The Montréal VFX and animation renaissance continues with news that Technicolor’s Mill Film plans to open a new facility there this summer.
Like the first Mill Film outpost, which opened earlier this year in Adelaide, Australia, The Mill said, the Montréal location will focus on clients who are not being served by The Mill’s sister companies MPC and Mr. X in markets including streaming and episodic content as well as feature film.
In addition to the new studio, Mill Film is getting a head of production, with Lauren McCallum being named global head of Mill Film.
McCallum’s recent credits as head of production for MPC Montréal include Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Murder on the Orient Express and Blade Runner 2049. At MPC London she headed production on Suicide Squad and The Jungle Book. She is now charged with overseeing production, operates and strategy for Mill Film.
“We want the brand Mill Film to inspire the next generation of visual effects artists through the commitment we are making to create a diverse, dynamic and driven team; using the latest technologies on ground-breaking work,” said The Mill CEO Robin Shenfield in a prepared statement. “We are putting talent diversity and inclusion at the heart of Mill Film — it will be in the very fabric of the studio — and we will provide our clients with world-class VFX.”
So far, only two Mill Film locations have been announced, but The Mill indicated in February that it planned to open studios in a number of locations worldwide. The announcement was preceded by news last month that Reel FX is opening a new Montréal studio where it hopes to employ 400 by the end of 2020.
