A Glasgow-based animation and visual effects company, which produced content for Disney and Netflix, has fallen into administration, leading to virtually all staff being made redundant.
Some 162 people have lost their jobs after production on all projects was ceased following the appointment of administrators to Axis Productions Limited and Axis VFX Limited, both trading as Axis Studios, yesterday (July 15).
Based in Glasgow with a presence in Bristol, Axis worked on large, well-known projects in the TV, film, and videogames industries.
The company, which employed a total of 166 people, had been developing animations in Scotland since 2000 and by 2008 had grown to become Scotland’s largest animation studio. It also employed diverse and imaginative artists around the world to develop content that married art and technology, and won numerous awards including one from the Royal Television Society and an Emmy.
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However, the company was recently affected by a downturn in work and a rise in labour costs, leading to “severe cash flow problems”, according to a statement by joint administrators Alistair McAlinden and Geoff Jacobs at Interpath Advisory.
A spokeswoman for Interpath confirmed to The Herald that 147 redundancies have been made at Axis Productions, the entity based in Glasgow.
Mr McAlinden said: “It is a great shame to see a creative business in Scotland close its doors. Axis has been a studio of choice for key production companies and has produced content for household names such as the BBC, Netflix and Blizzard Entertainment. The Company experienced a high demand for its services during Covid as animation and visual effects for TV, film and videogames skyrocketed.
“Unfortunately, however, Axis has more recently been impacted by a decline in customer projects, as well as increases in labour costs which have resulted in severe cash flow problems. The directors worked tirelessly to explore alternative solutions, but ultimately had to take the difficult decision to seek the appointment of administrators.”
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The joint administrators said they are seeking operators to continue with the firm’s live projects. A small number of employees have been retained to assist with the orderly wind down and transfer of knowledge following their appointment.
Mr Jacobs said: “Our priority is to give employees support in the first instance. We would encourage any party with an interest in Axis’ live projects to contact us immediately.”
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