Rooster Teeth announces layoffs and restructuring: Austin studio removes 13% of its workforce – Screens



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Rooster Teeth, the Austin-based online content empire, has just announced that the studio is laying off 13% of its staff as part of a widely-awaited restructuring. The company said the cuts were designed to respond to industry changes and reorient themselves for future projects.

Founded in 2003, Rooster Teeth has been a pioneer of online video, preceding Youtube, and has become a major force of online content, with an extensive catalog of animated series and live action scenes, a division games and a selection of movies. a huge base of loyal fans. The original founders sold the company to Fullscreen in 2014. This resulted in a series of takeovers and mergers that led RT to become a part of the capital of AT & T's T WarnerMedia. Throughout this process, he maintained a great deal of autonomy, which allowed him to experience his greatest period of growth. RWBY and gen: LOCK), but it also led to a culture of crisis and issues in the production process and pipeline, causing Gray Haddock, Director of Animation, to move from his management position to a strictly creative role early in the summer. 'year.

This was widely seen as the first step in a restructuring process that has hit hard today, with the first reduction in staff in 16 years of existence. In a letter to staff sent this afternoon, co-founder and CEO Matt Hullum confirmed the reduction, stating that "this decision does not reflect the individual's individual performance, and we are grateful for all the contributions of our alumni. We will do everything we can to facilitate their transition, including helping them find their next opportunities. "

The layoffs will clearly have a major impact on Austin 's creative community, as Rooster Teeth is one of the largest employers of artists and developers in the city.

Here is the complete email from Hullum.

Good morning all –

The day was tough at Rooster Teeth and is like no other moment of organizational change we've had together. As we looked at all our opportunities and challenges ahead, we had to make some tough decisions about how we are organized. Unfortunately, that means we have reduced the size of our team by about 13% overall earlier in the day. This decision does not reflect the individual performance of each, and we are grateful for all the contributions of our former colleagues. We will do everything in our power to facilitate their transition, including helping them find the next opportunities.

As discussed at departmental meetings, our leaders have adjusted their teams to meet the needs of our future. Our industry is changing rapidly and we need to evolve with it if we want to succeed. At the beginning of a new chapter, we have the opportunity to focus on what we do best: create great content for our community and our partners, supported by key business areas such as advertising, distribution, memberships, events and e-commerce.

We have already accomplished a lot this year: gen: LOCK and Immersion We've both made their TV debut, announced new content partnerships with DC, HBO Max and others, and we continue to produce incredible programming that brings joy to our community every day.

We can hope to be even more successful in this regard: to continue to develop our relationships within the WarnerMedia family and beyond, and to find new platforms on which we can continue our pioneering creative work in the areas of gaming, entertainment and Animation and comedy.

With many teams moving to new premises tomorrow, we will meet briefly on Monday to discuss these changes in more detail. I look forward to seeing you because I always find renewed confidence, optimism and enthusiasm in our mission when we come together as a team.

Finally, I wish the best to all our former colleagues. We are grateful for the passion and creativity they brought to Rooster Teeth, and grateful for the friendships we have created. I have been fortunate to work closely with many of those leaving today, and I am sad to say goodbye, but also to be incredibly proud of what we have accomplished together.

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