Spire Animation Studios
- Open roles
- 0
- Founded
- 2020
- Employees
- N/A
- Offices
- 1
About Spire Animation Studios
Spire Animation Studios was an independent feature animation studio founded in 2020 to combine narrative filmmaking with real-time computer graphics. Its work focused on original animated features, character animation and interactive worlds, bringing film development together with technologies associated with video games. The studio sought to create a production approach in which storytelling, visual development and technical experimentation could advance together.
Its capabilities covered story development, visual development, character rigging and full-pipeline animated feature production. Alongside conventional film development, Spire explored creating characters and environments that could extend into virtual reality and other interactive experiences. It described this approach as “meta-distribution”: developing persistent digital worlds and characters alongside material intended for theatrical release. These ambitions connected its feature slate with broader experiments in cross-media storytelling.
Original productions
The announced slate included Century Goddess, an animated musical developed with director Diane Paulus, songwriter Starrah and writer Bisha K. Ali. Another project, Trouble, was an original animated comedy co-created by Brad Lewis and Danny McBride and co-produced with Rough House Pictures. Both projects remained unreleased, and their development should be distinguished from completed feature film credits.
Spire also participated in Epic Games’ Unreal Shorts programme through the 2021 real-time animation showcase Tara & Durga. This work reflected the studio’s interest in using game engine technology for animated storytelling and production experimentation.
Production history
During its expansion, Spire recruited creative and technical talent with backgrounds at Pixar, Walt Disney Animation Studios, DreamWorks and Blue Sky. Its development model combined an original feature slate with investment in real-time tooling and distributed production infrastructure.
The studio subsequently experienced stalled productions and departures among its creative leadership. The supplied research identifies Spire as defunct by November 2026, with its announced features unreleased and its primary website offline. Its historical work remains associated with efforts to connect feature animation, cloud production and interactive entertainment.
More about Spire Animation Studios
Founders and historical leadership
- Brad Lewis and P.J. (Pankaj) Gunsagar co-founded the studio. Corporate records identify Lewis as Chief Creative Officer and Gunsagar as Chief Executive Officer, with both serving as directors; Jordan Cohen is also listed as a director. These are historical roles, rather than confirmation of continuing appointments.
- Creative director Shawn Krause returned to Pixar in 2023, and Lewis transitioned out by 2025.
Technology and operating model
Spire partnered with CoreWeave to build serverless, cloud-distributed production infrastructure. The collaboration was intended to reduce reliance on on-premise rendering and enable artists and engineers to collaborate globally in real time.
Financing milestones
- Initial backing in 2020 came from Connect Ventures, the investment partnership between Creative Artists Agency and New Enterprise Associates.
- Epic Games led a $20 million funding round in February 2022 and gained board representation as Unreal Engine became part of Spire's production pipeline.
- An August 2022 round led by Temasek and Ericsenz brought reported cumulative funding to more than $40 million.
Notable credits
3 creditsOffices
Where Spire Animation Studios is based
- Los Angeles, California, United States
Los Angeles office
Open roles
Find your next role at Spire Animation Studios
No open roles right now
Check back for new opportunities at Spire Animation Studios.
Visit studio website