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It’s a well-known fact that service studios are the unsung powerhouses of the animation industry. Although many tentpoles are original ideas formed and rendered by big studios, including Disney, DreamWorks, Sony and Illumination, a large swath of celebrated features and shows owe their visual charm to service studios.
Take 2023’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, for example. The story was cracked at Paramount, but it was Mikros Animation who was tasked with animating the film itself. With such films as Orion and the Dark, the latest PAW Patrol feature, Netflix’s Thelma the Unicorn and Paramount’s The Tiger’s Apprentice under its belt, Mikros has established itself as a major player in the service side of the industry, able to adapt to a range of genres and art styles.
“Mikros Animation does not have a house style. We pride ourselves on being able to achieve any look the filmmakers envision; this is our superpower,” says Mikros’ global head of production Adrianna Cohen. “Therefore, we continue to grow with the filmmakers, to produce films that creatively push boundaries and entertain audiences.”
Safety in Numbers
Cohen’s sentiments are echoed by Superprod Animation CEO Clément Calvet, who outlines the benefits of being an international company: “We have studios in several places with different specialties, but all those studios are connected. That’s why we have developed the company that way, to be ready to answer any needs at any time.” Superprod’s ability to tackle different styles is exemplified by its work on CG preschool series Ghee Happy, as well as the upcoming 2D/3D hybrid show Heroic Football.”
For Mainframe Studios, known for shows such as the global hit, CoComelon, Octonauts: Above and Beyond and Unicorn Academy, staying fixed in one region works to its benefit. “Having been in Vancouver for over 30 years, we know the talent very well,” says senior VP of content Gregory Little. “We have terrific in-house leads who have deep experience in practically every style and who help mentor new artists so that we can expand our skills. We also have an incredible recruiting team; one of the most exciting things about a new project is finding new talent to bring to Mainframe. It’s like what E.B. White said about New York: The magic comes when the solid foundation meets the new blood and each inspires the other.”
‘Animation is an art form, which by definition is a craft. So, venturing forth with AI, it is critical for us to be conscious stewards of the art form and the artists.’
— Adrianna Cohen, Global Head of Production, Mikros Animation
Accommodating different visions is one thing, but being in tune with the changing tides of the industry is also essential. Recent months have seen a significant downturn in demand for animated projects from streaming services, forcing service studios to adapt.
For Superprod, this lull gives it a chance to focus on original projects. “The fact that we’re not only a service studio helps a lot,” says Calvet. “We’re always focused on our own stuff; this has never changed and will never change.” Superprod’s managing director, Jérémie Fajner, claims that the steady growth of the company also helps at times like this. “The way we grew was very organic, driven by our own projects. We’ve been cautious because we very much believe in doing the projects together on site. Animation is a collective achievement.”
Mainframe banks on its good relationships with collaborators. “We are grateful to our longtime partners for giving us the opportunity to produce massive hits,” explains Little. “Hugely popular shows that get multiple season orders are critical because they bring stability. Also, we pursue co-productions in a multi-territory finance model so we’re less dependent on full financing from U.S. buyers. Additionally, we have expanded our budget ranges so that we can deliver really great content at a lower price, which opens up the range of partners we can work with.”
Also shaking up the industry is the advent of generative AI. We have already seen major studios integrate the technology, such as in Marvel’s Secret Invasion TV show, stoking fears across the industry that many jobs may be made redundant.
‘We use AI to benchmark what we should not do. When we start working on a project, we go to AI and ask it to give us a take. Then we say, “If everybody can get this on Midjourney, then we should get away from that.”‘
— Clément Calvet, CEO, Superprod Animation
Cohen sees the potential in the technology. “It’s easy to envision pipelines without code issues that can easily adapt to other technologies, the creation of tools that allow artists more freedom and creative possibilities and a final product that is achieved in less time and effort.” But she is also keen to advise caution. “Animation is an art form, which by definition is a craft. So, venturing forth with AI, it is critical for us to be conscious stewards of the art form and the artists.”
Neither Mikros, Superprod nor Mainframe currently employ AI in their projects directly, However, Fajner also has an eye on how the technology will develop. “It’s not a mature technology yet,” he explains. “It does a lot of useful things, but as with any technology, a lot of awful things. We want to do beautiful things. We want to master what we do, and we don’t want things to happen by chance, to accidentally have something beautiful. We have to be able to repeat beauty for 52 episodes in a row.”
Calvet has a more unconventional idea of how AI can be used in the pipeline. “We use AI to benchmark what we should not do,” says Calvet. “When we start working on a project, we go to AI and ask it to give us a take. Then we say, ‘If everybody can get this on Midjourney, then we should get away from that,’ because this is the most common thing that everybody would think of.”
As far as how AI will affect jobs in animation, Fajner believes that it may close some doors but open others. “Maybe it’s going to be a tool that saves time and the mechanical part of a job. The things that you do without thinking, that you don’t need unique people for, things that aren’t the most interesting to do; maybe there will be less of those jobs but more of the interesting jobs.”
‘When it comes to production, we think high budgets will be reserved for an increasingly smaller group of properties, with increased pressure to reduce budgets on everything else.’
— Gregory R. Little, SVP Content, Mainframe Studios
Part of being a service studio is being able to work within different art styles, giving them a unique viewpoint on what the dominant method of animation is in the industry. On a mainstream level, we have seen photorealistic CG fall away slightly, with more stylized approaches that incorporate traditional animation on the rise. 2023 also saw Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron become an international phenomenon.
However, for Calvet computer animation still reigns supreme. “CG has taken the lead for a while already,” he says. “There’s no doubt about that for us. But 2D is always there. Now everything is hybrid. There will be CG in everything you do, but there will always be things that you can only do in 2D.” Superprod is happy to work with both, as Fajner explains: “We like being able to handle both really. We currently have two or three productions in CG, one in full 3D, one feature mixing 2D and CG in a very hybrid way.”
Committing to 2D projects is not always possible for service studios, as exemplified by Mikros. “We currently do not have the pipeline to do an entire 2D feature film — even though we did a considerable amount of 2D in the film Orion and the Dark,” explains Cohen, which shows how studios may need to incorporate more 2D into their portfolio as they increasingly take advantage of stories that only 2D animation can tell (besides adult animated TV shows). “There are a lot of 2D projects seeking a partner, and there should be,” Cohen continues. “There are some concepts and worlds best suited for a 2D universe.”
Signs of Change
With inconsistent cash flow being a staple of the industry these days, the future of animation can be difficult to predict. For Little, allocation of resources will play a big role. “When it comes to production, we think high budgets will be reserved for an increasingly smaller group of properties, with increased pressure to reduce budgets on everything else.” But that won’t affect the kinds of stories Mainframe wants to tell: “We are focusing more of our shows on great character comedy and a positive spirit. As parents we see the toxicity on social media, and we want to model something better.”
According to Cohen, the future of the industry relies on those attempting to cultivate something new. “The future is defined by what is happening at the edges. The successful edges will drive the industry,” she explains. “There will always be a desire for classic animation. Every year, new children discover the art form and are enthralled by it.
“But for the generations who have enjoyed the Pixar era, they have matured and are seeking new frontiers,” concludes Cohen. “This group will define the creative future. This will be fertile ground for independent films. Passionate filmmakers will find a way to make their films. Using more creative designs, intriguing universes and engaging, timely scripts, these independents will define the new era of animation.”
For more info about the studios mentioned in the story, visit mikrosanimation.com, superprod.net/en/superprod-animation and mainframe.ca.
