Founded in 1982, Cinnabar has been a pioneer in integrating innovative production and fabrication methods. It is recognised for its ability to bring complex and imaginative ideas to life, with standout projects spanning cultural institutions, film and television, public and fine art, and theme parks.
Nearly forty-three years later, the Los Angeles-based fabrication shop announced that it is winding down, culminating on a high note. We speak with the leadership team about Cinnabar’s unique journey and the extraordinary legacy the company and its team have created.
Cinnabar – pioneering an integrated approach
Cinnabar began as a speciality fabrication company in the entertainment industry, building sets, scenery, models and props for television, commercials and film. From humble beginnings operating from a small workshop in Hollywood, it swiftly took off. Notable commissions included working on Top Gun as well as building sets for Pee Wee’s Playhouse.
Reflecting on the early days, founder Jonathan Katz notes that a pivotal step for Cinnabar was parlaying its film industry creativity into building gigantic dimensional billboards, theme park attractions, and themed retail environments. By the early 2000s, Cinnabar further expanded its repertoire and began to focus primarily on exhibits for museums and cultural institutions.
“We already had a winning formula in film. However, I believed we could apply our experience to create value for new types of clients. Over time, this transition paid off, not just in company growth but also in engagement. Our team found the variety of work creatively rewarding and full of learning opportunities.
“Working with museums in particular allowed us to truly offer something unique.”
Cinnabar quickly evolved from a fabricator that clients would visit with sketches to bring to life to a one-stop shop for ideating, sketching, designing, and building their exhibitions.
“In the film world, the entire team is assembled at the start of the project. Our first museum projects were birthed in much the same way. Cinnabar wanted to be at the table early to participate in the design development, contributing cost savings, constructability suggestions, and material and technique approaches that helped accelerate schedules and maximise collaboration.”
This evolution—combining design, project management, and fabrication—became a hallmark of the industry, which is increasingly moving toward integrated project delivery models.
A new chapter
Talking about the decision to wind down the company, CEO Basil Katz says:
“Without exaggeration, Cinnabar is a magical place. Cinnabar has always been a home for artists and creative minds. Regardless of client or industry, they have brought the best of themselves to our work.
“Our current cohort is the most diverse, motivated, and talented it has ever been. Together, we have navigated major shifts, both in our industry and global events, always emerging as a better, stronger team and company. Due to their spirit and tenacity, Cinnabar has been undertaking ever larger and more complex projects of national significance. We continue to be approached for amazing opportunities. It has been hard to say no in the lead-up to this announcement.”
“Since coming out of the pandemic, the rapidly changing industry trend of large group consolidations poses increasing difficulty competing as a mid-sized business.
“After strategically considering our options, rather than sell Cinnabar and lose our unique “magic”, try to grow in scale and potentially compromise the company’s culture, or face the risk of future contraction should there be an economic downturn, I am closing the company in solidarity with its original founding vision and at a time of great success,” he explains.
Jonathan Katz adds that while most companies close due to financial struggles or project failures, that wasn’t Cinnabar’s situation:
“In fact, we are in a position where Basil and Katelyn have made the company more successful than ever. It’s a tough decision. It’s not a decision many would expect when a company is thriving. I think it reflects Basil’s deep understanding of what we have accomplished.”
Where the Wild Things Are
Cinnabar has delivered some truly memorable projects. In the late 1990s, it built The Wild Things Are Here, an interactive play space, and an In the Night Kitchen-themed restaurant inspired by Maurice Sendak’s famous books. This immersive environment was first produced for the San Francisco Metreon Center. Cinnabar also later replicated it for an installation in Odaiba, Japan.
The team had the opportunity to work with Sendak himself during the project. Talking about the experience, Jonathan Katz says:
“Maurice was an incredible artist and famously protective of his work. It was a big responsibility to do it justice. He would visit our shop, observe our work, and engage with our artisans. They earned his trust by responding to his suggestions and explaining the steps of transforming his illustrations into three dimensions and at a monstrous scale.
“He would pick up a piece of chalk to sketch something. Our team would then respond in foam or paint, and we would have a conversation across mediums. I remember collaborating with Maurice to figure out how we would translate his intricate cross-hatching and pencil work into physical 3D forms. Instead of dictating an answer, Maurice encouraged us to make several samples on the spot. Then, we homed in on the desired effect together. It was a liberating experience.”
This project taught the team an important lesson that has carried through to this day: the emotional impact of the work—how it makes people feel—matters deeply:
“Aside from the artistry, Where the Wild Things Are is so beloved for encouraging young people to experience their big emotions. Sendak inspired us to preserve not just the look of his illustrations but the feelings they evoked. We let that be the deciding factor of scale, materials, and methods. That then transformed how we approached our craft. We now always ask ourselves, ‘How will people experience what we build?’
