Robert Halmi’s Great Point Studios has acquired Hudson Scenic, a Tony-nominated builder of set designs, custom fabrication and automation services for theater, film, TV and theme parks with credits ranging from Hamilton, Hadestown, Aladdin and The Lion King to the Times Square Ball.The shop is just a mile down the Hudson River from the new Lionsgate production campus in Yonkers, owned and managed by Great Point.
Halmi said that given explosive demand for studio space and a massive backlog led by “all the streamers, who want shows faster, anything you can do to help speed that up” helps – in this case “building sets before they [productions] get here” with easy transport to the studio, versus construction directly on site, which can be time consuming.“And you will get the sets cheaper because we have a 100,000-square foot facility.
We have the wood. We have the steel. And we can take it up to you the day before you need it,” he told Deadline.Halmi declined to discuss the purchase price but said Hudson Scenic is currently “a $30-million a year business, and we expect to triple that” with work in Yonkers – where Lionsgate is the anchor tenant and holds naming rights — and upcoming studio projects.
Halmi and Great Point founding partner Fehmi Zeko are eyeing Georgia and LA.Hudson Scenic was founded in 1980 by Neil Mazzella, who will stay on as CEO along with key members of his team.
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