Disney to Close Robert Zemeckis’ Mo-Cap Studio ImageMovers Digital in 2011 - Blu-ray Forum

GreenScar · 03-13-2010, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Very unexpected news from the Disney camp today: the studio has just issued a press release saying that, after production finishes on Mars Needs Moms, the Robert Zemeckis studio ImageMovers Digital will be closed in 2011.

We don’t have a lot of details on the closing right now, but a statement from Walt Disney Studios president Alan Bergman says it all:

Bob and the entire IMD team successfully built a state of the art studio and produced an amazing film, A Christmas Carol, at a time when the dynamics of the industry are rapidly changing. But, given today’s economic realities, we need to find alternative ways to bring creative content to audiences and IMD no longer fits into our business model.

In other words, the movies from IMD are quite expensive, and if A Christmas Carol is any indication, they’re not making the sort of money the new Disney regime would like. The press release says that a new production deal may be formed to continue work on the Yellow Submarine remake, but I wonder what this really means for that project.

The LA Times reports that 450 people will be laid off as operations at the studio wind down.

I’m not the biggest fan of most of the Zemeckis mo-cap films, but looking at them objectively no one could say that each hasn’t built upon the previous efforts. I couldn’t take the dead eyes of Polar Express, but by A Christmas Carol IMD was producing animation that had a lot of life. Will Zemeckis be able to carry on in the same capacity elsewhere, or will it be up to Cameron, Spielberg, Jackson and others to push mo-cap forward?

Mars Needs Moms, based on the book by Berkley Breathed and directed by Simon Wells, will open on March 11, 2011.

Here’s the full press release, via Deadline:

Quote:

BURBANK, Calif. – March 12, 2010 – The Walt Disney Studios and ImageMovers Digital (IMD) today announced that they will close operations at IMD’s Marin County facility after production is completed on Mars Needs Moms. The IMD facility is expected to be closed by January, 2011.

“Bob and the entire IMD team successfully built a state of the art studio and produced an amazing film, A Christmas Carol, at a time when the dynamics of the industry are rapidly changing,” said Alan Bergman, President of The Walt Disney Studios. “But, given today’s economic realities, we need to find alternative ways to bring creative content to audiences and IMD no longer fits into our business model.”

“I’m incredibly proud of the talented team that we assembled at IMD and the fantastic work they have accomplished,” said Robert Zemeckis, one of the co-founders of ImageMovers Digital. “Their pride and dedication to making quality movies is evident in everything we have produced.”

The Studio is hoping to create a new long-term production deal with Zemeckis and his IMD partners, Jack Rapke and Steve Starkey, which will include the continued development of the Yellow Submarine project.

[IMG]http://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/a-christmas-carol-2-550x230.jpg[/IMG]

This really is too bad IMO

LOTR07 · 03-13-2010, 09:48 AM

didn't see this one coming....

Foggy · 03-13-2010, 11:04 AM

I think Zemeckis should start making real movies, I don't quite see the point of doing them over upon over again

Suntory_Times · 03-13-2010, 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LOTR07

didn't see this one coming....

I did, both beowulf and the latest christmas film underperformed, on top of that the technologies results are significantly less then what was used in Avatar.

BD4ME · 03-13-2010, 12:54 PM

No more motion-crapture films from Zemeckis, how sad...

I was really looking forward to see more zombified celebrities in his films. Though that Yellow Submarine remake is still in production. I hope the Roger Rabbit sequel will just be live action/animation instead of mo-cap/CGI.

EricJ · 03-13-2010, 04:04 PM

Seeing how enthusiastically Disney went out of their way to give wandering Zemeckis a home just before "Beowulf", believe the operative expression is...."TOLD ya!

"

(And y'know, just like it didn't work with Final Fantasy flopping either...a month's pay says we're still going to get dopey neato-poseur discussions about "Mo-cap is so real, it might replace actors someday!

")

Kryptonic · 03-13-2010, 04:28 PM

Good riddance. Make real movies again. I've never understood having Tom Hanks play a CGI Tom Hanks that looks like and sounds like Tom Hanks. Just shoot Tom Hanks. There's a lot of great usages for CGI and Mo-Cap, but Zemeckis' recent films were not.

