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(CartoonBrew) MPC, Studio behind ‘The Lion King,’ visual effects and the Sonic redesign Shuts Down Vancouver Studio

Sagadego17

Sagadego17

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
6,393





Visual effects powerhouse MPC (Moving Picture Company) has shut down its studio in Vancouver, Canada effective immediately. The company employed over 800 vfx workers at one point, though its current staff was far smaller. It is not clear at this point how many people are affected by the shutdown.

MPC Vancouver's employees were told of the shutdown during a meeting this morning. A letter was also sent out that cited "increasing external market pressures in Vancouver and more attractive opportunities in other locations" as the reason for the shutdown. The full text of the letter, which was posted online by an anonymous person, can be read below.
 
Stat

Stat

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,168
Wow. This close to the holidays too.

And it sucks that basically it's like "Yeah, we'd rather outsource this on the cheap and you are all expendable".
 
PeakPointMatrix

PeakPointMatrix

Member
Oct 25, 2017
19,090
Before people go blaming Sonic for this, the VFX industry is basically a clusterfuck living paycheck to paycheck in a race to the bottom to be the lowest bidder for big-name blockbusters. It's unsustainable and an incredibly fucked up practice that puts thousands of artists livelihoods at stake.
 

Deleted member 50193

User requested account closure
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Dec 3, 2018
193
Bad enough that these workers already get reamed without this shit being pulled on them before Christmas. Hopefully they are able to find some work quickly
 
sirap

sirap

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,210
South East Asia
I feel for all the folks affected by this. I went through the same thing when Rhythm & Hues closed down and it just broke me. The VFX industry is a mess.
 
Gentlemen

Gentlemen

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,521
We've all put in extreme hours wrapping two infamous projects in the last couple of months. We've done multiple weeks without a day off, regular 17+ hour shifts to the point that most of us are seriously sleep deprived and are suffering still. We've worked really fucking hard to get this work out the door for MPC, and I'm genuinely ashamed that they are happier prioritising their profit margins and tax incentives over the insane talent and commitment of hundreds of dedicated VFX artists in Vancouver. I honestly feel insulted, like I've given MPC my all and in return they gave me the finger.
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One of those two projects is unquestionably Sonic the Hedgehog. So to the claims that it was done without causing anybody to crunch:

 
Aztechnology

Aztechnology

Community Resettler
Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
14,138
This is why I transitioned out mid degree in it. Friends graudating earlier, in industry and the state of game and film industry in this area. Unstable or contract based work, constant moving (on average every two years). Obscene requirements etc. Just awful.
 
Ether_Snake

Ether_Snake

Banned
Oct 29, 2017
11,306
They are moving to other cities, they mention Toronto and Montreal. Cost of life is likely too high in Vancouver, causing upward pressure on wages. Sucks for the workers, hope they find a new place.
 
BarringGaffner

BarringGaffner

Member
Nov 11, 2017
2,249
Ether_Snake said:
They are moving to other cities, they mention Toronto and Montreal. Cost of life is likely too high in Vancouver, causing upward pressure on wages. Sucks for the workers, hope they find a new place.
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MPC fired a ton of people in Montréal as well. 70% or so.

The reality is unfortunately they don't have work, and the management is to blame.
 
Xun

Xun

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,319
London
The VFX industry is vile.

Hopefully they can all land on their feet.

I trained as an animator, but there's no way I'd go into the VFX industry.

Industries more based on animation seem more stable though, even if the artists still aren't paid and recognised as they should.
 

Deleted member 9317

User requested account closure
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Oct 26, 2017
9,451
New York
inguef said:
Thats your conclusion?
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That's my initial reaction. My current reaction is that we need stronger job security for animation studios, relocation options for employees if the office moves to a more affordable city, better union, and less crunch. I'm sure the execs cashed out fairly nice while the rest of them were awarded pizza and drinks.

I'm open to learn more about the realities of the industry, but from what I've seen the animation department is disposable at its worse.

Merry Christmas to them all who worked 16+ hours under the guise of bonuses at the end of the year.

