VFX Group Cinesite Unveils New $235 Million Financing Package To Fuel Ongoing Expansion

Jill Goldsmith
·2 min read

Fast growing, London-based VFX and animation studio group Cinesite said today it’s clinched a $235 million funding package as it continues to expand.

The firm’s longtime bankers NatWest and Barclay’s led the financing — a package of transactions that includes, debt, equity and mezzanine lines from existing shareholders.

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Cinesite will use the fresh funds “to accelerate its growth by offering clients greater creative capacity, allowing the company to enter new geographies and business segments while building on its studio partnership model to expand its talent base & global footprint.”

Outside of London, Cinesite has facilities in Montreal and Vancouver and alongside partner studios in Berlin, Munich (Trixter), Belgrade, Skopje (FX3X), Montreal (Squeeze Animation & L’Atelier Animation), Quebec City (Squeeze), Mumbai (Assemblage Entertainment) and Vancouver (Image Engine), enabling it to scale to thousands of VFX & animation artists worldwide.

The deal with Assemblage was announced last month, marking Cinesite’s first foray into Asia. It announced the deals with Squeeze (the animation house behind the Marvel series What If…?), Balkans-based visual effects studio FX3X and L’Atelier Animation last summer.

Recent group credits include Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Willow, The School for Good & Evil, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Witcher S2, Matilda, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, Thor: Love & Thunder, The Book of Boba Fett, The Addams Family 2 & She-Hulk.

Cinesite projects in production include Iwaju (Disney+), Foundation S2 (Apple), Poirot (20th Century Studios), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Nickelodeon), The Witcher S3 (Netflix) and I Am Groot (Marvel  Studios).

With new financing, the company “is well positioned with significant opportunities to capitalise on increasing demand from Hollywood studios, production companies and streaming services,” said Cinesite CEO Antony Hunt. “The platform we have built over the last few years coupled with the three decades of experience, world-class talent and trusted reputation will help us greatly in scaling and widening the scope of our business.”

“Continuing our strong support to the sector, we are delighted to lead the arrangement of this package of funding for the Cinesite group,” said David Munoz, head of tech, media and telecom banking at NatWest. “The business has a well-established track record and an outstanding reputation for producing high quality animation and VFX.”

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