The Academy Award-winning VFX Weta Digital and Unity Software have reached an agreement that allows the software company access to Weta’s artist tools, core pipeline, intellectual property, and engineering talent.
In a stunning move for Unity, the acquisition of the Weta Tech division is a huge one as the Peter Jackson helmed operation gave Hollywood huge hits in The Lord of the Rings and The Planet of the Apes.
There have been many mergers of this kind over the year, most notably the Devolver acquisition of 4 other studios announced earlier in the week. The same type of deal applies, where the other studios function under the Devolver umbrella, Weta Digital functions under the Unity umbrella, as they are given complete freedom over the creative process just with more support from a larger entity.
Weta Digital was also the culprit behind the life — sized King Kong in the latest movie featuring the primate. The tools necessary for that amazing work are now in the hands of the new umbrella company. The very lifelike VFX is sure to give Unity Software a huge boost in the quality of its visual effects.
Peter Jackson said “Weta Digital’s tools created unlimited possibilities for us to bring to life the worlds and creatures that originally lived in our imaginations. Together, Unity and Weta Digital can create a pathway for any artist, from any industry, to be able to leverage these incredibly creative and powerful tools. Offering aspiring creatives access to Weta Digital’s technology will be nothing short of game-changing, and Unity is just the company to bring this vision to life,” in a statement provided to Variety.
The larger software company plans to allow other creators access to these amazing visual tools in a pay-to-play type subscription soon. In a welcome letter penned by the company, the response to the question “when, where and how can we try it?” was “We haven’t announced our timing plans for beta programs or commercial release, but stay tuned for more news on this front,” by a verified Trey Rexroat.
Fans looking to get the tools that gave the cinema world LOTR‘s Gollum will have to wait for more announcements, as the timetable remains uncertain.
To keep up with this intense news as it’s distributed, fans can locate Unity on their Twitter.
