It’s being reported that Disney is closing down its Disneytoon Studios, the animation arm it used for its Planes spin-off movies, and the Disney Fairies home films.
The closure of the studio also means that an unnamed film scheduled for next March has been abandoned as well (it was being directed by Klay Hall and Bobs Gannaway, and was about the future of flying). Around 75 staff are affected by the Disney announcement.
Disneytoon Studios had been in existence for just shy of 15 years, and its closure is believed to be related to the dwindling revenue from DVD and Blu-ray sales. Although with Disney looking for output for its Netflix rival, that’s set to launch next year, it’s still somewhat surprising.
That said, new management is overseeing Disney animation now, following the departure of John Lasseter, although this decision is reportedly unrelated to the promotions of Jennifer Lee and Pete Docter.