Portland, OR-based indie studio LAIKA — the birthplace of critically acclaimed, Oscar-nominated stop-motion features Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings and Missing Link — will continue to pay its employees “in full with all benefits” during the coronavirus shutdown. The studio is closed until May 1, at the moment.
LAIKA President & CEO Travis Knight, who directed Kubo, stated in a memo:
“When this ends, and it will end, the world will need storytellers more than ever. The world will need hope and inspiration and empathy and high-spirited joy. The world will need beauty and poetry and restorative works of art. The world will need you
“… Telling stories is one of the prime functions of the human mind and spirit. Good stories open us up to new possibilities, to new ways of thinking, to recognize the shared humanity in which we all participate. That has always been Laika’s reason for being. And it will remain so. And we will do it as we always have. Together.”
The craftsman studio has released a new film every two to three years since 2009, the most recent being last year’s Golden Globe-winning bigfoot adventure Missing Link (directed by Chris Butler). LAIKA has yet to reveal its next project, but you can catch up with their incredible catalog through a variety of streaming platforms as noted in this Where to Watch guide.
