Leading global animation production companies Aniventure, Zaratan and Alcyde today announced a major partnership with India’s Arka Productions to expand the globally successful Baahubali films (the highest-grossing Indian film franchise of all time) into a full-length CG-animated feature film. The new movie, titled Baahubali: The Eternal War – Part 1, is set to be directed by Ishan Shukla (Star Wars: Visions – “The Bandits of Golak”) and written by Scott Mosier (Clerks, Mallrats, Dogma).
A teaser trailer, offering a first look at the highly stylized project, was revealed today. The film is due for release in 2027.
“The initial vision was very ambitious. Baahubali is more than just a film franchise; it’s a cultural phenomenon and a deeply emotional universe for millions of fans,” said Shobu Yarlagadda, Producer at Arka. “To bring it into a new medium like animation, we needed partners who not only understood world-class production but who could truly respect and elevate the epic scope of the story with a bold, stylized visual artistry never seen before in Indian cinema. Aniventure, Zaratan and Alcyde are those partners.”
In addition to seeking out partners who can bring to life a visually innovative CG view of the Baahubali world, Arka Productions is bootstrapping a production strategy that will primarily be executed in India, honoring the franchise’s roots.
Aniventure’s Adam Nagle spearheaded the deal, partnering with Zaratan’s Andrew Pearce & Paula Bird to deliver a pre-production package. They brought on Alcyde Studio to help develop the look and guide the visual development across the entire film, overseeing storyboard, 3D previsualization and key character designs to ensure a coherent and compelling visual storytelling.
“Working on such an iconic story alongside director Ishan Shukla was both thrilling and a huge responsibility,” said Antoine Charreyron, who is directing the animation for Alcyde Studio. “It was so important for our production designer Florent Auguy and CG supervisor Dorian Marchesin that we honor the grandeur of the world of Baahubali while bringing our own unique vision, combining epic scale with the highest visual fidelity that speaks to every audience.”
The new ‘Look of Picture’ teaser, featuring animation from the upcoming picture, is being showcased as an interlude between Part 1 and Part 2 of the recent re-release of the live-action Baahubali: The Epic, a unified re-cut/remaster of S.S. Rajamouli’s two parter The Beginning (2015) and The Conclusion (2017), which has seen fans flock to sold-out shows around the world.
“The Baahubali universe needed a truly distinct visual style to capture the unique, edgier tone we were aiming for,” added Andrew Pearce, Producer for Zaratan. “Our collaboration with Alcyde and Les Androids Associés has achieved a CG look that is cinematic, fresh, and perfectly honors the scale of the Baahubali legacy while breaking new ground.”
