By Amid Amidi
April 29, 2025
>>>Originally published on Cartoonbrew.com: https://www.cartoonbrew.com/business/the-hive-studio-expands-to-europe-with-new-athens-studio-247042.html
The Hive Studio, the Israeli animation production outfit best known for producing Tal Kantor’s 2024 Oscar-nominated short film Letter to a Pig, has launched a new satellite studio, The Hive Greece, in partnership with Animasyros Productions.
Here is what has been announced about the company’s expansion:
The new Athens-based division will utilize talent and resources from the South Mediterranean region, while providing The Hive access to new partnership opportunities for European co-productions. The studio will focus on “internationally relevant stories that transcend cultural boundaries as well as producing original Greek content,” and it will be supported by Greece’s 40% rebate on foreign investment.
In addition to production, the Greek branch will offer a variety of animation-focused courses for new talent, starting with a masterclass on Toon Boom.
The company is being launched in partnership with Animasyros Productions, which is the production company behind the country’s largest animation festival.
CEO Amit Russell Gicelter, who founded The Hive in 2010, said in a statement, “I’m truly excited to be collaborating with the Greek industry. Over the past several months we’ve been developing, producing, and collaborating together. It feels like a natural and meaningful evolution for our company. I can’t wait to explore the opportunities that lie ahead.”
Following the opening of the Greek studio, The Hive will have a workforce of 40 people across its two studios in Athens and Tel Aviv. In addition to Letter to a Pig, the studio has produced award-winning shorts like Black Slide and Butterfly Kiss, commercials, and digital series such as Crayola’s Scribble Scrubbie Pets and Normal MFers.
