Pixars Canadian Buzz Halts After Just Three (Light) Years!
Pixar has officially closed their Canadian branch, based in Vancouver, after just three years of studio running. The news makes 100 employees redundant, as Pixar USA refocuses their resources into the California headquarters.
The closure has been made effective immediately, as of Tuesday the 8th of October, a sudden shock , as it has only been 3 years since the mass recruitment drive made famous by Buzz Lightyear holding the candian flag.
The Vancouver studio has been known to create short films for Pixar, notably the Cars short ‘Air Mater’ and Toy Story short, ‘Partysaurous Rex’ which has given new directing talent (also artist, animators) room to prove themselves before bigger productions.
A statement from Pixar, published in Variety magazine, said:
The team at Pixar Canada is incredibly talented and we are so proud of the excellent work we have produced there. However, as we look at the creative and business needs of our studio, we’ve made the decision to refocus our efforts and resources under one roof in Emeryville and will be closing the studio in Vancouver.
Further speculation of why, might be found beyond the statements provided by Pixar- The next Pixar titles are not expected until 2015, with ‘The Good Dinosaur’ pushed a year late and ‘Inside Out’ announced for that year too. These developments leave Pixar with a struggling two year gap of lost cinema revenue, whilst more than three productions are in development at California. Pooling resources may be a realistic way of sustaining the studio whilst keeping it’s independence from the larger Disney machine, which has suffered losses this year from the live action department.
It is however a geographical surprise, as Canada offers film tax-incentives that has drawn studios to the country for years; one of the founding reasons for the establishment of the Canadian Pixar studio back in 2010.
None the less, we are sad to hear of the loss of employment at the small Canadian outpost, and we wish everyone luck in the future.