Mercury Filmworks

What Mercury Filmworks does

Mercury Filmworks is an independent animation studio founded in 1997 and headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, operating with an employee base in the 251-500 range. The studio delivers end-to-end animated content production — development, pre-production, animation, and post-production — across series, feature films, shorts, and specials, with capabilities spanning digital 2D animation (Toon Boom Harmony, Storyboard Pro) and CGI. It has produced more than 17 major projects, including Hilda, Hilda and the Mountain King, Mickey Mouse Shorts, The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse, The Lion Guard, Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure, Centaurworld, Kid Cosmic, The Ghost and Molly McGee, The Bob's Burgers Movie, The Interrupting Chicken, and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

The business operates a dual model. The larger revenue engine is commissioned production services for tier-1 clients — Netflix, Disney (and Disney Television Animation), Apple TV+, Amazon, Sony Kids Television, and 20th Television — secured through direct enterprise relationships rather than open pitching markets. Alongside this for-hire work, the studio develops and retains ownership of original IP (Atomic Puppet, Bunny McBee, Loony Lake, Pangors of Puddle Peak, A Mouse Called Julian) and is investing in book-to-screen adaptations (Flying Eye Books) and original short-form content (The Pine Creepers). The GTM motion is B2B enterprise sales with a project-based pricing model; budgets are negotiated per production and are not publicly disclosed.

Differentiators rest on a concentrated creative talent base in Ottawa, a proprietary training tool (Chip Johnson Space Cadet), and a track record validated by 2 Children's & Family Emmy Awards in 2022, 6 Primetime Emmys and 21 Annie Awards for Mickey Mouse Shorts, BAFTA, Annie, Daytime Emmy, and Kidscreen wins for Hilda, and 3 Daytime Emmys for Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure. The studio is privately held, incorporated as Mercury Filmworks Corp. under Ontario law, with no disclosed parent company, external investors, or funding rounds.

Name

Mercury Filmworks

Legal name

Mercury Filmworks Corp.

Website

https://mercuryfilmworks.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Mercury Filmworks is an Ottawa-based independent animation studio founded in 1997 that produces animated series, feature films, and specials on commission for tier-1 clients including Netflix, Disney, Apple TV+, Amazon, and Sony, while also developing and retaining ownership of original IP.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animation Production Services

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Production (51211)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

Animated Series Production (TV/Streaming) (MPADACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Animation Production (2D/3D/Stop-Motion) (MPAAAMAD), Motion Graphics & Titling (2D/3D, Broadcast Graphics) (MPADAGAD)

Keywords

• Animated series production
• Animation studio services
• Feature film production
• Original IP development
• Children's animation production

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Animation Production Services: Mercury Filmworks generates revenue by producing animated content under commission for major entertainment companies and streaming platforms. Projects are contracted work including animated series, feature films, and shorts produced for clients like Netflix, Disney, Apple TV+, and Amazon.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mercury Filmworks is an independent animation studio that provides end-to-end animation production services—including development, pre-production, animation, and post-production—for major entertainment companies and streaming platforms such as Netflix, Disney, Apple TV+, and Amazon. The studio produces animated series, feature films, shorts, and specials across 2D, CGI, and hybrid animation styles, while also developing and owning original animated properties.

Product overview

Mercury Filmworks is an independent animation studio that operates on a dual model: it produces animated series and feature films as a production services partner for major studios and streaming platforms, while also developing and maintaining ownership of original animated properties. Their production services encompass the full animation pipeline—development, pre-production, animation, and post-production—across diverse animation styles including 2D, CGI, and hybrid approaches. As a partner studio, they have produced acclaimed content for Netflix (Hilda, Hilda and the Mountain King), Disney (The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse Shorts, The Lion Guard, Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure), Apple TV+ (The Interrupting Chicken), Amazon (If You Give a Mouse a Cookie), and 20th Television (The Ghost and Molly McGee, Kid Cosmic, Centaurworld, The Bob's Burgers Movie). Alongside client work, they develop original content including Atomic Puppet, Bunny McBee, Loony Lake, Pangors of Puddle Peak, and A Mouse Called Julian—properties they retain ownership of and can license or distribute. Their portfolio spans multiple formats (series, features, shorts, specials) and targets audiences from preschool through adult, distributed across streaming platforms, theatrical release, and traditional broadcast.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Animated Series Production Full-service production of animated series for television and streaming platforms, including development, pre-production, animation, and post-production across multiple animation styles for clients such as Netflix, Disney, Apple TV+, and Amazon.
• Animated Feature Film Production Production of animated feature-length films including musicals, comedies, and adventure stories for theatrical and streaming release, spanning 82-102 minutes.
• Hilda (Series) Emmy-winning animated series following fearless, free-spirited Hilda who finds new friends, adventure, and magical creatures when she leaves her enchanted forest home for the city of Trolberg. Produced for Netflix.
• Hilda and the Mountain King Feature-length animated adventure where Hilda must use her wits and courage to become human again and save the city of Trolberg after waking up in the body of a troll.
• Atomic Puppet Original animated series about an ordinary kid whose transformation into superhero Atomic Puppet occurs when Captain Atomic is turned into a hapless puppet.
• Bunny McBee Original animated series about a tiny bee with a big heart and huge imagination who explores the world from a small perspective alongside his best buddy, a worm named Opal.
• Loony Lake Original animated slapstick comedy series about ranger Glen Gladstone on a mission to find proof that alien life exists at the peaceful but crazy Loony Lake.
• Pangors of Puddle Peak Original animated series where Maddie and Max discover fantastical creatures called pangors living alongside humans in the coastal town of Puddle Peak.
• A Mouse Called Julian Original CGI animated special produced in partnership with Flying Eye Books, about a mouse who finds friendship with an unexpected dinner guest—a fox stuck in his burrow.
• The Interrupting Chicken Preschool animated series about Piper, a young chicken who interrupts story time, based on the Caldecott Honor-winning book series by David Ezra Stein. Released November 2022 on Apple TV+.
• The Duke's Game Original animated short commissioned by Toon Boom Animation to demonstrate the capabilities of Harmony 22 and Storyboard Pro 22 software. Featured in official downloadable demo scenes.

