Mediawan-owned ON Animation Studios, the Montreal-based banner whose credits include “Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie,” “The Little Prince” and “Playmobil the Movie,” has shut down, Variety has confirmed.
ON Animation Studios, which was launched by French producers Aton Soumache (“Little Nicholas”) and Dimitri Rassam (“The Count of Monte Cristo”) in 2012, was acquired by Mediawan five years later. The company quickly became a key animation studio in Montreal and attracted talented animators from overseas, boosted by a pipeline of projects based on famed IP’s such as the blockbuster “Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie” which ranks as one of the most-watched French animated films worldwide; and “The Little Prince,” which played at the Cannes Film Festival and won a Cesar Award, as well as nod from the British Academy Children’s Awards.
ON Animation Studios was also one of the several companies that was able to tap into Quebec’s attractive tax rebate which turned the region into a hotbed for animation and drew Hollywood and European productions. But that all changed when Quebec’s conservative government restricted the province’s tax scheme with a 65% cap on eligible expenses for international films which resulted in a 28% cut in tax credits, as of May 2024.
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“Amid the changes in our industry, ON Animation Studios is ceasing its activities. It is sad to say goodbye to a team as incredible, talented, and skilled as ours. We will deeply miss the joy and excitement of creating outstanding films alongside such remarkable people and partners,” said ON Animation in a statement posted on its Linkedln page.
“We are grateful to have had the opportunity to do what we love for so many years while remaining true to ourselves. The way we shared, learned, and grew together, and the respect and care we showed one another, were as essential as the stories we told and the values they embodied,” the company added.
Mediawan, meanwhile, told Variety that the “company will continue developing and producing animated feature projects through its Paris-based outfit Mediawan Kids & Family and Miraculous Corp, and will collaborate with animation studios in different locations, on a case-by-case basis, depending on the source of financing and talent attached.” Miraculous Corp, is a recently-launched joint venture between Mediawan and Zag, the animation studio behind “Miraculous” founded by Jeremy Zag.
ON Animation’s folding is far from being an isolated case. Earlier this week, a giant in the world of VFX, Technicolor – which hires thousands of visual effects workers in countries including the U.S., UK, Canada and India — announced it was shutting down. Technicolor encompasses VFX giant MPC (“Mufasa,” “The Lion King”), commercial VFX brand The Mill, Mikros Animation and Technicolor Games.