9 Story Media Group Inc. (formerly known as 9 Story Entertainment) is a Canadian children's media production company and international distributor founded by Vincent "Vince" Commisso, Steve Jarosz, and Blake Tohana on September 1, 2002, and headquartered in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

History

As 9 Story Entertainment (2002–2014)

The company was founded on September 1, 2002, as 9 Story Entertainment by Vincent "Vince" Commisso and Steven Jarosz. On September 21, 2006, 9 Story launched an international distribution division headed by former

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

executive, Natalie Osborne, known as 9 Story Enterprises. 9 Story produced its first live-action series, ''

Survive This ''Survive This'' is a Canadian reality television show in which eight teenagers with limited survival skills training are taken into a forest and confronted with a number of survival challenges to test their skills and perseverance. The series a ...

'', from 2008 to 2010. On September 20, 2011, 9 Story Entertainment became the co-producer and distributor of

WGBH WGBH may refer to: * WGBH Educational Foundation, based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States ** WGBH (FM), a public radio station at Boston, Massachusetts on 89.7 MHz owned by the WGBH Educational Foundation ** WGBH-TV WGBH-TV (channel 2), ...

children's series '' Arthur''. 9 Story would produce the series from seasons 16 to 19. On April 8, 2013, 9 Story announced that it would acquire the children's and family distribution library of CCI Entertainment (formerly Cambium Productions and Catalyst Entertainment); the acquisition was completed on July 24.

As 9 Story Media Group (2014–present)

On October 10, 2014, 9 Story Entertainment rebranded as 9 Story Media Group, following Neil Court and

Zelnick Media Capital Harry Strauss Zelnick (born June 26, 1957) is an American businessman. Born in Boston and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, he attended Columbia High School, Wesleyan University, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Law School. He is the f ...

becoming majority owners a few months prior. On August 18, 2015, 9 Story Media Group acquired the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

-based animation studio

Brown Bag Films Brown Bag Films (BBF) is an Irish television CGI and computer animation production studio owned by Canadian production studio 9 Story Media Group and based in Dublin with 2D and 3D animation facilities based in Bali, Toronto and formerly Man ...

. On October 6, 2015, 9 Story announced an agreement with American toy manufacturer

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

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. On May 25, 2016, 9 Story acquired the global distribution rights to '' Garfield and Friends''. Following the acquisition of

Paws, Inc. Paws Incorporated, legally known as Paws, Inc., is an American comic studio and production company founded by American cartoonist Jim Davis in 1981 to support the ''Garfield'' comic strips and its licensing. The company was originally located i ...

Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...

in 2019, 9 Story's distribution license was terminated. The series is now distributed through

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

. On October 21, 2016, 9 Story's distribution arm, 9 Story Enterprises, was rebranded as 9 Story Distribution International and relocated operations from

to Dublin. On October 15, 2017, 9 Story rebranded its Toronto

2D animation Traditional animation (or classical animation, cel animation, or hand-drawn animation) is an animation technique in which each frame is drawn by hand. The technique was the dominant form of animation in cinema until computer animation. Proce ...

studio after Brown Bag Films, with the Irish studio becoming 9 Story's production arm for both 2D and 3D animation across Dublin,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, and Toronto. At the same time, Brown Bag Films became one of 9 Story's main divisions, alongside 9 Story Distribution International. On January 12, 2018, 9 Story announced that they had acquired ''

Blue's Clues ''Blue's Clues'' is an American live-action/animated children's television series, created by Angela C. Santomero, Todd Kessler, and Traci Paige Johnson, that premiered on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block on September 8, 1996, and co ...

'' production company,

Out of the Blue Enterprises 9 Story USA (formerly Out of the Blue Enterprises) is an American children's television company based in New York City, founded by the co-creator of the Nickelodeon preschool live action/animated series ''Blue's Clues'' (hence the company's nam ...

