A company with ties to visual effects/animation house Prana Studios–with offices in L.A. and a subsidiary in Mumbai, India–has submitted the winning bid to acquire Rhythm & Hues, the Oscar-winning VFX studio that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month. The purchase price is about $30 million, with the deal receiving final approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Friday after a brief delay when two former bidders filed objections.
The acquisition of Rhythm & Hues is being made by 34×118 Holdings, a wholly owned affiliate of Prana. The new owner assumes responsibility for some $16 million in loans from Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox which have helped Rhythm & Hues to keep operations going this past month–despite the layoff of 250 employees–so it could complete VFX work on current projects, including the features Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters for Fox, and R.I.P.D. for Universal.
Prana reportedly beat out bids that included one from Psyop, another from India’s Prime Focus (which already maintains operations in Hollywood), and a Chinese venture affiliated with the president of film distribution company China Lion. The original stalking horse bidder–one intended to spark other competing bids–was JS Communications, a South Korean entertainment firm that pulled out of the running last week.
A visual effects team–led by Bill Westenhofer of Rhythm & Hues–won the Best Visual Effects Oscar last month for Life Of Pi, just 11 days after Rhythm & Hues filed for bankruptcy.
Is “Glicked” The New “Barbenheimer”? “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” Hit Theater Screens
"Barbenheimer" was a phenomenon impossible to manufacture. But, more than a year later, that hasn't stopped people from trying to make "Glicked" — or even "Babyratu" — happen.
The counterprogramming of "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" in July 2023 hit a nerve culturally and had the receipts to back it up. Unlike so many things that begin as memes, it transcended its online beginnings. Instead of an either-or, the two movies ultimately complemented and boosted one another at the box office.
And ever since, moviegoers, marketers and meme makers have been trying to recreate that moment, searching the movie release schedule for odd mashups and sending candidates off into the social media void. Most attempts have fizzled (sorry, "Saw Patrol" ).
This weekend is perhaps the closest approximation yet as the Broadway musical adaptation "Wicked" opens Friday against the chest-thumping sword-and-sandals epic "Gladiator II." Two big studio releases (Universal and Paramount), with one-name titles, opposite tones and aesthetics and big blockbuster energy — it was already halfway there before the name game began: "Wickiator," "Wadiator," "Gladwick" and even the eyebrow raising "Gladicked" have all been suggested.
"'Glicked' rolls off the tongue a little bit more," actor Fred Hechinger said at the New York screening of "Gladiator II" this week. "I think we should all band around 'Glicked.' It gets too confusing if you have four or five different names for it."
As with "Barbenheimer," as reductive as it might seem, "Glicked" also has the male/female divide that make the fan art extra silly. One is pink and bright and awash in sparkles, tulle, Broadway bangers and brand tie-ins; The other is all sweat and sand, blood and bulging... Read More