Sony Animation Paws First Acquisition

According to The Hollywood Reporter, newly formed Sony Pictures Animation has acquired its first feature property. The Fast and the Furious scribe Gary Scott Thompson pitched the story about two dog brothers who weigh the merits and disadvantages of immortality in Shangri-La, the mythical utopia and the film’s working title.

Thompson will work closely with executive vps Penney Finkelman Cox and Sandra Rabins and creative vp Nate Hopper in developing the project, which is reportedly slated to go into production within the next year.

Working with Imageworks, the studio’s FX division and birthplace of the CG animated short The ChubbChubbs, Sony Animation is getting a production pipeline in place and plans to crank out features in 18 months.