Quantifiable outcome

• Hilda and the Mountain King won 2 Children's & Family Emmy Awards in 2022
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Flying Eye BooksminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Flying Eye Books partnered with Mercury Filmworks to produce A Mouse Called Julian, a 1x26 CGI animated special based on the book by Flying Eye Books.
• NetflixcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2022Netflix is a major production partner for Mercury Filmworks. The studio produces animated series for Netflix including Hilda and Hilda and the Mountain King. Netflix provides the streaming distribution platform while Mercury handles animation production.
• Apple TV+coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2022Mercury Filmworks partnered with Apple TV+ to produce The Interrupting Chicken, a preschool series released in November 2022. The studio's VP of Co-Productions and Originals Chantal Ling and CEO Clint Eland serve as Executive Producers on the series.
• Sony Kids TelevisioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Sony Kids Television is a key partner on the Hilda franchise. They co-produced Hilda and the Mountain King and collaborated with Mercury Filmworks and Netflix on multiple productions.
• AmazoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Amazon partnered with Mercury Filmworks to produce If You Give a Mouse a Cookie animated series (30x52 format, released 2017) for Amazon Prime Video.
• DisneycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Disney is a long-standing production partner. Mercury Filmworks has produced multiple Disney properties including Mickey Mouse Shorts, The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse, Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure, and The Lion Guard.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Nelvana (Corus Entertainment): Nelvana is a Canadian-owned animation studio and production company headquartered in Toronto that produces animated series, features and specials for global broadcasters and streamers. Highly comparable as a fellow Canadian animation house producing commissioned kids' and family content at scale.
• WildBrain (WildBrain Ltd.): WildBrain is a Canadian animation studio, content distributor and IP owner (Peanuts, Teletubbies, Strawberry Shortcake) with production and library operations comparable to Mercury's combined services-plus-original-IP model. Both serve streaming and broadcast clients with kids' animation.
• Guru Studio: Guru Studio is a Toronto-based animation studio that produces original and commissioned animated series (True and the Rainbow Kingdom, Paw Patrol-adjacent work) for Netflix, Disney and others. Directly comparable as a mid-sized Canadian animation services + IP studio.
• Bardel Entertainment: Bardel Entertainment is a Vancouver-based animation studio providing 2D, CG and pre-production services for series and feature projects with major North American platforms (Netflix, Disney, Amazon). Comparable as a Canadian outsourced animation production house.
• Titmouse Inc. Titmouse is a US-based animation studio producing series and feature work (e.g., Big Mouth, Star Trek: Lower Decks, The Venture Bros.) for streaming and cable clients. Comparable mid-sized services studio with similar commissioned animated series model.
• Locksmith Animation: Locksmith Animation is a UK-based studio producing CG animated feature films (e.g., Ron's Gone Wrong, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget) for major global distributors. Comparable as a non-studio-affiliated independent feature animation house serving streamers.
• Reel FX Animation: Reel FX Animation is a Dallas-based independent animation studio that produces original and commissioned animated feature films (e.g., The Book of Life, Luck). Comparable as an independent animation studio balancing original IP and services work.
• Powerhouse Animation: Powerhouse Animation is a US animation studio producing original adult animated series (Castlevania, Blood of Zeus) for Netflix and other streamers. Comparable as a commissioned animation studio with a focus on premium series for streaming platforms.

Broad incumbents

• DNEG Animation: DNEG Animation is the animation division of DNEG, a large VFX and animation services group producing both feature animation and visual effects for major studios. Comparable as a higher-scale, multi-service production partner spanning animation and VFX.

Emerging players

• Sparx* / Virtuos (animation arm): Virtuos is a global game and animation services company with growing animation production capabilities serving major entertainment IPs. Comparable as a large-scale outsourced animation services provider competing for commissioned production work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/MercuryFilmworks
• Xx.com/mercuryfilmwrks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

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 Mercury Filmworks