DreamWorks Animation has laid off 33 employees, representing 2% of the studio’s total workforce.

These layoffs are a component of a cost-cutting plan that reflects a broader scale-back playing out in many other parts of the entertainment industry right now. YouTube’s original kids content team and Disney kids and animation execs were similarly affected over the past four months.

A majority of these recent layoffs have targeted technical positions such as production artists, technical directors and lighters/compositors.

The cutbacks at DreamWorks come on the heels of a lucrative box-office year for the studio, with The Bad Guys and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish both having successful theatrical runs. The latter earned US$482 million worldwide, landed among the top 10 highest-grossing films released in 2022, and was nominated for a Best Animated Feature Oscar. 

Puss in Boots’ strong performance also helped Comcast’s studio segment increase its annual revenue to US$11.6 billion, according to the company’s Q4 financial report.

DreamWorks’ coming-soon slate includes Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken, a CG-animated pic that will debut at Annecy next month; threequel Trolls: Band Together, due to hit theaters in November; and martial arts comedy Kung Fu Panda 4 (March 2024).

Featured image: Kung Fu Panda 3.