[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https://gizmodo.com/app/uploads/2026/08/phil-tippett-hed-1200×675.jpg”]
Update(8/31/2026 @ 7AM ET): On Facebook, Tippett Studio clarified its status, saying it’s “evolved our physical footprint and production approach.” While its Berkely office is shut down and its materials sold off, its Toronto office still continues operations and the studio’s VFX and animation work. Notably, the Toronto office is “in active production on a large feature film”—potentially Sentinel.
“Stop-motion remains an important part of our creative capabilities, but maintaining a large permanent physical footprint is no longer necessary for our current requirements,” wrote Tippett. The company will use external buildings whenever it needs to for a project requiring “dedicated stages…motion-capture photography, or other specialized infrastructure. […] As we move forward, we remain focused on the work ahead, continuing to collaborate with our clients, creative partners and artists on current and upcoming productions.”
Original story: Phil Tippett, the animator famous for Star Wars and Jurassic Park, announced he’s been forced into retirement and shutting down his namesake studio.
Over the weekend, he’s sold off the majority of his and his studio’s stop-motion work and signed memorabilia. From signed posters to storyboards and models, to even studio tools, 273 items were up for grabs in an “everything must go!” fire sale. (Save for the Oscars Tippett won for Return of the Jedi and the original Jurassic Park; he understandably told Berkleyside he’d keep those.)
Phil Tippett co-founded Tippett Studio in 1984 with his wife, Jules Roman. Originally focused on stop-motion animation and its go-motion variant style, the studio expanded into building props for live-action films like the Robocop trilogy and computer-generated imagery. Where Phil went, his studio often followed, with Starship Troopers and Tippett’s debut feature Mad God among their many shared credits. Separate from its leader, Tippett Studio’s long career ranged from Bicentennial Man to more recently Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and Black Adam.
In 2024, Tippett Studio filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy following its acquisition by PhantomFX. After completing some stop-motion work on Alien: Romulus, Phil was to lead his studio as director and writer of the stop-motion feature Sentinel. By his admission, “a lot of painful decisions were made” preceding the studio’s closure and sale. Much as it’s likely bringing together anyone attending the sale who loved Tippett and the movies he and his studio worked on, this is a sad end for a man and studio whose work was so important to 40 years of western filmmaking.
This story has been updated and clarified with additional information from Tippett Studio.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
Update(8/31/2026 @ 7AM ET): On Facebook, Tippett Studio clarified its status, saying it’s “evolved our physical footprint and production approach.” While its Berkely office is shut down and its materials sold off, its Toronto office still continues operations and the studio’s VFX and animation work. Notably, the Toronto office is “in active production on a large feature film”—potentially Sentinel.
“Stop-motion remains an important part of our creative capabilities, but maintaining a large permanent physical footprint is no longer necessary for our current requirements,” wrote Tippett. The company will use external buildings whenever it needs to for a project requiring “dedicated stages…motion-capture photography, or other specialized infrastructure. […] As we move forward, we remain focused on the work ahead, continuing to collaborate with our clients, creative partners and artists on current and upcoming productions.”
Original story: Phil Tippett, the animator famous for Star Wars and Jurassic Park, announced he’s been forced into retirement and shutting down his namesake studio.
Over the weekend, he’s sold off the majority of his and his studio’s stop-motion work and signed memorabilia. From signed posters to storyboards and models, to even studio tools, 273 items were up for grabs in an “everything must go!” fire sale. (Save for the Oscars Tippett won for Return of the Jedi and the original Jurassic Park; he understandably told Berkleyside he’d keep those.)
Phil Tippett co-founded Tippett Studio in 1984 with his wife, Jules Roman. Originally focused on stop-motion animation and its go-motion variant style, the studio expanded into building props for live-action films like the Robocop trilogy and computer-generated imagery. Where Phil went, his studio often followed, with Starship Troopers and Tippett’s debut feature Mad God among their many shared credits. Separate from its leader, Tippett Studio’s long career ranged from Bicentennial Man to more recently Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and Black Adam.
In 2024, Tippett Studio filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy following its acquisition by PhantomFX. After completing some stop-motion work on Alien: Romulus, Phil was to lead his studio as director and writer of the stop-motion feature Sentinel. By his admission, “a lot of painful decisions were made” preceding the studio’s closure and sale. Much as it’s likely bringing together anyone attending the sale who loved Tippett and the movies he and his studio worked on, this is a sad end for a man and studio whose work was so important to 40 years of western filmmaking.
This story has been updated and clarified with additional information from Tippett Studio.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
[analyse_source url=”https://gizmodo.com/animator-phil-tippett-retired-and-sold-his-studio-this-weekend-2000804766″]