EagleTree Capital, the New York-based private equity and investment firm, has acquired a majority stake in FuseFX, the independent visual effects studio with facilities in Los Angeles, New York and Vancouver. Fuse FX founder and CEO David Altenau, as well as fellow co-founders — chief development officer Tim Jacobsen and chief technology officer Jason Fotter — will retain a significant minority stake and continue to lead the company. EagleTree’s investment, the terms of which were not disclosed, will be used to accelerate the company’s growth.
Founded in 2006, FuseFX, headquartered in L.A., provides visual effects for episodic content as well as feature films, commercials and VR. Its work has appeared in episodes of such programs as Criminal Minds, Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, American Horror Story, The Blacklist and Preacher, among others. It’s currently working on Lost in Space, Ozark and Mr. Robot.
“This investment will allow us expand our pool of talent and offer visual effects services in more locations, not only to service local production worldwide, but to place work in geographic locations most suited to our clients’ needs,” Altenau said. He added, “The partnership with EagleTree will help accelerate many initiatives already underway, and we look forward to making some exciting announcements, such as a new FuseFX Atlanta office, in the very near future.”
“We’re very pleased to add FuseFX to EagleTree’s portfolio, and we’re looking forward to working with David, Tim and Jason,” Anup Bagaria, co-managing partner at EagleTree, said. “EagleTree has a long history of partnering with founders to help take their businesses to the next level.”
JEGI/Clarity served as financial adviser to FuseFX. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius served as legal adviser. Jones Day served as legal adviser to EagleTree.
