Internal email reveals July 5 closure date, attributing the decision to the industry-wide decline in production following the SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023.
UPDATED June 20, 2024: AWN has confirmed that VFX company Framestore will be closing its Vancouver facility effective July 5, 2024. The news was first announced in an internal email sent to staffers, and was confirmed in a similar statement shown below.
The decision attributes the closure to the industry-wide decline in production following the SAG-AFTRA strikes in the latter half of 2023.
The Vancouver facility, which was acquired as part of Framestore’s purchase of Method Studios in 2020, has been a significant part of the company’s global operations. The studio was integrated into Framestore’s global pipeline, bringing valuable talent and resources. However, despite the high-quality work produced by the Vancouver team, challenging market conditions have led to this difficult decision.
The internal email emphasized that while no new projects will be initiated out of Vancouver, a smaller team will remain to handle ongoing projects. Framestore expressed its commitment to supporting the affected employees by offering open roles in other studios and working with recruitment teams to find new opportunities within the industry.
Read the full message below:
Dear colleagues,
We are very sad to let you know that we will be closing our Vancouver office as a standalone studio from the 5th of July. This means that we will no longer be running any new projects out of Vancouver, although we will be keeping a smaller team there working on projects currently going through our other sites.
This has been a really difficult decision that we have had to make as a result of the industry-wide fall in production post the SAG-AFTRA strikes in the second half of 2023.
We’re incredibly sorry to be taking this action, and we’re sure everyone appreciates that our priority is with the Vancouver team. We are very proud of the exceptional work that the talented team has consistently produced over many years. This decision has nothing to do with their creativity and commitment, which has been outstanding, it is only a reflection of the market conditions we face.
Wherever possible, we will of course be looking to offer open roles in our other studios. In addition, the recruitment team will be working closely with those affected to try and find new work by reaching out to our contacts in the industry.
Here is the full statement confirming the news:
Framestore has made the difficult decision to close our studio in Vancouver, effective from the 5th July 2024. The industry-wide slowdown in content production following the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes of 2023 has led to the need to consolidate our global footprint for Film & Episodic work across our other studios.
We understand the impact of this decision and wherever possible we will offer positions in our other sites to those affected. Alongside this we will also keep some colleagues to support the slate of projects going through our other studios in 2024 and 2025.
The Vancouver team is incredibly talented and has produced exceptional work over many years. This decision has nothing to do with the team’s creativity or commitment, which is always outstanding; it is only a reflection of the market conditions. Our recruitment team will help our Vancouver colleagues to try and find new work, reaching out to industry contacts.
Framestore will continue to offer our Film & Episodic work from our Studios in London, Montréal, Melbourne, Mumbai, New York and Los Angeles.
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
