It seems that Independent animation studio Imagi is on its last legs. The studio was in the middle of creating the new ‘GATCHAMAN’ animation which is most likely out the window now.

Over 300 employees were recently laid off, ultimately resulting in legal blows being traded, but more on that at: www.hkheadline.com

…Imagi recently said it will continue to develop movie ideas and outsource the actual animation work to mainland China and other countries, where costs are lower.

This was quite a set back to the Chinese animation industry. They first released TMNT in 2007 and I felt they did a decent job. Last years animation was Astro Boy which was an unfortunate box office flop. Even though the studio was not at the level of say, Pixar, Imagi did have a good deal going for itself in terms of talent. What does this hold for the future of animation in China? Hopefully something positive in the coming new year…

-Raving Lunatik

Tags: Astro Boy, Chinese Animation, Gatchaman, Imagi, TMNT
Posted in Blog