In one of the more unexpected moves this week, Nintendo has acquired CG production company Dynamo Pictures, and will rename it Nintendo Pictures.
The new studio will focus on “planning and production of visual content including CG animation” according to a release by Nintendo. According to their IMDB page Dynamo Pictures has worked on a range of titles, including most recently Death Stranding, Catherine: Full Body, Yuri!!! On Ice and Persona 5.
This news comes as there is a new interest in turning video game properties into big-budget media events. Nintendo has the new Super Mario Bros. movie staring Chris Pratt, that is looking to shake the stigma of their last foray into bringing Mario to the big screen back in 1993 with the release of Super Mario Bros. starring Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo.
There has been a flurry of video game adaptations in recent years, with Detective Pikachu in 2019, and Sonic the Hedgehog showing it is possible to make a kid-friendly and still faithful adaptation that can deliver at the box-office. With Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us coming to HBO soon, and more PlayStation series like Gran Turismo making the leap to the screen, this trend shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon.
The release outlines that Nintendo will be acquiring 100 percent of the outstanding shares of Dynamo Pictures, and the studio will now be an owned subsidiary of the video game company. The deal is expected to close October 3, 2022, pending satisfaction of all relevant terms and customary closing conditions.