“While much of a project’s success is in the technical execution, an even larger portion comes from creating wonder, amazement, and emotional resonance.”
It also highlighted the strength of the team. Coming from a background in film, Cinnabar had a diverse group of artisans who thrived when given creative freedom:
“We encouraged a collaborative environment that fostered trust. Clients returned to us as we completed more projects with this approach, recognising that we could consistently deliver high-quality, thoughtfully designed, and lasting work.”
Working with Renzo Piano
In 2008, Cinnabar worked with renowned architect Renzo Piano at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. In what became Cinnabar’s largest project yet at the time, it oversaw the design and fabrication of this extraordinary building’s inaugural exhibits. The team collaborated closely with Piano’s studio to ensure the exhibits complemented the building’s innovative design.
“Working with Renzo Piano was an extraordinary experience. I had the opportunity to build a working relationship with Renzo and his team,” says Jonathan Katz. “Renzo is not only a brilliant architect but also an incredibly savvy strategist. He had a clear philosophy about design and decision-making.”
“He believed that you had to decide what truly mattered. And, once you did, you had to stand your ground without compromise. That lesson left a lasting impact and shaped how I approached many aspects of the project.
“This project was particularly special because of the incredible contributions from many talented people at Cinnabar. It touched every department we had, such as carpentry, metal, paint, technical design, and project management, and even allowed us to create others, such as models, sculpture and interactives. It was a collective effort. Everyone—from artisans to project managers—played a crucial role in bringing the vision to life.
“In the end, it was that spirit of collaboration, combined with the lessons we learned from working alongside Renzo Piano and the Academy’s leadership, that made the project truly remarkable.”
Bringing worlds to life
A recent standout project was the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. This opened in 2021 in Los Angeles in a building by Renzo Piano with exhibits designed by WHY Architects. Part of the scope was creating the museum’s inaugural temporary exhibit, a Hayao Miyazaki retrospective.
“Cinnabar hadn’t done anything quite like it before that moment,” says Katelyn Remington-Arata, director of business operations. “Our team was deeply integrated with the museum in a very iterative design process. We had this challenge of creating immersive environments that, before that moment, had only been in 2D. They needed to look and feel like you were in Miyazaki’s worlds.”
Cinnabar, she adds, has long been the fabricator that clients go to when they have an idea so fantastical even they question its feasibility: “Our unofficial tagline is that ‘We build almost anything and everything for the world’s most innovative architects, artists, companies, museums, and themed attractions’.
“I remember passing through the shop several times over a day, and there Juan [Corral, Cinnabar’s technical director] was, hour after hour, mocking up the Mother Tree [pictured, top], rearranging pieces of wood of different shades and widths, until he found the right balance and they were layered just so.
“This is a person who has participated in fabricating trees in different styles and for different purposes over 26 years. Rather than taking the easy route of relying on the experience of making those other trees, he worked closely with the client, carefully studied the source materials, and came up with an entirely new technique unique to those circumstances. So that, for me, really embodies what Cinnabar is all about!”
A circular process
What made this project remarkable was Cinnabar’s highly collaborative approach, says Paula Neston, technical design director:
The Museum’s director of exhibitions, Shraddha Aryal, who had worked painstakingly with Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli, came to us with a collection of watercolour sketches and essentially said, ‘Let’s build this.’ It was an exciting but challenging task.”
Cinnabar’s success came from a fluid, open engagement—really listening to what the museum wanted guests to experience and feel. “Although we are primarily builders, we used our understanding of the construction process to influence design decisions meaningfully. It wasn’t just about execution but creating an emotional, immersive experience for visitors.”
This project highlighted something core to Cinnabar’s DNA—the seamless integration of design and fabrication.
“It’s not a linear process where design happens first, and building follows. It’s a continuous, iterative cycle where the knowledge of how something will be built informs how it should be designed.”
That circular process, which has been part of Cinnabar’s ethos from the beginning, has enabled it to tackle complex creative projects and bring them to life in ways that resonate with audiences.
The Cinnabar team makes the magic happen
In addition to its work for cultural institutions, Cinnabar ventured into brand experiences, retail, and art installations. As the industry evolved, it also adopted new tools. However, Basil Katz explains that it is the company’s philosophy that has pushed it to innovate more than new technologies:
“We’re agnostic about what manufacturing process is best. Instead, we prefer to start by understanding what the result needs to be and imagining the most efficient and elegant way to get there.”
It starts with fostering a culture of curiosity:
“Just because we’ve done it one way for years does not mean it’s the best way. I encourage our designers and department heads to go to industry trade shows, read trade publications and visit vendor facilities to check out new machines and products. Los Angeles is a rich manufacturing region with a bottomless well of inspiration from which to draw.”
“Our longtime technical directors Juan Corral and Andrea Whittier (who recently retired after 40 years) have been key to this. Eternally curious, they have repeatedly inspired our team to try new materials and invite vendors to share new materials and processes.”
