IMAGI Animation Studios Shuts Down

IMAGI, The Animation studio that brought us the CGI animated films TMNT and Astro Boy has shut down. This was a long time coming. During the production of Astro Boy the studio was going through financial problems and when the film utterly failed at the box office with only $23 million world wide it was only a matter of time before the studio closed its doors.  

Imagi International Holdings Ltd. said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it stopped funding its computer animation studio on Feb. 5 "to further preserve its limited liquidity and shareholder value." The studio will ask a Hong Kong court to name liquidators, the statement issued Monday said.

Imagi was in the middle of developing two other another movies called Gatchaman and Gigantor. Not sure what will happen to the projects, but the report says that the studio will continue to develop movie ideas and outsource the actual animation work to China and other countries, where the costs are lower. 

I assume if they are going to continue to develop other projects, then maybe Gatchaman and Gigantor have a chance of survival. 

I think there was some great talent at IMAGI Animation Studios and I think they could have done some amazing things had they picked a better project than Astro Boy.