,” she acknowledged. Determined to "maintain a corporate culture that would make good people want to work for you,” Delna summed up, "We work hard, play hard. We teach, guide, mentor. We are very respectful of all people we work with. We tend to be kind. We want to be the change…and lead by example.” Cereals on Monday, popsicles on a hot day, a multipurpose staff room where one can do yoga, a bean bag room... are just some of the relaxation avenues offered to their hardworking staff at Bardel.
Considering technology "a great enabler,” Delna pointed out that with the ready access to information, everyone instantly knows at what stage the production is at. Gone are the days when they were dependent on paper to keep track of the production on Excel sheets. Relieved that now they "don’t have to cut down a little forest” for each production, she says she was disheartened when she learnt that their dependence on power to run their computers was not so environmental friendly either!
When commissioned by DreamWorks to work on Prince of Egypt, during the making of this biblical epic "we forged our studio’s first commandment: ‘Thou shalt not deliver bad animation,’” proclaims their website. Among the other projects they did for DreamWorks was the film Joseph, King of Dreams and DreamWorks’ last 2D hand drawn feature entitled Sinbad. At the turn of the millennium their artists progressed to 3D techniques and by 2014 had reached new heights with The Prophet that was released at the Toronto International Film Festival.
"Working at Bardel has been amazing. I’m so impressed with the animators at that studio, and with everybody really, not just the animators. They were an incredible crew and they were also directed and run by incredible people. There was so much creative intelligence that went into this project ... I’m just so proud of what we all put together,” lauded The Prophet director Roger Allers who had earlier directed The Lion King.
"I would advise any young Parsis to go into the field of animation as it is growing around the world. We have many people working in the company who have come over from India,” conveyed Delna. Among her trusted workforce is Sherna Udwadia (née Ginwalla) who has been with Bardel for over 20 years since the time she migrated from Bombay. "Sherna works in accounting and when the company was small, she was my right hand in that area. She has also been instrumental in providing a sense-of-community for the staff.”
Delna appreciates that "Zoroastrianism has provided a community that by example has been very nurturing and supportive of us… I was brought up with strong Zoroastrian values that have guided me throughout my life.” Bombay born Delna was brought to Edmonton by her grandmother Tehmi in 1966 when she was two years old. Her parents had settled in Edmonton six months prior. Mother Sheraz worked as secretary for the Royal Bank and father Behram who was originally in the Navy, worked for a while as an engineer on a shipping line and later served the government, looking after passports on the west side of Vancouver. Younger sisters Tanya and Anita were born in Canada and it was Tehmi who helped bring up the children.
"My mother has been a strong influence in our lives making sure we celebrate every festival and holiday... My parents pray every day. Their involvement in the Vancouver Parsi community definitely influenced my two sisters and me when we were growing up. They also host annual prayers for extended family and friends. Barry and I had a Zoroastrian priest perform our marriage ceremony and both our girls have had their navjotes (performed)… And, in all our businesses and homes, we have had a jashan performed and invited our senior staff and family and friends to attend,” reveals Delna.  
Known to be good at multitasking, Delna acknowledged, "Running our own business afforded us the flexibility to be there for our daughters when they were growing up; and having the support of my family and Barry played a very large role in this.” She further added, "We were surrounded by good friends who helped look after the girls when we had to travel. It takes a village to bring up children and we were very lucky to have ours.”
Twenty-four-year-old Zoe has completed her Bachelor of Science, double majoring in marine biology and sustainability from Dalhousie University in Halifax. While assisting at the family company and volunteering at Vancouver Aquarium, she is working towards a career in marine biology and conservation. Nineteen-year-old Zara who attends Capilano University has a background in figure skating and is hoping to pursue a career in kinesiology (the study of the principles of mechanics and anatomy in relation to human movement) after her graduation.
"Both girls have grown up very involved with Bardel Entertainment and have worked on and off for the business while also pursuing their own passions and career goals. Seeing their mother build the company from the ground up and take on such an entrepreneurial position has allowed them to develop a great sense of appreciation for animation and the arts, but more importantly, it has also instilled in them the aspiration to succeed on their own, in other fields,” states Delna. 
Determined "to stay positive and relevant,” Delna advises those on the threshold of their careers: "Just get your toe in the door, no matter what you have to do.” To upcoming entrepreneurs, she counsels, "Stay true to your idea and persevere through all the odds because it will pay off in the end.”