Remington-Arata says: “The tools and the technologies have changed minimally in my time here. The real innovation has been in our cross-company creative collaboration and the techniques we’ve developed by pulling from people’s unique experiences and expertise.
“We have staff who’ve worked in attractions but also in aerospace, architecture, automotive, the military, etc. The knowledge and ideas they’ve brought to us have been game-changing.
“When we ask staff, clients, and other collaborators, ‘What’s the best thing about Cinnabar?’, the answer is usually ‘the people’, and it’s so true. More than any tangible tool or technology, our magical mix of people has been our key to success.”
What’s next?
Cinnabar is now pulling out all the stops to end on a high note.
“We are in the process of completing a remarkable roster of projects that we take tremendous pride in,” says Remington-Arata. “So, we can finish strong with our clients and project partners, care for our outgoing employees, and cement Cinnabar’s legacy as one of the country’s foremost fabricators of major museum exhibitions and themed attractions.”
Disbanding the team is by far the most challenging part, adds Basil Katz:
“No amount of support Cinnabar can offer will ever feel sufficient. But I am proud to say that we will return a large amount of the proceeds Cinnabar has earned to our team. We also plan to connect our employees as much as possible with our network.”
“We want to first listen to what our colleagues want for themselves. Some might want to remain local and/or in the industry and ask us to help them make connections, which we certainly will when we can,” says Remington-Arata. “Others might want to change industries or make a go of it independently, and we’ll respect that.”
Neston notes that exposure to various industries has greatly benefited all involved:
“We’ve maintained strong relationships within the industry, which helps our team in their future careers. It’s not just about our work but the reputation we’ve built. We’ve been fortunate to keep a solid team over the years. And that’s a testament to their dedication and the value of the work environment we’ve created.
“That long-term stability is highly desirable in this field. It shows the lasting impact of the opportunities we’ve been able to offer.”
Cinnabar’s legacy
Cinnabar’s presence and influence will be missed, both in California and the industry at large, says Basil Katz:
“I am incredibly proud that we’ve served as a resource to share ideas, brainstorm, or provide resources to emerging artists, independent architects, and museums and institutions trying to build something for the first time. I am equally grateful that they entrusted us to build projects so important to them and their communities.”
Remington-Arata adds: “Chances are, if you’ve explored California, you’ve experienced Cinnabar’s work. From San Francisco to San Diego and throughout our home city of Los Angeles, we’ve fabricated exhibitions large and small for museums, national and state parks, science centres, and other cultural institutions; public art and memorials; and some of the region’s most iconic themed attractions.
“People worldwide come here to visit and make memories in the spaces we’ve made. It’s a tremendous legacy to be part of. I’m thrilled for our team that we’ll still be able to enjoy and celebrate our work into the future.”
This pride and gratitude extends beyond Cinnabar’s work and, foremost, to its staff, says Basil Katz:
“Over the years, many staff have built lengthy careers with us. Some decades long and often very different from where they started. Because every project is different, our team has always had opportunities to try new things, acquire new skills, and vary their expertise. They’ve garnered the courage to be creative, which I believe is truly special to places like Cinnabar that nurture it.
“This has allowed us to build long-term relationships with staff and clients based on shared values and mutual respect. Because of this, we can work more collaboratively and directly, helping clients understand our process and even helping their staff navigate complex, integrated fabrication projects.”
Preserving the magic
As Jonathan Katz reflects on the closing of this chapter, he says that one of the things he is most proud of is having always treated the people at Cinnabar with respect and cultivated a collaborative culture:
“We made it a point to ask each other, ‘How can I help you?’ That created a framework where everyone was aware of the bigger picture and willing to support it. This collaborative spirit was crucial, and it’s something that made Cinnabar unique.
“When you genuinely engage with people, you uncover skills you didn’t even know existed. And as we engaged with each other, people started to suggest new ideas and new approaches. We were always open to trying new things, and that openness allowed us to innovate.”
Cinnabar was never a strictly top-down company; instead, anyone on the team had an equal voice:
“It’s about everyone being able to contribute their ideas. I’m proud that people always left with more knowledge and the understanding that their voice mattered. That feeling of being valued and part of something collective is what made Cinnabar’s team special.”
Meanwhile, Basil Katz is proud of having preserved the magic of Cinnabar’s company culture:
“The mix of personal curiosity, freedom, care, engagement, and mutual appreciation characterising Cinnabar has allowed us to retain many long-term employees and clients. It feels like a victory to have kept an oasis of humanity going for as long as we did. As bittersweet as it is, I am excited about our employees disseminating and sharing their training and experience at Cinnabar with the industry.”
If, as the team attests, it is the people who make the magic, then this is Cinnabar’s real legacy: that magic is now spreading to other firms, teams, and sectors as the talented Cinnabar craftspeople embark on new chapters.
