Deluxe has announced it will close the doors to its Australian film laboratory on April 19, losing four employees in the process.
The decision comes less than two weeks after Peter Jackson’s famous Park Road film laboratory announced plans to discontinue business this coming June.
Managing director of Deluxe Australia Alaric McCausland described the announcement as being a “very sad day for us” and a “long, thought-through decision.”
McCausland said, regrettable as the decision was, it was “a reflection of what has been happening over the past few years.”
“The move to digital has been a global trend and Australia is not immune to that. It’s a transition that has been happening in various part of the film business for the past ten years and a reflection of preferred format of cinematographers the world over.”
“The industry has moved on.”
McCausland confirmed Deluxe was forced to discontinue the employment of four Deluxe employees (out of the 300 working in Australia) as a result of the lab’s closure.
“The announcement means that we are regrettably and very sadly saying good-bye to four very valued team members,” he said.
But McCausland went on to say that to continue with the Australian film laboratory open was simply not viable in the current climate.
“It’s a very tough ask for us to sustain the losses that we have and more importantly provide the quality of work, when the volume (of work) is insignificant, if not existent.”
McCausland said the company had been informing key stake holders of the decision over the last couple of days.