According to AWN, Laika the Oregon studio bought by Nike giant Phil Knight, is cutting back its staff. 65 people have been let go which means
the company will be left with 280 employees, and their advertising division will not be affected. Knight bought financially-strapped Will Vinton Studios in 2003 and renamed it in 2005. His son, Travis, worked as an animator before the change, and is now an executive there.
The layoffs are due to the shelving of their proposed next feature film, Jack and Ben’s Animated Adventure. The film’s writer Jorgen Klubien, left last year over creative differences, but the project continued until recently with Barry Cook, director of Mulan. Coraline, directed by Henry Selick, will be Laika’s first feature film release. The stop-motion 3-D film opens in theaters February 6th.