CounterPunch Studios

CounterPunch Studios is a Los Angeles animation and cinematic pre-production studio serving video games, film, television and advertising. Its work combines character creation, digital doubles, facial performance and full-body animation with production services that carry cinematic sequences from early planning through real-time engine integration.

Founded in 2011 by Andrew Egiziano and Kay Arutyunyan, the studio originated from the physical production operations of Image Metrics. Its early focus on character rigging and facial animation developed into a broader offering for productions requiring realistic digital characters and expressive performances. Virtuos acquired CounterPunch in October 2020, establishing a dedicated physical production and character animation presence in the United States. CounterPunch continues to operate within the group while collaborating with its international development network.

Character performance and cinematic production

The studio provides both hand-keyed and motion-captured animation. Its character work includes facial rigs, blend shapes, custom skeletons, deformation systems and photorealistic digital doubles. Shading, texturing and look development support assets intended for pre-rendered sequences and real-time environments.

Its pre-production services cover creative direction, storyboarding, concept asset translation, previs, layout and editorial. Motion capture support extends from planning and capture through performance data processing, cleanup and facial tracking. Technical services include custom tool implementation, client startup consulting and script-to-engine pipeline solutions, including integration with Unreal Engine and proprietary studio engines.

Work across games and screen production

CounterPunch's game credits include Hogwarts Legacy, Horizon Forbidden West, Halo Infinite, The Last of Us Part II, Marvel's Midnight Suns and entries in the Mortal Kombat franchise. These sit alongside work on projects such as Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, Spyro Reignited Trilogy and Max Payne 3.

Its screen work includes a photorealistic digital double of Jack Lord for Hawaii Five-0, digital doubles and motion capture for Kochadaiiyaan, and animation credits spanning family films, broadcast material and web series. The studio also serves virtual reality and other real-time interactive media productions.