, for an undisclosed amount and rebranded them to 9 Story USA. 9 Story would also acquire the rights to the Colorforms brand. On May 13, 2018, 9 Story unveiled an updated logo and announced the launch of 9 Story Brands, a consumer products division. On July 10, 2018, 9 Story acquired the children's and family distribution catalog and development slate of Breakthrough Entertainment. On February 4, 2019, 9 Story announced that they had acquired

Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...

-based animation studio BASE for an undisclosed amount, and rebranded it after Brown Bag Films. On April 1, 2019, 9 Story signed a deal with

Scholastic Corporation Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

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. In 2022, Vincent 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 The 10th Canadian Screen Awards were held on April 10, 2022, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television and digital media production in 2021.Etan Vlessing"Maitreyi Ramakrishnan to Receive Canadian Screen Awards Special Honor" ''The Hollyw ...

Programming and co-productions

Current

*''

Blue's Clues & You! ''Blue's Clues & You!'' is a live-action/computer-animated interactive educational children's television series developed by Traci Paige Johnson and Angela C. Santomero for Nickelodeon. It is a revival of the 1996–2006 ''Blue's Clues'' tele ...

'' (2019–present) *'' Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood'' (2012–present) *''Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show'' (2022–present) *'' Karma's World'' (2021–present) *''

Luo Bao Bei ''Luo Bao Bei'' () is a British-Chinese animated television series, produced by "Magic Mall Entertainment" in Beijing and Cloth Cat Animation, and was distributed by 9 Story Media Group. The show follows Luo Bao Bei, a bright and spirited seven-ye ...

'' (2018) *'' Nature Cat'' (2015–2021; seasons 1–3) *''

Rosie's Rules ''Rosie's Rules'' is a children's animated television series that premiered on October 3, 2022 on PBS Kids and on TVOKids on October 11, 2022. The show is produced by 9 Story Media Group and its animation division Brown Bag Films. Plot The s ...

'' (2022–present) *''

Wild Kratts ''Wild Kratts'' is a live action/Flash-animated educational children's television series created by the Kratt brothers, Chris and Martin. The Kratt Brothers Company and 9 Story Media Group produce the show, which is presented by PBS Kids in the ...

'' (2011–present) *''

Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum ''Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum'' is an animated children's television series that premiered on November 11, 2019, on PBS Kids. The series is based on the children's book series written by Brad Meltzer, named ''Ordinary People Change the ...

'' (2019–present) *''

Becca's Bunch ''Becca's Bunch'' is a preschool television series featuring handmade puppet characters that premiered in the United Kingdom and Ireland on Nick Jr. on 2 July 2018 and ended on 13 December 2018. The series premiered in the United States on the ...

'' (2018)

Former/Other

*''

3 Amigonauts ''3 Amigonauts'' (aka ''The 3 Amigonauts'' and ''The Three Amigonauts'') is a Canadian animated television series created by Kyle Marshall and developed by Laurie Elliott and Terry McGurrin. The series debuted on YTV on August 5, 2017, and air ...

'' (2017) *'' Almost Naked Animals'' (2011–2013) *'' Arthur'' (2006–2022; seasons 10–25) *''

Best Ed ''Best Ed'' is a Canadian animated television series created by Rick Marshall. The show chronicles the adventures of an excessively helpful and enthusiastic dog named Ed and his best friend, Doug the squirrel and soldier, whom everyone calls "Bud ...

'' (2008–2009) *''

Cache Craze ''Cache Craze'' is a Canadian treasure hunt themed television show featuring challenges that are typical for a game show such as: Hiking, Swimming, etc. This reality competition features undertakings such as teams tracking down caches with the ...

'' (2013–2014) *'' Caillou'' (2006-2008; season 4) *''

Camp Lakebottom ''Camp Lakebottom'' is a Canadian animated television series produced by 9 Story Media Group that premiered on Teletoon in Canada on July 4, 2013 and on Disney XD in the United States on July 13, 2013. The series airs on Disney Channels worldwi ...

