mania continues on Wall Street, and last month the commercial production industry saw a merger of its own when computer animation/multimedia house Rhythm & Hues, Los Angeles, acquired L.A.-based visual effects shop VIFX from Fox for an undisclosed price (SHOOT, 3/19, p.1).
Rhythm & Hues has wasted no time in bringing VIFX into the fold. In fact, VIFX’s employees have already moved into Rhythm & Hues’ 70,000 square foot campus-like facility. Thus far, no major complications have arisen. Well, maybe one. "There are not enough parking spaces," executive producer for commercials Michael Crapser says, laughing. "There is a guy in the parking lot who double parks and moves the cars around all day."
Aside from the parking crunch, though, Crapser and former VIFX president Richard Hollander-who has joined Rhythm & Hues as president of the feature and theme park divisions-concur that the transition has gone remarkably smoothly considering the logistics.
