Nintendo has officially launched its new animation subsidiary, Nintendo Pictures. The animation studio, formerly known as Dynamo Pictures, was acquired by Nintendo in July and the deal was officially closed on Monday.
Nintendo Pictures will create video content based on Nintendo IP. “With our videos, we aim to introduce Nintendo characters to customers around the world and create unique videos that will remain in their memories forever,” reads a post on the studio’s official website (as translated by Video Games Chronicle).
Prior to the acquisition, Nintendo had worked with Dynamo Pictures on several animation projects, including CG scenes for the Metroid: Other M video game and a series of Pikmin short films for the Wii U and 3DS consoles. The latter were later released on YouTube.
Nintendo currently has one announced animated feature in the works: a Super Mario Bros. movie co-developed with Illumination, the studio behind the Minions movies. The first teaser trailer will premiere October 6 at New York Comic-Con. The video will be featured in a Nintendo Direct presentation scheduled for 1:05 p.m. PT.
Join us on October 6 at 4pm ET for the teaser trailer premiere of Nintendo & Illumination’s upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie, which is out April 7, 2023. pic.twitter.com/1jEFnlvCnU
— New York Comic Con (@NY_Comic_Con) September 22, 2022
The Super Mario Bros. movie is set to hit theaters on April 7, 2023. The film stars Chris Pratt as Mario, Jack Black as Bowser, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong and Anya Taylor-Joy as Peach.
While video game film adaptations are nothing new, they have become much more prominent and successful in recent years. Sega’s Sonic 2 movie quickly became the highest-grossing video game movie ever in the US. Sony is also turning some of its properties, including The Last of Us and Horizon, into TV shows, while CD Projekt Red has had success with its recent Witcher and Cyberpunk Netflix series.