Gaming developer Nintendo revealed its intentions to purchase an animation studio to develop films based on its IPs.
According to Comicbook, the company plans to acquire Dynamo Pictures, a CG animation company that's previously worked on major movies and games. Once attaining 100% ownership on Oct. 3, Nintendo affirmed that "the company name Dynamo Pictures is expected to be changed to 'Nintendo Pictures Co., Ltd.' To focus on development of visual content utilizing Nintendo IP." So far, Nintendo has not revealed what IPs it currently plans to adapt, nor if it intends to make all fully-animated or partly animated features or television shows.
Dynamo Pictures worked on several notable games and films over the years, such as Ghost in the Shell, Studio Ghibli's Earwig and the Witch, Death Stranding and the Resident Evilfranchise, while also working on projects with PlayStation. The company appears to specialize in CG animation and motion capture work, evidenced by the heavy use of such styles in titles like Death Stranding. Nothing in the acquisition announcement from Nintendo denotes which specific features of Dynamo Pictures, soon-to-be Nintendo Pictures, expertise the company plans to capitalize on in its planned features.
Nintendo appears ready to capitalize on the growing video game adaptation market, something its already dipped its toes into in recent years. Its most notable adaptation is Detective Pikachu, which achieved some success with fans hopeful for a sequel with Ryan Reynolds-voiced famed Pokemon. The developer even intended to expand on the film's success by releasing a Detective Pikachu game for Nintendo Switch, but those plans seem to have tempered since.
Nintendo also has an animated Super Mario Bros. film in the pipeline starring Chris Pratt, Charlie Day and Jack Black as Mario, Luigi and Browser, respectively. Plot details from the film supposedly leaked on Reddit, claiming the film, among other things, might be a musical. Nintendo recently announced the film had been delayed until April 2023, something many took as an indicator of the validity of the plot leak. Pratt's casting also caused a minor upset among fans, who felt the actor seemed a bad choice for Mario. Illumination Entertainment founder and CEO Chris Meledandri defended the casting choice, saying he loved Pratt's performance and did not feel the actor's lack of Italian heritage was a problem.
While fans will have to wait for any formal announcement about Nintendo's films through its recently acquired studio, they can look forward to the Super Mario Bros film when it premieres in North America on April 7, 2023, and in Japan on April 28, 2023.
Source: Nintendo