Journey to the Center of the Earth scored US$20.6 million at the box office in its opening weekend in North America, yet dozens who worked on its special effects at Montreal's Meteor Studios have yet to be paid in full for their handiwork, according to Meteor's bankruptcy filing document obtained by Playback.

The situation has all the earmarks of a growing industry trend in which post shops desperate for work are underbidding for jobs and then can't meet payroll. It also calls into question FX artists' ability to protect themselves in such an instance.

There are 92 Canadian employees named in the bankruptcy suit (filed by trustee RSM Richter Inc. on March 10), which lists $598,176 as owing to employees. That total does not include freelancers or their fees.

The document defines Meteor Studios as "a Quebec Corporation formed in 2000 of which Evergreen Digital LLC (50%) and Discovery Trademark Holding Company Inc. (50%) are the shareholders...Its main client was The Discovery Channel."

Maryland-based Discovery VP and spokesperson Katie Wolfgang tells Playback that Discovery held a "passive non-controlling interest" in Meteor, and that "matters related to the management of Meteor Studios, its employees and operations were handled by Meteor Studios' principals."

Pierre de Lespinois, an American and former Meteor president and a principal of Evergreen Films LLC, did not return requests for comment.

Discovery's Wolfgang also made a point of adding that "there is no relationship between Discovery Communications and Lumière VFX," a new visual effects studio that opened its doors in February 2008 in the same location as the now-defunct Meteor.

Lumière currently employs many former Meteor staffers and is involved with de Lespinois insofar as he is handling the VFX on Lost City Raiders (starring James Brolin), a new $6.4-million series announced in March by Munich-based Tandem Communications and on which Lumière has been contracted.

American-born Aaron Dem is both Lumière's president of production and the previous VP of production for Meteor who oversaw its FX work on Journey, which was completed and delivered on time.

"[Meteor] absolutely finished our work on Journey," says Dem. "I started bidding on the project in October of 2005, we started shooting in June of 2006, and wrapped our work in November of 2007."

Nonetheless, Meteor closed its doors for good right after Journey was completed in November 2007.

Dem acknowledges that people are owed money for their work on Journey, himself included. He also says there is no connection between Meteor and Lumière.

"There is no affiliation between Lumière VFX and Meteor Studios nor any of Meteor's past owners," says Dem. "[Lumière] is also not linked to Discovery nor are we linked to de Lespinois, aside from the fact that he's an employee of a production company [Lumière] is doing business with.

"[Lumière] is a brand new studio being funded by European backers with the point of producing content of its owners and third-party businesses," Dem continues. "We're looking to build a successful company in Montreal.