Weta Digital will finally produce original content with the launch of an animated unit for the first time in its 25 year history. The company will develop original animated content for both cinema and streaming platforms. This has been a long-held dream of Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, who will write, produce and direct several animated projects for the company.
“We are huge fans of animated storytelling in all of its forms, but it can be a long, protracted, and often costly way to make movies. That’s, in part, why we have created this company – to change the model and open the doors to filmmakers and storytellers who might not otherwise be given the chance to show what they can do,” said Jackson.
Weta has named Prem Akkaraju as the CEO. His appointment reflects the continued growth of the company, which will leverage the capabilities of its award-winning VFX business to produce original animation under the banner Weta Animated.
“When people speak about the magic of filmmaking, they are speaking about Weta. For over 25 years, Weta has led the VFX/animation industry by fostering an incredibly talented group of artists who work in tandem with a gifted team of computer scientists and engineers. I’m thrilled to be joining Peter, Fran and the extraordinary team at Weta as we enter into a hypergrowth stage with the launch of original content, bolstering our VFX service business and expanding our technology capability and infrastructure,” he commented.
Weta will be able to expand its more traditional keyframed work, as previously demonstrated by King Louie from The Jungle Book and Elliott from Pete’s Dragon. Perhaps Jackson will finally make the long-awaited sequel to Steven Spielberg’s performance-capture-animated The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn. There might even be room for Robert Rodriguez to direct an animated sequel to Alita: Battle Angel.
