New Feature Animation Studio 'Cinesite Animation' Opens in Canada
The studio is actually an off-shoot of the renowned visual effects house Cinesite which already has offices in both London and Montreal. Cinesite have been in the VFX industry for more than 20 years and recently produced effects for the live-action movie The Revenant, for which they have picked up awards at both the VES awards and the Annies, as well as Oscar nominations.
The new studio- which has financial backing from the Quebec government- is aiming to employ 500 permanent staff to work on animated features by 2020. They are planning on beginning production on nine features over the next five years. Cinesite will also provide services for outside productions.
The first two features have been revealed so far. First up will be Klaus- a film about Father Christmas told from the perspective of a postman- written and directed by Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos. The second film will be inspired by Michael Flatley's stage show Riverdance. The films will both be co-productions, with Spain and Ireland respectively. A teaser for Klaus was released last year, before Cinesite's involvement was announced- check it out below.
This seems like a very ambitious project- nine features in five years is an awful lot, even if they are international co-productions. However, if the plan works out, more animated features being produced outside the major studios can only be a good thing for the industry. We look forward to seeing what this new studio produces (even if we're not exactly overjoyed about the idea of Riverdance, if we're being honest).
[source via variety]
