Moving Picture Company Vancouver, the animation studio that assisted in the redesign of the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movie, has been shut down "effective immediately". According to CBC, an internal email said that "increasing external market pressures in Vancouver and more attractive opportunities in other locations" forced the studio to close.
At its peak, the studio employed more than 800 artists, but more recent figures are significantly lower. MPC's studios across the world will continue to operate. The company has previously been responsible for VFX work on films including Guardians of the Galaxy, multiple live-action Disney remakes, and Detective Pikachu. The Vancouver studio won an Oscar for its work on Life of Pi in 2012.
