Cheehoo Secures $10M Funding from Greycroft to Revolutionize AI Animation
Creating animation can be a challenging and time-consuming process, involving several intricate steps such as storyboarding, rendering, composition, and lighting. For directors eager to explore different interpretations of a scene, the animation team often faces the daunting task of revisiting and tweaking elements before finalizing the production. Fortunately, Cheehoo, a promising startup founded by a blend of Hollywood executives and tech innovators, is revolutionizing the animation landscape with its AI-powered tools designed to streamline the animation creation process.
About Cheehoo: Transforming Animation Production
Cheehoo emerged from Rideback, the production company behind the successful Lego Movie franchise. The founding team includes co-CEOs Michael LoFaso and Jonathan Eirich, along with co-founder Dan Lin. Other notable members are Chris deFaria, former President of DreamWorks Animation, and ex-Apple AI researchers Hubert Tsai and Wei-Cheng Kuo.
Innovative Solutions for Creators
In a recent interview with TechCrunch, LoFaso discussed Cheehoo’s mission to simplify the animation process for studios and creators. “The animation creation process was becoming increasingly expensive and complex,” he explained. “We aimed to develop a tool that aligns with creators’ workflows to enhance their productivity.”
Key Features of Cheehoo’s Tools
Cheehoo provides a unique suite of tools that enables creators to rapidly prototype and iterate on animations. Key features include:
- Data annotation for efficient organization
- File conversions to maintain format consistency
- Seamless integration with popular platforms such as Maya and Unreal
- Real-time editing capabilities allowing immediate visualization of changes
With Cheehoo’s in-house AI models, users can enhance character and asset creation. The platform also supports integration with third-party AI models from OpenAI, Runway, and others for advanced tasks like motion stylization and scene composition.
Funding and Future Prospects
While Cheehoo has not disclosed its launch partners, the startup is engaged with several intellectual property holders, studios, and creators. It has successfully raised $10 million in funding led by Greycroft, with additional investments from Point72 Ventures, Basis Set, Headline Asia, Powerhouse Capital, Playground Productions, and Rideback.
Brentt Baltimore, a principal at Greycroft, expressed confidence in Cheehoo’s potential to innovate within the animation industry. “Cheehoo has the potential to significantly reduce production costs, allowing sophisticated creators to produce animation films without requiring an expensive studio setup,” he stated. The goal is to empower independent filmmakers and individuals by providing creative control alongside advanced animation features.
Looking Ahead: Consumer-Focused Products
As Cheehoo continues to focus on enterprises and professionals, LoFaso revealed plans to expand into consumer-oriented products. This strategic move could position Cheehoo competitively against startups like Accel-backed Cartwheel and Naver-backed Cinamon, both of which are also developing tools to streamline animation production.
In conclusion, Cheehoo’s innovative approach to animation production aims to empower creators by simplifying complex processes while maintaining creative control. Stay tuned for exciting developments from this pioneering startup!
