 | |
| Company type | In-name-only unit ofDreamWorks Animation |
|---|---|
| Founded | February 1989; 36 years ago (1989-02) (GRAFx Studios) August 6, 1993; 32 years ago (1993-08-06) (Big Idea) |
| Founders | |
| Fate | Currently exists as an in-name-only unit ofDreamWorks Animation |
Key people | |
| Products | Animated direct-to-video programs Animated television series Animated theatrical films |
| Parent | Classic Media (2003–present) |
Big Idea Productions, LLC (formerly known asBig Idea Productions, Inc.,Big Idea, Inc. andBig Idea Entertainment, LLC; also known simply asBig Idea) is an Americananimationproduction company and is currently an in-name only unit, best known for its animatedVeggieTales series of Christian-themed home videos.
Founded in February 1989 asGRAFx Studios byPhil Vischer, the company was renamed as Big Idea Productions in August 1993 and it released its first direct-to-videoVeggieTales program in December. In 2002, Big Idea adapted the Biblical story ofJonah for its first theatrical feature film,Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie, which was co-produced withFHE Pictures. Its second theatrical film,The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie, was co-produced withStarz Animation forUniversal Pictures and released in 2008.
From 1999 to 2004, headquarters of Big Idea Entertainment was inLombard, Illinois, a suburb outside ofChicago.[1] After Big Idea Entertainment declared bankruptcy in 2003 and the company was sold toClassic Media, headquarters was moved in 2004 toFranklin, Tennessee, a suburb outside ofNashville.[2] In 2012,DreamWorks Animation purchased Classic Media.[3] In 2013, DreamWorks began to oversee productions of Big Idea Entertainment and launched theNetflix seriesVeggieTales in the House. After production ofVeggieTales in the House's sequel series entitledVeggieTales in the City wrapped in 2017, DreamWorks sold the Franklin headquarters toKingdom Story Company.[4] Big Idea continues to operate as an in-name-only subsidiary ofDreamWorks Animation, withUniversal Pictures recently giving TBN a license to makeThe VeggieTales Show.[5][non-primary source needed]
Bob the Tomato andLarry the Cucumber, fromVeggieTales, served as the company's mascots.
Big Idea was founded in February 1989 under the name GRAFx Studios byPhil Vischer to create graphics in television commercials.[6] In 1991, Vischer created a 12-second short film calledMr. Cuke's Screen Test. This short inspired him andMike Nawrocki to createVeggieTales, with Nawrocki coming up with the name. Vischer thought the name "GRAFx" no longer suited a company about to create children's videos, so he renamed it as Big Idea Productions, Inc. on August 6, 1993.[6] The company released its first video,Where's God When I'm S-Scared? in December of the same year.
Rapidly running out of office space, Big Idea relocated to theChicago suburbs in 1997 with the purchase of the DuPage Theater inLombard, Illinois.[7] However, renovation delays, unforeseen building conditions, and lengthy zoning battles resulted. In the interim, the company was guided by Lombard Village officials to rent space at theYorktown Center, a local mall.
In a co-production withFHE Pictures, Big Idea released its first theatrical feature film,Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie on October 4, 2002.
On September 2, 2003, Big Idea declared bankruptcy after encountering management and financial issues and a lawsuit byHIT Entertainment in 2001. By the end of the year, it was auctioned off to Classic Media for $19.3 million.[8][9][10] After its purchase, the company relocated toNashville in 2004.
Big Idea partnered with Toronto-basedStarz Animation to produce its second theatrical feature film,The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie, which was released on January 11, 2008 byUniversal Pictures.[11]
In April 2009,Entertainment Rights fell into voluntaryadministration and sold its UK- and US-basedsubsidiaries, including Big Idea and its parent company, Classic Media, toBoomerang Media.[12] As of 2011 Big Idea, Inc. has been repackaged officially as Big Idea Entertainment, LLC. In July 2012, Big Idea's parent company, Classic Media, was acquired byDreamWorks Animation and began trading asDreamWorks Classics.
On April 28, 2016,NBCUniversal announced that it would be acquiring DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion.[13] The sale was completed on August 22, 2016.[14][15]
On July 3, 2018, Vischer confirmed that Big Idea's offices in Franklin were shut down. While marketing employees continued to work for Big Idea during this time, DreamWorks sold theFranklin, Tennessee studio in late 2017.[16]
In 2018, NBCUniversal licensed the properties of the studio to The Trinity Broadcasting Network. They launched the production of a new series entitledThe VeggieTales Show in 2019 through a collaboration between NBCUniversal and Trilogy Animation Group. Vischer confirmed on Twitter that he and Nawrocki were both returning to work as head writers for the new series.[17][non-primary source needed] On June 29, 2021,Phil Vischer announced that he andMike Nawrocki were no longer working on VeggieTales due to pay disputes and creative differences.[18]
VeggieTales is a series of children's animated films featuringanthropomorphicvegetables and conveying moral themes based onChristianity, spliced with joking references topop culture andcurrent events.VeggieTales was created by Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki, who also provide many of the voices.VeggieTales has also been released as books, games, and many other branded items such as toys and clothing. Additionally, the series has been adapted for television broadcast onQubo (where it aired from September 9, 2006, to September 5, 2009)[19] and onNetflix where DreamWorks Animation Television produced two series,VeggieTales in the House[20] (which ran from November 26, 2014, to September 23, 2016) andVeggieTales in the City (which ran from February 24 to September 15, 2017).
| # | Title | Release date | Co-production with | Budget | Gross | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie | October 4, 2002 | FHE Pictures | $14 million | $25.6 million | 65% | 58 |
| 2 | The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie | January 11, 2008 | Universal Pictures Starz Animation | $15 million | $13.2 million | 43% | 49 |
| 3 | LarryBoy | 2026 | Universal Pictures DreamWorks Animation Kingstone Studios |
| # | Title | Creator(s)/ Developer(s) | Premiere | Finale | Network | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VeggieTales | Phil Vischer Mike Nawrocki | December 23, 1993 | March 3, 2015 | Direct-to-video | |
| 2 | Larryboy: The Cartoon Adventures | Tom Bancroft | March 16, 2002 | June 10, 2003 | First spin-off ofVeggieTales Only 2D-animated series by Big Idea Entertainment | |
| 3 | VeggieTales in the House | Doug TenNapel | November 26, 2014 | September 23, 2016 | Netflix | Second spin-off ofVeggieTales |
| 4 | VeggieTales in the City | February 24, 2017 | September 15, 2017 | Third spin-off ofVeggieTales Sequel toVeggieTales in the House | ||
| 5 | The VeggieTales Show | Phil Vischer Mike Nawrocki | October 15, 2019 | April 1, 2022 | TBN | Revival and sequel to the 1993 original seriesVeggieTales |
| # | Title | Creator(s)/ Developer(s) | Premiere | Finale | Network | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3-2-1 Penguins! | Jeff Parker Nathan Carlson Phil Lollar Mike Nawrocki Phil Vischer Ron Smith | November 14, 2000 | November 13, 2008 | Direct-to-video Qubo | Season 1 originally released in direct-to-video Seasons 2–3 broadcast on Qubo |
| # | Title | Release date | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VeggieTales Christmas Spectacular! | December 19, 1998 | PAX |
| 2 | VeggieTales: The Star of Christmas | November 24, 2002 | PBS |
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