Dynamo Pictures

What Dynamo Pictures does

Dynamo Pictures (株式会社ダイナモピクチャーズ) was an independent Japanese computer graphics and visual effects production company founded in March 2011 and headquartered in Tokyo (千代田区神田淡路町2-21 淡路町MHビル), with a secondary production office opened in 2014 in Naha, Okinawa. The company provided CG/3D/4D stereoscopic video production, motion capture animation services (Studio Dynamo), VR/AR content development, and digital production work across film, anime, television commercials, games, amusement machine visuals, and live event content. Its core technology stack centered on Maya as the primary digital content creation tool, complemented by Houdini for fluid simulation, ZBrush, Substance Painter, and Unreal Engine 4 / Unity for real-time and VR rendering, with motion capture as a standalone service line.

The company operated a hybrid specialist/generalist staffing model in which employees could specialize or take on multi-skill roles based on individual career design, with projects flexibly assigned. It developed in-house proprietary tools to support panoramic and VR workflows, including a Maya plugin (deformBySurface) for deforming geometry along NURBS surfaces, an AfterEffects plugin (DP_sphericalImage) for equirectangular panoramic camera effects, a UE4 Panoramic Camera Blueprint using SceneCaptureComponentCube with custom shaders, and a Maya HMD preview plugin (hwRenderSpherical). These tools supported niche production needs rather than commercial productization. The business model was project-based B2B services for entertainment industry clients, with no publicly disclosed pricing.

On October 1, 2021, the company executed a corporate split separating its amusement machine content business into Dynamo Amusement (株式会社ダイナモアミューズメント). On July 14, 2022, a stock transfer agreement was signed transferring all shares to Nintendo Co., Ltd. (任天堂株式会社), and on October 3, 2022, the acquisition closed, the company became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nintendo, and was renamed Nintendo Pictures Co., Ltd. (ニンテンドーピクチャーズ株式会社), concluding the Dynamo Pictures brand era.

Name

Dynamo Pictures

Legal name

株式会社ダイナモピクチャーズ

Website

https://dynapix.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Dynamo Pictures is a Japanese CG/3D/4D visual effects and motion capture production studio founded in 2011, serving entertainment, anime, game, VR/AR, and amusement machine clients. Following its October 2022 acquisition by Nintendo, it now operates as Nintendo Pictures.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

CG/Visual Effects Production Services

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Production (512110), Motion Picture and Video Production (51211)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

Animation Services for VFX (Creature/Character, Crowd, Simulation Support) (MPADAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Real-Time Compositing, Keying & On-Set Playback (MPAHADAG), Virtual Production Production Management & Collaboration Tools (MPAHADAK), VR/AR/XR Game Studios (MPAFAAAE)

Keywords

• CG animation production
• Visual effects services
• Motion capture services
• Stereoscopic 3D video
• VR AR content development

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Dynamo Pictures provides CG animation, VFX, and stereoscopic (3D/4D) video production services for entertainment clients in film, anime, games, commercials, VR/AR, and amusement machines. The studio runs a motion capture facility (Studio Dynamo) and develops proprietary plugins for panoramic content creation in Maya, After Effects, and Unreal Engine 4. Production is anchored on Maya as the primary DCC tool with Houdini, ZBrush, Substance, UE4, and Unity used across the pipeline.

Product overview

Dynamo Pictures operates as a unified CG and motion capture production studio offering a coordinated suite of services. The core offering includes motion capture operations (Studio Dynamo), comprehensive CG/3D/4D stereoscopic video production, and VR/AR content development. Previously, the company maintained a separate entertainment division called Dynamo Amusement for arcade and amusement visual content, which was spun off in October 2021. Maya is the primary 3D software tool used across production workflows.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Motion Capture Production (Studio Dynamo / スタジオダイナモ) Motion capture services including studio operations and motion capture design for character animation, supporting entertainment and animation production clients.
• CG/3D/4D Stereoscopic Video Production CG animation and 3D/4D stereoscopic video production services for films, anime, games, commercials, and various visual content. Production is anchored on Maya with Houdini, ZBrush, Substance, UE4, and Unity tools.
• VR/AR Content Development Virtual reality and augmented reality content planning and production, including spherical rendering, equirectangular panoramic workflows, and HMD-based animation previews for immersive experiences.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Polygon Pictures: Tokyo-based CG animation studio listed on TSE. Most directly comparable to Dynamo Pictures as a Japanese CG production house serving film, anime, game, and VR clients with end-to-end CG/VFX pipelines.
• OLM (Oriental Light and Magic): Long-established Japanese CG animation studio behind Pokémon and other major anime/game IP. Highly comparable given shared focus on CG animation, motion capture, and large entertainment franchise work.
• Sanzigen: Tokyo CG animation studio (3DCG anime specialist) with similar toolset (Maya) and focus on CG animation production for TV/film/anime. Directly comparable CG animation peer.
• Graphinica: Tokyo-based CG animation studio providing CG direction and production for anime and film. Closely comparable in scope (character animation, VFX support) and Japanese-market focus.
• Craftar Studios: Japanese CG animation and real-time production studio working on anime, game cinematics, and virtual production. Comparable in their combined CG animation plus real-time rendering focus.
• Shirogumi: Japanese CG/VFX studio known for character-driven VFX work and 3D character pipelines. Comparable given shared emphasis on creature/character animation and VFX.

Broad incumbents

• Industrial Light & Magic (ILM): Global leader in VFX and virtual production with far larger scale. Relevant as the broad incumbent benchmark for premium VFX/animation work Dynamo Pictures targets.
• Framestore: Global VFX and immersive content studio with strong VR/AR/spherical content capabilities. Comparable as an incumbent spanning VFX, VR, and real-time production.

Emerging players

• Orange (anime CG studio): French-Japanese CG animation studio specializing in full 3DCG anime (Land of the Lustrous, Beastars). Comparable as a non-Japanese-headquartered CG anime studio targeting premium character animation.

Regional players

• Marza Animation Planet: Tokyo-based CG animation studio owned by Sega Sammy producing CG films tied to video game IP. Highly comparable given similar Japanese market focus and game-IP animation specialization.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/dynamo_pix

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dynamo Pictures