And Merry Christmas to Disney who made bank on The Lion King, and to all the execs who made them redo the work on Sonic that they probably fucked up in the first place.

Hollywood can't exist without VFX department, so treat them equally.
 
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Titik

Titik

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,490
That's fucked up. This is the same 'industry trend' that caused the Marvel movies to have shitty cg.
 
cognizant

cognizant

Member
Dec 19, 2017
13,755
My buddy worked at the London office for a while before jumping ship, morale was pretty low. The industry is really unstable, not the first time he's jumped ship.

He worked in the LA office of a VFX house and the difference in work culture with the UK was so stark he couldn't manage a year. Told me one guy there had a heart attack due to overworking.
 
nanhacott

nanhacott

Technical artist
Verified
Oct 27, 2017
406
Jesus. Vancouver's been going through a massacre for years now, I hope all those people find other employment. Though I'd imagine a lot will have to leave the city.
 

Deleted member 6056

Oct 25, 2017
7,240
ZackieChan said:
The VFX industry is a shit show
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Everytime I feel like maybe if I rebuilt my portfolio while working in my new field I could get back into cg and concept stuff and leave industrial work I am reminded of why the most I should strive for is to remain independent where I set my own prices and rules.

All art industries are horrible. No one has security, the hours are shit, producers are generally clueless bullies at many places and no artist is paid what a specialized skillset that takes a lifetime to achieve should be paid. I'll continue to make what I want how I want and live with my works being small scope jobs thanks. It's not worth starving and losing my home constantly to jump back in.
 
SinCityAssassin

SinCityAssassin

Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,172
aasoncott said:
Jesus. Vancouver's been going through a massacre for years now, I hope all those people find other employment. Though I'd imagine a lot will have to leave the city.
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I wonder if moving into game development could work out for at least some of them. For one reason or another, the tax incentives for growing game development jobs in Vancouver is lucrative.
 
Umbrella Carp

Umbrella Carp

Banned
Jan 16, 2019
3,265
Worked them to the bone to fix Sonic despite the fact we know the movie is gonna suck anyway, then immediately lay them off near christmas when the work is done. I would be livid.
 
jett

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,657
Shameful. They literally made a 1.65 billion grossing movie and they're all getting fired.
 
Paquete_PT

Paquete_PT

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
5,328
The vfx industry is very problematic. I remember reading about it a few years ago. The crunch and work instability seems to be even worse than gaming. It's ridiculous what studios demand from these companies and what they're willing to give back.
Also, to all those being so loud about the original Sonic design: it has consequences. I know most meant no harm, but it's problematic when people get so angry and violent towards artists. The design was probably a decision of a few on request from someone from the studio, it gathered an internet mob and the repercussions will ruin hundreds of christmases.
 
Keyframe

Keyframe

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,728
davepoobond said:
shitty companies gets shut down all of the time, don't they? usually keeping them around isn't a collective good, and people say its good all of the time when retail stores shut down cause they suck or whatever. Not sure what's different here. Should they have stayed in business and continued to exploit their employees?
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Sorry I misunderstood your other post. I agree it is better they shut down and hopefully force a change for the better. It is terrible for the artists who lost their job but such is life in the vfx industry, nothing is ever permanent or stable.
 

Deleted member 48897

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 22, 2018
13,623
I think if they're saying the Sonic redesign did not cause the studio to crunch they're technically correct, because I would say that they are correct that very little work was done with the original model beyond the trailer scenes.

This is of course different from saying that the studio did not crunch. Obviously they did, regularly (can you really call that "crunch" and not "long-term exploitation of labor" though?) but they would have done that no matter what the deal with the Sonic movie ended up being.

Anyway times like this I wish I'd saved the "it's crunch time" panel from one of the early Archie Knuckles miniseries issues.
 
GMM

GMM

Member
Oct 27, 2017
5,483
Fuck the VFX industry and fuck the movie industry in general, it's a race to the bottom to overwork and underpay the staff responsible for millions of dollars in revenue for blockbusters like The Lion King.

It's especially shameful how little attention these situations get and how little we as an audience care for the people bringing a little joy into our world.
 
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