LONDON, UK –– 2nd November 2012 — Silicon Valley Bank, financial partner to the technology, life science, cleantech, private equity and venture capital industries, today announced that it has provided visual effects software company, The Foundry, with a senior debt facility to help finance its merger with US-based software specialist, Luxology LLC.
Established in 1996, The Foundry is now one of the leading innovators of visual effects and image processing technologies, serving leading visual effects facilities worldwide including Warner Bros, Weta Digital, Sony Pictures Imageworks and The Moving Picture Company. Its products have facilitated ambitious effects sequences on a host of Hollywood blockbusters including the Harry Potter franchise, Avatar and the 2012 Oscar® winner, HUGO (Best Visual Effects) as well as the Emmy® award-winning television series Boardwalk Empire.
Luxology’s multi-award winning 3D software – modo® – is used by thousands of artists and designers worldwide. The company is favoured for its fresh approach to modelling, animation and rendering tools. Over the years modo has been awarded an Apple Design Award for ‘Best OS X Graphics’, a MacUser Award for ‘Best 3D/Animation Software’ and a Game Developer Frontline Award for ‘Best Art Tool’.
Both companies pride themselves on their customer relationships and product innovation. Together they will offer a wide-reaching set of 2D and 3D software products for digital production in both the entertainment and design industries.
“This is a very significant partnership and one that has strong backing from Silicon Valley Bank” said Paul Jackson, Managing Director of Corporate Banking at Silicon Valley Bank's UK Branch.” The two companies are highly complementary and their merger will undoubtedly result in an even broader creative offering as well as a strengthened business proposition.”
“These are exciting times for The Foundry and we are delighted to have such strong support from Silicon Valley Bank” Bill Collis, CEO at The Foundry, added “Silicon Valley Bank understands how important this merger is for the future growth and success of our business. Our collective product range is now unrivalled, and this along with The Foundry and Luxology’s shared ethos of focusing on community and collaboration, will really set this new venture apart from the crowd. ”