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Reel FX Animation (Reel FX), formerly known as Reel FX Creative Studios and Reel FX Entertainment, is an American computer animation and visual effects studio based in Dallas, Texas, with offices in Hollywood, California, and Montreal, Quebec. Known for its multiple projects on animated films/series and visual effects for live-action films.
Key Information
Logo used since 2023
Formerly
Reel Magic (1993–1995) Reel FX Creative Studios (1995–2020) Reel FX Animation Studios (2020–2023)
The studio primarily produces animated features, short films, and television series. Among them is the studio's first original animated feature film, Free Birds, released in 2013. A year later, The Book of Life was released. The film received several nominations, including Best Animated Feature Nominations from the Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice Awards, Producers Guild Awards and Annie Awards.[2] In 2020, Reel FX Animation teamed up with Warner Animation Group (now Warner Bros. Pictures Animation) on Scoob!. In addition, the studio released Rumble, a co-production with Paramount Animation and Back to the Outback with Netflix Animation, both in 2021. Most recently, Reel FX teamed up again with Netflix Animation to create The Monkey King in 2023.
Reel FX Animation was founded in 1993 by Dale Carman and David Needham as Reel Magic in Fort Worth, Texas. The studio was the sixth to purchase an Autodesk Flame system. In 1995, the company moved to Dallas and changed its name to Reel FX Creative Studios. Reel FX purchased West End Post, and in 1999, moved to the White Swan building in the West End. In 2005, the studio moved its headquarters east a couple of miles to Deep Ellum. The company opened a second location in Pasadena, California, and in 2008 merged with VFX-studio Radium and opened a studio in Santa Monica.
In 2017, Reel FX opened its first studio outside the United States in Montreal, Canada. The studio would eventually add artists in Toronto and Vancouver as well.
In 1999, the studio produced its first short film, The Man In The Moon. Based on William Joyce's Guardians of Childhood and co-directed by Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg. The short film became the first Reel FX Original (now called Inventions), and in 2007, was optioned to DreamWorks Animation where it ultimately became Rise of the Guardians, directed by Peter Ramsey. In October 2012, The Hollywood Reporter revealed Reel FX's connection to the 2012 feature film.[3][4]
First called Turkeys in the early works,[7] and opened in 2013 under Free Birds, the film was directed by Jimmy Hayward and starred Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, and Amy Poehler. Its release landed Reel FX's CEO Steve O’Brien the front page of D CEO Magazine in their May–June edition of that year.[8]
Following the release of The Book of Life, Reel FX assisted on Rock Dog (Summit Entertainment, Huayi Brothers) and UglyDolls (STX Entertainment) while developing its next feature. Released in 2021, Rumble is based on Rob Harrell's graphic novel Monster on the Hill and adapted for the screen by Matt Lieberman and Etan Cohen. In 2022, Reel FX released their original animated series Super Giant Robot Brothers!, with Netflix Animation. Directed by Mark Andrews (Brave), the episodic series was created using a custom-built real-time production pipeline with Epic Games’ Unreal Engine, the first animated series to be rendered entirely in a video game engine.[9][10]
^Hopewell, John (June 9, 2014). "Studios, France, Emerging Industries Energize Annecy". Variety. Retrieved June 24, 2014. Closing ceremony, featuring Official Selection award announcements and Warner Bros.' 3D short "A Flash in the Pain"
^"Reel FX Live from Annecy!". Reel FX. June 11, 2014. Archived from the original on June 24, 2014. Retrieved June 24, 2014. Peil wrapped up the presentation with the 6th installment in the series of Looney Tunes shorts "Flash in the Pain".