'' (2013–2017) *'' Clifford the Big Red Dog'' (2019–2021) *''

Creative Galaxy ''Creative Galaxy'' is a children's animated science-fiction web television series that premiered on Amazon Video on April 19, 2013 and ended on June 4, 2019. Production In February 2015, it was renewed for a second season and premiered on Septem ...

'' (2013–2019) *'' Fugget About It'' (2012–2016) *'' Furze World Wonders'' (2017) *''

Futz! ''Futz!'' is a Canadian animated series created by Vadim Kapridov and produced by 9 Story Entertainment for broadcast on Teletoon. The show's premise revolves around the eponymous main character and his zany adventures. Eschewing verbal dialogue, ...

'' (2007) *''Get Rolling with Otis'' (2021) *'' Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars'' (2010) (made-for-TV movie) *''If the World Were a Village'' (2005) *''

Jacob Two-Two ''Jacob Two-Two'' is a series of children's books written by Canadian author Mordecai Richler: ''Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang'' (1975), ''Jacob Two-Two and the Dinosaur'' (1987) and ''Jacob Two-Two's First Spy Case'' (1995) written by Mor ...

'' (2005–2006; season 5; distributed by

Nelvana Nelvana Enterprises, Inc. (; previously known as Nelvana Limited, sometimes known as Nelvana Animation and simply Nelvana or Nelvana Communications) is a Canadian animation studio and entertainment company owned by Corus Entertainment. Founded ...

) *'' Let's Go Luna!'' (2018–2022) *'' The Magic School Bus Rides Again'' (2017–2020) *'' Max & Ruby'' (2006–2013; seasons 3–5; distributed by Nelvana) *''

Mischief City ''Mischief City'' is a short-lived Canadian animated children's show based on the book of the same name by Tim Wynne-Jones. It follows the adventures of eight-year-old Winchell Adams in the extraordinary world of Mischief City. While in this fant ...

'' (2005) *''

My Friend Rabbit ''My Friend Rabbit'' is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Eric Rohmann. Published in 2002 by Roaring Brook Press, the book is a lighthearted tale about the friendship between a mouse and a rabbit. Rohmann won the 2003 Caldec ...

'' (2007–2008) *'' Numb Chucks'' (2014–2016) *''

Nerds and Monsters ''Nerds and Monsters'' is a Canadian animated television series that aired on YTV. Produced by Slap Happy Cartoons Inc. and 9 Story Media Group. It was announced at the 2014 Banff World Media Festival that the series was renewed for a second se ...

'' (2014–2016) *''

Peep and the Big Wide World ''Peep and the Big Wide World'' (''PATBWW'') is an animated children's television series created by Danish-Canadian animator Kaj Pindal. It revolves around the lives of Peep, Chirp, and Quack, as viewers discover, investigate, and explore the w ...

'' (2003–2007, 2009-2011) *'' Peg + Cat'' (2013–2018) *'' Pound Puppies'' (2010; season 1, episodes 1–7) *'' Postcards from Buster'' (2006–2012; seasons 2–4) *''

Skyland ''Skyland'' (full French title: "Skyland, Le Nouveau Monde", or "Skyland, The New World"), is a CGI animated series developed in France in partnership with Canada and Luxembourg for television channels France 2 in France, Teletoon in Canada, Nic ...

'' (2005–2007) *'' The Stanley Dynamic'' (2015–2017) *''

'' (2008–2010) *''

Top Wing ''Top Wing'' is a Canadian computer-animated television series created by Matthew Fernandes of Industrial Brothers. It was produced in-house by Industrial Brothers in connection with 9 Story Media Group. In Canada, the series debuted on Treehouse ...

'' (2017–2020) *''

Wibbly Pig Wibbly Pig is the title character of a series of picture books for young children, written and illustrated by English author and illustrator Mick Inkpen. The series includes titles such as ''Wibbly Pig Likes Bananas'' () and ''Is It Bedtime Wibbl ...

'' (2009–2010)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Canadian animation studios Companies based in Toronto Mass media companies established in 2002 Television production companies of Canada Film production companies of Canada 2002 establishments in Ontario Canadian companies established in 2002