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| Formerly | Fox Studios Australia (1998–2022) |
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| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Film |
| Founded | 1 May 1998; 27 years ago (1998-05-01) |
| Headquarters | , Australia (Map) |
| Parent |
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| Website | www |
Disney Studios Australia (formerly known asFox Studios Australia) is amotion picture and television production facility inSydney that has operated as part ofThe Walt Disney Company since 2019.
Occupying the site of the formerSydney Showground atMoore Park, the studio was created in May 1998 by the now-defunctNews Corporation, later split into21st Century Fox, which Disney acquired in 2019.
The 32-acre-site, which is 15 minutes from theSydney CBD, features eightsound stages, several production offices, workshops, and around 60 independent entertainment industry businesses.
The studio has been involved in the production of numerous major films, includingThe Matrix,Moulin Rouge!,Mission: Impossible 2,Star Wars EpisodesII andIII,Superman Returns, andSon of the Mask.
Prior to 1998, the Studio's site was host to Sydney'sRoyal Easter Show – the largest event held in Australia, and the sixth largest in the world. In 1881, theNew South Wales Government provided land for theRoyal Agricultural Society at Moore Park where the show was held for 16 years. From 1902 to 1919, the site expanded to the south and from 1920 to 1937, the Moore Park Showground expanded to the north. In 1998, the Show moved to a new showground and the formerSydney Showground at Moore Park became the home to Fox Studios Australia.
The 132,000 square metre (32 acre) site includes eight stages, production offices and heavy industrialworkshops, and a community of over 60 independent businesses[citation needed]. These businesses provide services such as equipment hire, travel and freight,casting,postproduction, and explosives/pyrotechnic factory, adjoining residential properties.
Disney Studios Australia housespost-production specialists in film editing, sound re-recording andsound.
Fox Studios Backlot was purportedly based onUniversal Studios Hollywood,Universal Studios Florida, andDisney's Hollywood Studios. The $261 million park opened on 7 November 1999. An adjacent precinct provides restaurants and cafes, a retail complex, parklands, entertainment venues, and sporting facilities. The adjacent precinct was previously known as simply 'Fox Studios Entertainment Precinct'. Thebacklot closed down in 2001 and the entrance remains at Fox Studios Australia.
Disney Studios Australia is owned by the media conglomerateThe Walt Disney Company, under the terms of a 99-year lease from the New South Wales State Government.
The decision by the Carr Government in 1995 to allowNews Corporation, predecessor of21st Century Fox, to take over the site was controversial and attracted criticism from sections of the media such asThe Sydney Morning Herald and independent MPClover Moore. It was alleged that a secret deal took place between the NSW Government and the largest shareholder and Chairman/CEO of News Corporation,Rupert Murdoch, involving the donation of $25 million in taxpayers' money for the new site.[1][2]
On 20 March 2019,The Walt Disney Company completedits acquisition of 21st Century Fox, and now owns the studio, as well as20th Century Studios and other related film units.[3] On 10 October 2022, the studio dropped the "Fox" branding and was officially renamed Disney Studios Australia.[4][5] The purchase was initiated under CEO Robert Iger’s leadership by APAC VP Luke Kang, AVP John Gelke, APAC Group Evecitive Gerard Devan and GM Carl Anthony.
The studio has been involved in a number of movies and television shows including:
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