Toon Zone Talkback - Imagi Animation Studios Shuts Down

I can't say I'm surprised. Kind of sad. I did not find Astroboy to be bad. And I really liked TMNT. They had potentual they just never lived up to it.
 
It's too bad. They were one of the few studios out there revisiting old animation properties and not only keeping them in animation (albeit of a different form) but also approaching them sincerely and without that all-too-annoying sense of modern "irony" you see so often now.
 
Sad to see Imagi go, but I can't say I didn't see this coming. It seemed like Imagi was run by people on the internet who cared more about niche properties than the bottom line.
 
Well their first film was TMNT but it wasn't really a breakout in the U.S. (its worldwide gross revenue was just over 95 million, the U.S. revenue was over 25), which is more surprising to me than Astro Boy's woes. I saw TMNT and there were definitely things to like about it, to the point that it certainly deserved to do better than it did.

I don't know what it was that kept people away, though it's true that it wasn't CG excellence or anything. But it's a shame. I was curious about their Gatchaman movie.

That bit about the parent company outsourcing to China makes me ill. I can't forsee much good coming from that.
 
Its a real shame they're done for. They had a lot of potential and drive, but they just couldn't seem to catch a break with their films.

I definitely would've welcomed a sequel to TMNT if they were given the chance. A shame it won't happen now.
 
I liked both TMNT and Astro Boy.

I think they were a company that was doing a good thing that people just weren't receptive to. If they had been following the modern trend and were resurrecting old cartoons as live-action movies, they might have done a little better. Or if they were making original animated ensemble comedies starring smart-alecky animals like every other animation studio, maybe people would have latched on. Instead, they took old cartoons and turned them into surprisingly good little computer-animated movies. But no went to see them (except me).
 
:(

Their CGI was eye candy, and the everything else in their movies were enjoyable. With Astro Boy, I was especially impressed.

I'll miss them, and the lost hopes for a TMNT sequel and Gatchaman.
 
I totally agree with you on this.

Astro Boy and TMNT were good movies, but visually and from a plot perspective. I've admitted Astro Boy had some plot holes you could fly the Yamato through, but overall it was a great modernization of a classic series for a new age group.

I think with all the high profile movies last year, AB just got lost in the shuffle to a degree.

Sorry we won't see Gatchaman but I hope we at least get Astro Boy on DVD.
 
TMNT grossed $54.1 million in the States. It opened at #1 with $24.2 million. So, I'd say it performed decently; especially with its budget of $34 million. Count in DVD's, TV rights, and merchandise and they made a nice profit.
 
I think it was #1 in the box office for a week or two. Though, if it was a low-grossing couple weeks anyway, that might not amount to much.
 
Ah, that's too bad. I really liked TMNT, but I didn't see Astro Boy simply because I never cared for the anime enough to warrant seeing it. I had hopes for a TMNT sequel, but if Nick buying the Turtles didn't kill those dreams, this news did.
 
Wait, the parent company's going to outsource to China now? CHINA? *headsdesk*

I saw TMNT during its Cartoon Network broadcast, it wasn't anything special story-wise but it was pretty to look at.
 
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