9 Story Media Group
Canadian media company
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9 Story Media Group (formerly known as 9 Story Entertainment) is a Canadian media production, animation studio, and distribution company founded in September 2002 by Vince Commisso and Steven Jarosz.
Logo used since 2018 | |
| Formerly | 9 Story Entertainment (2002–2014) |
|---|---|
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | |
| Predecessors | |
| Founded | September 2002 |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | 23 Fraser Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada[1] |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Vince Commisso (president, CEO) Cathal Gaffney (COO) Angela C. Santomero (2019–2023) (CCO)[2] Lisa Olfman (executive producer) Neil Court (executive chairman) |
Number of employees | 1,100 (2019) |
| Parent | Scholastic Corporation (2024–present) |
| Divisions |
|
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | 9story |
History
As 9 Story Entertainment
The company was founded in September 2002 as 9 Story Entertainment by Vince Commisso and Steven Jarosz so Vince could work on Peep and the Big Wide World.[4]
On September 21, 2006, 9 Story launched an international distribution division headed by former Universal Studios executive, Natalie Osborne, known as 9 Story Enterprises.[5]
9 Story produced its first live-action series, Survive This, from 2008 to 2010.
On September 20, 2011, 9 Story Entertainment became the co-producer and distributor of the animated series Arthur. 9 Story would produce the series from seasons 16 to 19.[6][7]
On April 8, 2013, 9 Story announced that it would acquire the children's and family distribution library of CCI Entertainment;[8] the acquisition was completed on July 24.[9]
As 9 Story Media Group
On October 10, 2014, 9 Story Entertainment changed its name to 9 Story Media Group to follow Neil Court and Zelnick Media Capital becoming majority owners a few months prior.[10][11]
On August 18, 2015, 9 Story Media Group acquired the Dublin-based animation studio Brown Bag Films.[12][13]
On October 6, 2015, 9 Story announced an agreement with American toy manufacturer Mattel to relaunch/reboot Barney & Friends and Angelina Ballerina under license from HIT Entertainment for planned releases in 2017, but nothing was heard from them in terms of either production or release since then.[14][15]
On May 25, 2016, 9 Story acquired the global distribution rights to Garfield and Friends.[16][17]
On October 21, 2016, 9 Story's distribution arm, 9 Story Enterprises, was rebranded as 9 Story Distribution International and relocated operations from Toronto to Dublin.[18]
On October 15, 2017, 9 Story rebranded its Toronto 2D animation studio after Brown Bag Films, with the Irish studio becoming 9 Story's production arm for both 2D and 3D animation across Dublin, Manchester, and Toronto. At the same time, Brown Bag Films became one of 9 Story's main divisions, alongside 9 Story Distribution International.[19][20]
On January 12, 2018, 9 Story announced that they had acquired production company, Out of the Blue Enterprises, for an undisclosed amount and rebranded them to 9 Story USA. 9 Story would also acquire the rights to the Colorforms brand.[21][22]
On May 13, 2018, 9 Story unveiled an updated logo and announced the launch of 9 Story Brands, a consumer products division.[23]
On July 10, 2018, 9 Story acquired the children's and family distribution catalog and development slate of Breakthrough Entertainment.[24] On February 4, 2019, 9 Story announced that they had acquired Bali-based animation studio BASE for an undisclosed amount, and rebranded it after Brown Bag Films.[25][26]
On April 1, 2019, 9 Story signed a deal with Scholastic Corporation to distribute 230 half hours of programming, which would bring 9 Story's overall content library at the time to 4,000 half hours of programming.[27] In 2022, Vince Commisso was named alongside John Galway as a winner of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television's Board of Directors Tribute Award at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards.[28]
On February 5, 2024, 9 Story acquired fellow Canadian company Portfolio Entertainment, including its distribution catalogue, development slates, and production. Portfolio CEO Lisa Olfman became an executive producer at 9 Story, where she will report to Commisso.[3]
On March 12, 2024, Scholastic announced that they would acquire complete economic interest and minority voting rights in 9 Story for $186 million; the transaction closed on June 21 of that year.[29][30][31]
Original productions
| Title | Production partner | Year(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peep and the Big Wide World | WGBH Boston Eggbox LLC National Film Board of Canada Discovery Kids Original Productions |
2004–07, 2010–11 | |
| If the World Were a Village | Blueprint Entertainment | 2005 | |
| Jacob Two-Two (season 5) | Nelvana | 2005–06 | Owned by Nelvana |
| Skyland | Method Films | 2005–07 | |
| Postcards from Buster (seasons 2–3) | Marc Brown Studios WGBH Boston Cookie Jar Entertainment |
2006–12 | |
| Max & Ruby (seasons 3–5) | Nelvana | 2007–13 | Owned by Nelvana |
| Futz! | 2007–08 | ||
| Best Ed | 2008–09 | ||
| Survive This | 2009–10 | ||
| Wibbly Pig | Wish Films | 2009–10 | Originally aired on CBeebies |
| Spliced | Nelvana | 2009–10 | animation only |
| Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars | 2010 | ||
| Pound Puppies (season 1, episodes 1–7) | Hasbro Studios | 2010 | Owned by Hasbro Entertainment |
| Wild Kratts | Kratt Brothers Company | 2011–present | |
| Almost Naked Animals | 2011–13 | ||
| Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood | 9 Story USA Fred Rogers Productions |
2012–present | |
| Fugget About It | Darius Films | 2012–16, 2024–25 | First and only adult animated series produced by the company. |
| Arthur (seasons 16–19) | WGBH Boston | 2012–16 | |
| Cache Craze | 2013–14 | ||
| Creative Galaxy | 9 Story USA Amazon Studios |
2013–19 | |
| Camp Lakebottom | Skywriter Media and Jam Filled Entertainment (season 1) | 2013–17 | |
| Peg + Cat | 9 Ate 7 Productions Fred Rogers Productions |
2013–18 | |
| Numb Chucks | Jam Filled Entertainment | 2014–16 | |
| Nerds and Monsters | Slap Happy Cartoons Inc. | 2014–16 | |
| The Stanley Dynamic | Amaze Film + Television Nelvana |
2015–17 | animation only |
| Nature Cat (seasons 1–3) | Spiffy Pictures WTTW Chicago |
2015–21 | |
| 3 Amigonauts | 2017 | ||
| Furze World Wonders | 2017 | ||
| The Magic School Bus Rides Again | Scholastic Media | 2017–20 | |
| Top Wing | Industrial Brothers | 2017–20 | |
| Let's Go Luna! | Brown Bag Films | 2018–22 | |
| Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum | Brown Bag Films | 2019–present | |
| Blue's Clues & You! | Brown Bag Films Nickelodeon Animation Studio |
2019–24 | Owned by Paramount Skydance |
| Clifford the Big Red Dog | 100 Chickens Productions Brown Bag Films Scholastic Media Amazon Studios |
2019–21 | |
| Get Rolling with Otis | Brown Bag Films | 2021 | |
| Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show | Jax Media Brown Bag Films |
2021–22 | |
| Karma's World | Karma's World Entertainment Brown Bag Films |
2021–22 | |
| Rosie's Rules | Brown Bag Films | 2022–present | |
| Open Season: Call of Nature[32] | Sony Pictures Animation Brown Bag Films Toronto |
2023–24 | Owned by Sony Pictures |
| Dee & Friends in Oz | Brown Bag Films | 2024 | |
| Breaking Bear[33][34] | Portfolio Entertainment Evoke Entertainment To The Stars |
2026 | |
| Dragon Girls[35] | Brown Bag Films Netflix Animation Studios |
2026–present |