Troubadour, a UK-based company that leases production spaces and theaters to studios, has teamed up with several former staffers of shuttered prodco Jellyfish Pictures to launch a new VFX company. 

Troubadour acquired the Jellyfish trademark and branding rights from Jellyfish Pictures’ founder Phil Dobree, and Jellyfish FX (JFX) will operate out of its production offices in London, with an initial focus on providing visual effects services to film and TV projects.

The company is launching with three series and two Netflix features already on its slate (although it’s not one of them, Jellyfish Pictures was producing Netflix’s animated film The Twits when the studio closed). All of these first projects are live-action and aimed at older audiences, but JFX is open working on productions of all formats and for all demos, says MD Phil Greenlow. 

Its leadership team features six employees who had previously worked in Jellyfish Pictures’ VFX division: Greenlow,  Luke Dodd (creative director), Amber Ducker (head of production), Paul Baaske (head of technology), Jamie Wood (head of 2D) and Pete Seager (head of CG). 

Jellyfish Pictures (Dog Man, Spirit Untamed) was a UK animation and VFX studio that ceased  all operations and started looking for a buyer back in March. The company’s struggles stemmed from declining business following the pandemic and the writers and actors strikes, as well as rising costs, Jellyfish said in a statement at the time. 

Troubadour builds its own theaters and studios for film/TV producers to work in. It has three facilities, and some of its clients include Netflix, BBC, Marvel Studios and Mattel. Feature films such as Disney’s Cruella and Netflix’s Damsel were made using its locations, according to the company.