After a 16-month run, virtual world content creator The Electric Sheep Company (ESC) and its critically acclaimed machinima animation division, previously ILL Clan, have restructured to operate as distinct business entities.
"The Electric Sheep Company has seen an increased demand in Web-based virtual experiences, and our direction as a company has shifted to serve this demand for our clients and our own business initiatives," says Sibley Verbeck, CEO for The Electric Sheep Company. "This focus has limited the potential for ILL Clan to service the separate growing animation market that utilizes their skills and technology. We are pleased to be in the client roll with ILL Clan moving forward and look forward to the increased business opportunities this split represents for the crew at ILL Clan."
"Our tenure at the Electric Sheep was an incredible experience," said Frank Dellario, ESC's former VP of machinima and current president of the newly re-formed ILL Clan Animation Studios. "Their support enabled us to expand our expertise to a new level and add some of the world's biggest entertainment and marketing companies to our portfolio."
ESC recruited the ILL Clan, then an independent company with nearly a decade of experience, as its exclusive machinima division in January 2007. Under the "Sheep" banner, the department flourished, producing works for clients like CBS, NBC, MTV, and IBM, as well as for television, including key animation sequences in two episodes of the primetime drama CSI: NY and a pre-Super Bowl commercial for TWO AND A HALF MEN.
"It was a privilege to be part of that visionary organization," Dellario said. "Now, as we embark on this new phase, we are excited and honored at the opportunity to continue serving their machinima needs, as well as those of new clients."
