George Miller at an event to launch the start of filming of Happy Feet 2 in Sydney, Credit:Peter Rae One former employee of the company observed of the sale: ''It takes a lot to make an animated movie, and what you're seeing here is the remnants of it.'' The ''reason for sale'' listed on Gray's is ''closure of one of Australia's leading film and animation studios''. Representatives of Miller declined to comment on whether or not Dr D was closing for good, but all indications are that it is. Whoever purchases the cinema, for instance, will need to take it away because the company's premises – in the historic Carriageworks building near the University of Sydney – must be vacated. Dr D was launched in mid-2007 as a partnership between two of Australia's largest film production companies, Kennedy Miller Mitchell – makers of the Mad Max, Babe and Happy Feet films – and Omnilab Media, which had expanded from post-production services into production with Tomorrow When the War Began and the big-budget The Killer Elite.

A train carriage is among the items being auctioned by Dr D Studios, which was founded by George Miller. ''We're an original voice,'' the company said in a mission statement published on its website in 2008. ''We're not trying to be anyone else. We've got great people and big ideas and we intend to share bold, engaging, exciting stories with the world.'' Unfortunately, the only story Dr D managed to share was Happy Feet Two. The continual slate of production that had been anticipated failed to materialise, and the 650 or so staff who had been hired (mostly on contract) at the peak of production dwindled in the months after to about 50. In more recent times, it is believed fewer than half a dozen people were employed by the company. George Miller. In its annual report for the year to June 30, 2011, Dr D reported net profits for the year of almost $8.8 million and net assets totalling more than $14.2 million. But it is likely that the disappointing performance of its parent company's output, combined with the deterrent effect for Hollywood productions of the high Australian dollar, undermined the company's viability.

Kennedy Miller Mitchell's Happy Feet Two grossed about $150 million worldwide on a reported budget of $130 million (it is, however, likely to have earned much more than that when DVD sales and rentals are taken into account), while Omnilab Media's The Killer Elite grossed just over $56 million on a reported budget of more than $60 million. Its planned sequels to Tomorrow When The War Began appear to have been placed on hold indefinitely. The continual slate of production that had been anticipated failed to materialise. Kennedy Miller Mitchell's Mad Max film Fury Road has been beset by production delays but is scheduled for release next year. Last August, Omnilab Media sold several of its subsidiary companies to rival Deluxe. kquinn@fairfaxmedia.com.au