Genre Various Area served 2 Number of locations 2,115 Type of business Private | Predecessor Radium/Reel FX Founded 1993 Number of employees 350 (2013) | |
Industry Entertainment
Commercial
Post-production
Production Key people Steve O'Brien (CEO, Chairman)
David Ross (President)
Kyle Clark (COO) Products Feature films
Commercials
Special Attractions Headquarters Dallas, Texas, United States Founders Dale Carman, David Needham, Brandon Oldenburg Films produced The Book of Life, Free Birds, Open Season 2, Cirque du Soleil: Worlds A, Open Season 3 Profiles | ||
Reel FX is an American digital studio based in Dallas, Texas and Santa Monica, California. The studio develops and produces award-winning animated films, short form content and virtual reality experiences. Its first animated feature film, Free Birds, was released in 2013 and grossed over $110 million worldwide. Its next film, The Book of Life was also released in 2014 and received several nominations, including Best Animated Feature Nominations from the Golden Globe's, Critics’ Choice Awards, Producers Guild Awards and Annie Awards.
Contents
History
In March 2007, Reel FX merged with Radium, a California-based digital studio that was founded in 1996 by Jonathan Keeton and Simon Mowbray. As part of the merge, the studio re-branded itself in 2010 to Radium/Reel FX, and in February 2012 to Reel FX. Since 2007, Reel FX has been presenting the Texas Avery Animation Award, created by the studio to "celebrate career achievement in animation". The award, which is named after the Texas-born animator and cartoonist Tex Avery, is awarded each year at Dallas International Film Festival in a form of a bronze casting of Avery's Wolf character.
On December 2010, it was announced that Reel FX produced an untitled 3D film with producer Andrew Adamson and Cirque du Soleil. In January 2012, it was announced by Paramount Pictures that it had acquired worldwide rights to the film, now titled Worlds Away directed by Adamson and executive-produced by James Cameron. In October 2012, The Hollywood Reporter revealed Reel FX's connection to the 2012 feature film, Rise of the Guardians. The film is based on Reel FX's short film, The Man in the Moon, directed by William Joyce. It is also based on Joyce's book series, The Guardians of Childhood.
From 2009 to 2013, Reel FX completed its first animated feature film Free Birds. Originally titled Turkeys and scheduled for the release of 2014, but it is pulled back to November 1, 2013. Jimmy Hayward directed the film, which tells a story about two turkeys who travel back in time to prevent their species from being the traditional Thanksgiving meal. In February 2012, the studio announced a new CG-animated film, The Book of Life, directed by Jorge R. Gutierrez and produced by Guillermo del Toro. It is described as a "Romeo and Juliet-style love story set against a Mexican Day of the Dead backdrop." In December 2012, it was reported that the studio has partnered with 20th Century Fox Animation to produce the film, and scheduled for October 3, 2014, but it is pushed back to October 17.
A CG-animated feature film adaptation of Beasts of Burden is set to be produced by Andrew Adamson. In February 2015, Reel FX and Gutierrez announced a multi-year, multi-picture deal. The terms and lengths of it were not immediately disclosed, but the first of the new films was announced as the Untitled Kung Fu Space Western. In December 2015, Reel FX announced more details on WISH Police. This film is directed by Spanish directors Victor Maldonado, Adria Garcia (who also directed Nocturna) and Alfredo Torres who are known as Headless Productions The film is being produced at Reel FX by Kirk Bodyfelt. It is scheduled to release in late 2017 or early 2018. Reel FX also announced that Patrick Hanenberger and Margaret Wuller of The Neuland would lead visual development on the film at Reel FX.