Q? · 03-13-2010, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

Good riddance. Make real movies again. I've never understood having Tom Hanks play a CGI Tom Hanks that looks like and sounds like Tom Hanks. Just shoot Tom Hanks. There's a lot of great usages for CGI and Mo-Cap, but Zemeckis' recent films were not.

Pretty much what you said. so... +1

vegeta88 · 03-13-2010, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by q!

Quote:

Originally Posted by kryptonic

good riddance. Make real movies again. I've never understood having tom hanks play a cgi tom hanks that looks like and sounds like tom hanks. Just shoot tom hanks. There's a lot of great usages for cgi and mo-cap, but zemeckis' recent films were not.

pretty much what you said. So... +1

+2

EricJ · 03-14-2010, 01:16 AM

Over on some of the animator blogs, they're shaking their heads sadly about the loss of jobs, and about the ability of Zemeckis to have created a domestic CGI studio without having to outsource the work to other countries.

This is not an animation blog, however, and so we're free to say:
HAIL DOROTHY!--THE WICKED WITCH IS DEAD!!!

Propellarhead9 · 03-14-2010, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BD4ME

No more motion-crapture films from Zemeckis, how sad...

I was really looking forward to see more zombified celebrities in his films. Though that Yellow Submarine remake is still in production. I hope the Roger Rabbit sequel will just be live action/animation instead of mo-cap/CGI.

I'm hoping both of those films continue as planned. I will be upset if they get canceled.

fdm · 03-14-2010, 07:10 PM

Yellow Submarine remake. What a scary idea.

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03-13-2010, 09:48 AM	#2
LOTR07 Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Dec 2007 Location:Delaware, USA Home Theater Gallery:50 Blu-ray collection:628 DVD collection:440 Blu-ray reviews: 16 Trading Score:6	didn't see this one coming....

03-13-2010, 11:04 AM	#3
Foggy Blu-ray Grand Duke Top contributor Member since:Dec 2008 Location:UK 4K collection:29 Blu-ray collection:3591 DVD collection:47	I think Zemeckis should start making real movies, I don't quite see the point of doing them over upon over again

03-13-2010, 12:54 PM	#5
BD4ME Active Member Member since:Nov 2009 Location:The Netherlands Blu-ray collection:79	No more motion-crapture films from Zemeckis, how sad... I was really looking forward to see more zombified celebrities in his films. Though that Yellow Submarine remake is still in production. I hope the Roger Rabbit sequel will just be live action/animation instead of mo-cap/CGI.

03-13-2010, 04:04 PM	#6
EricJ Banned Member since:Jul 2007 Location:The Paradise of New England Blu-ray collection:6	Seeing how enthusiastically Disney went out of their way to give wandering Zemeckis a home just before "Beowulf", believe the operative expression is...."TOLD ya! " (And y'know, just like it didn't work with Final Fantasy flopping either...a month's pay says we're still going to get dopey neato-poseur discussions about "Mo-cap is so real, it might replace actors someday! ")

03-13-2010, 04:28 PM	#7
Kryptonic Suspended Member since:Jul 2009 Trading Score:45	Good riddance. Make real movies again. I've never understood having Tom Hanks play a CGI Tom Hanks that looks like and sounds like Tom Hanks. Just shoot Tom Hanks. There's a lot of great usages for CGI and Mo-Cap, but Zemeckis' recent films were not.

03-14-2010, 01:16 AM	#10
EricJ Banned Member since:Jul 2007 Location:The Paradise of New England Blu-ray collection:6	Over on some of the animator blogs, they're shaking their heads sadly about the loss of jobs, and about the ability of Zemeckis to have created a domestic CGI studio without having to outsource the work to other countries. This is not an animation blog, however, and so we're free to say: HAIL DOROTHY!--THE WICKED WITCH IS DEAD!!!

03-14-2010, 07:10 PM	#12
fdm Blu-ray Ninja Top contributor Member since:Nov 2007 Location:Way Out West 4K collection:- Blu-ray collection:- DVD collection:- Digital collection:- iTunes collection:- Prime collection:- Blu-ray reviews:2 Trading Score:3	Yellow Submarine remake. What a scary idea.

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