Mumbai: Technicolor group, the owner of Oscar-winning visual effects companies MPC and The Mill, and feature animation company Mikros Animation, has begun to shut down operations, threatening the jobs of thousands of artists worldwide, according to reports.
This includes a significant number of artists and professionals in the visual effects and animation sectors. According to a reports, Technicolor’s CEO, Caroline Parot, sent a memo to employees informing them that the company has filed for a recovery procedure in the French courts due to its inability to fin new investors.
The company is also facing a operational crisis, further exacerbated by the post covid recovery phase and a costly separation from its previous group. Additionally, the ongoing writer’s strike has caused a slowdown in customer orders, further straining its financial stability.
There are thousands of employees working in Technicolour group and parent company offices in Mumbai and Bengaluru. According to people close to these developments, these employees have been verbally informed that the company is preparing to shut down its operations. However, they have received no formal, written confirmation of this decision. Crucially, the company has made no provision for the current month’s outstanding salaries nor their full and final settlements
One of the employees, who does not want to be named, says, “We have not received any formal confirmation from the company about the shutdown, but the verbal communication in India Townhall from management and the sudden halt in salary payments have left us worried.”
In the UK , the company’s operations have already entered administration, with reports stating that the majority of its 440 employees have been made redundant. In the United States, the company has reportedly issued WARN Act notices, which are required ahead of mass layoffs. However, it’s the employees in India who are facing immense distress.
Many are also reporting that they haven’t received their salaries for February and there has been no provision made for their full and final settlements.
In an unexpected twist, it appears that senior local leadership in India, including Managing Director Biren Ghose are also blindsided by the decision. Ghose reportedly stated that despite repeated and urgent requests for operating funds, the parent company has refused to release any money to the Indian operations. He said Technicolor “is clearly financially and operationally not moving forward and we’ve reached a stage where unfortunately we are unable to function as an organization”.
The Managing Director, Asia Pacific for Technicolor further stated that in the current circumstances, the company “do not have funds to send to Technicolor India” and “we will not be able to release salaries and other dues”.
This has left the Indian team in a dire financial position, unable to pay salaries or dues. As of now the situation remains tense and thousands of employees are awaiting further development.