On the occasion of Cannes Film Festival 2026, BIG MEDIA shines a light on The Yard VFX, highlighting the studio’s impressive growth and Laurens Ehrmann’s expectations for this year’s festival.
French visual effects studio The Yard has been selected as the only VFX company to join the 2026 Bpifrance‘s French Touch delegation at the Festival de Cannes. The initiative brings together leading creative industry companies for an immersion at the Cannes Marché du Film, highlighting innovation across film, gaming, music, and tech.
On this occasion, entrepreneurs’ media, BIG MEDIA, interviewed The Yard’s founder, Laurens Ehrmann, who reflected on the early days of the studio, its growth to a multi-site company that delivers visual effects for international productions, and his expectations of this year’s festival.
You can read the full article (in French only) on BIG MEDIA’s website here or find the key highlights below:
From Independent Studio to Hollywood Productions
Founder Laurens Ehrmann began his career in digital creation and visual effects in 1998 at BUF Compagnie, where he developed his skills first as an artist and later as a VFX supervisor. In 2009, he cofounded Plug Visual Effects, helping shape a strong artistic direction for the studio before eventually launching his own venture in 2014.
After his business partner left, Ehrmann suddenly found himself on his own with only five computers and a short-film project in progress. Around the same time, he was approached to contribute to Season 2 of Transporter: The Series—an opportunity that convinced him to take the leap into entrepreneurships and officially founded The Yard.
Without formal business training, Ehrmann learned management, accounting, IT, and business development along the way while growing the company independently. From the beginning, his strategy was clear: attract international productions to France rather than seeing French VFX talent leave for foreign markets.
That vision quickly became central to The Yard’s identity. Over time, the studio established itself as a place where artists could build long-term careers while working on high-profile global productions. The company’s very name reflects that philosophy: “The Yard” as a creative space where both artists and projects can grow.
This long-term approach and Laurens Ehrmann’s commitment to independence helped the studio evolve from a small independent structure into a recognized international VFX partner working on productions including Ford v. Ferrari, projects from Marvel Studios, the John Wick franchise, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Between 2021 and 2023, The Yard experienced remarkable growth: the workforce increased tenfold and the revenue increased by eleven in just 18 months. During this period, the studio joined Bpifrance’s Cinema, Audiovisual and Animation Accelerator program, which provided valuable strategic support.
