Montreal-based VFX company Rodeo FX (Stranger Things) has acquired Mikros Animation, which was previously part of the Technicolor Group. 

This acquisition includes all of Mikros Animations operations, plus Technicolor Canada’s equipment. However, the studio will retain its brand identity and continue working on its current projects, including the third PAW Patrol film, PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie. The studio will also keep most of its creative and technical teams. 

Julien Meesters—the former SVP of Mikros Animation, who has been with the studio for more than 20 years—is the division’s new president. 

Mikros is well known for its end-to-end animation, and has worked on 17 feature-length animated films, including the kids and family movies PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie (pictured), Orion and the Dark and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. In addition to these blockbusters, close to 300 hours of Mikros-animated programming is broadcast in more than 180 countries, on channels including Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. 

Mikros’s future has been up in the air since late February, when Technicolor started closing its businesses and letting employees know that it faced a complete dissolution unless it could find a third-party buyer. 

Acquiring the studio fits into Rodeo FX’s global growth—in 2023, it opened its fifth international studio in Paris, according to a release. “Above all, we want to preserve Mikros Animation’s creative magic—that signature that made it into the renowned studio it is today,” said Jordan Soles, partner and SVP at Rodeo FX. “This move allows our studios to strengthen their position and continue raising the bar for impactful projects.”

Mikros joins the ranks of other Technicolor businesses that have recently found new homes elsewhere. Earlier this month, TransPerfect acquired the company’s video game business Technicolor Games, while its ad-focused business The Mill teamed up with Dream Machine FX to launch the new advertising venture Arc Creative.