Film Roman

Film Roman, LLC
	Logo used since 2006
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Animation; Motion pictures; Television production;
Predecessor	Mendelson/Melendez Productions
Founded	October 26, 1984; 39 years ago
Founder	Phil Roman
Headquarters	Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Key people	Steve Waterman (CEO); Phil Roman (chairman emeritus); Dana Booton (president of production);
Products	Garfield television specials; Garfield and Friends; Bobby's World; The Simpsons (1992–2016); King of the Hill; Family Guy; Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!; The Goode Family; Dan Vs.;
Parent	Independent (1984–2003); IDT Entertainment (2003–2006); Starz Media (2006–2015); Waterman Entertainment (2015–present);
Divisions	Film Roman Baja J.V.
Website	filmroman.com

Film Roman, LLC, is an American animation studio currently based in Woodland Hills, California and formerly in Burbank. It was previously owned by Starz Inc., which is now a division of Lionsgate, and currently by Waterman Entertainment, the production company of producer Steve Waterman.^[1]

Founded by veteran animator and director Phil Roman^[2]^[3] on October 26, 1984, it is best known for providing animation for the Garfield primetime specials, based on Jim Davis' comic strip of the same name. The studio also produced the animated series The Simpsons, The Critic, King of the Hill, Family Guy, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, The Goode Family, and Dan Vs..^[3]

History

Background

Phil Roman, veteran alumnus of MGM Animation/Visual Arts and Bill Melendez Productions, founded Film Roman on October 26, 1984 as a means to continue the production of the Garfield television specials, since Melendez's own studio was unable to work on both the Peanuts and Garfield specials. Peanuts executive producers Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez and their aforementioned studio had produced the first two Garfield specials, but due to both Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz' and Garfield creator Jim Davis' concerns about conflicting interests in allocating production priority at Melendez's boutique studio, the production had to be moved. While he was leaving him and Melendez for his already-established studio, Roman was offered the opportunity to produce the next Garfield prime time special, Garfield in the Rough (1984), for CBS by Mendelson, which he accepted and went on to produce and direct all by himself, winning an Emmy in the process.

Formation

In 1985, CBS' head of children's programming Judy Price had commissioned an animated television series based on the Garfield prime time special series, later ultimately titled Garfield and Friends, which took three years for Roman to decide developing and producing the program before it eventually aired on the network's Saturday morning time slot, premiering on September 17, 1988. The aforementioned show was Film Roman's first regular series. In 1986, in an effort to expand and diversify the studio, Roman hired Marvel Productions VP of Business Affairs and his own personal attorney, Michael Wahl, as President and Bill Schultz, Marvel's Director of Development, to join in the company as the fledgling studio's VP of Production and Development. Garfield and Friends was expanded to an hour on CBS' number one rated Saturday Morning block and the studio grew to increase its capacity.

In 1988, the new management team developed, sold and produced a new series, Bobby's World, to the brand new Fox Kids Network, headed up by former Marvel Productions president Margaret Loesch. In 1992 to 2016, Film Roman took over the source production of 20th Century Fox's The Simpsons from Klasky-Csupo who had produced the one-minute teaser cartoon shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show as well as the animation for the first three seasons and the first two episodes of the fourth season (in total 61 episodes).^[4]^[5] The studio went on to grow and produce many popular animated series now seen all around the world.

In 1999, Film Roman attempted to get into the syndication market with the launch of Max Degree TV, which would have consisted of three shows, Mission Extreme from Steve Tisch, Skins from the Deep from SFX artist Steve Wang, and a new Wes Archer cartoon Victor,^[6]^[7] but it never got off the ground.^[8]

Waterman Entertainment ownership

In 2015, Film Roman was acquired from its parent company Starz Distribution by Waterman Entertainment, the production company of executive producer Steve Waterman. As such, it now does business with Starz, which owns the company's catalogue.^[1]

On November 22, 2016, the company formed a joint venture based in Tijuana, called Film Roman Baja J.V. (also known as Film Roman Baja Productions), with Boxel Studios, a Baja California-based animation facility.^[9]

Location

The original studio was located on Riverside Drive in Toluca Lake, California, where Roman was also joined by Melendez producer Lee Mendelson. Years later, the studio moved to a new location on Chandler Blvd. in Studio City, before settling into another location at Starz Plaza on Hollywood Way in Burbank, which it shared with the former Hub Network and Hasbro Studios, and finally settling into its present location in Woodland Hills.

Television series

Show	Creator(s)	Year(s)	Co-production(s)	Notes
Garfield and Friends	Jim Davis	1988–1994	United Media (seasons 1–6) Lee Mendelson Productions (seasons 2–7) Paws, Inc.	Currently distributed by 9 Story Media Group
Bobby's World	Howie Mandel	1990–1998	Alevy Productions Fox Children's Productions	Currently distributed by Splash Entertainment
Zazoo U	Shane DeRolf	1990–1991	Fox Children's Productions	Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
Mother Goose and Grimm	Mike Peters	1991–1993	Tribune Media Services Grimmy, Inc. Lee Mendelson Productions MGM Television
The Simpsons	Matt Groening	1992–2016	Gracie Films 20th Television	Production seasons 4–27 only
Animated Classic Showcase		1993–1994	Soyuzmultfilm
Cro	Mark Zaslove		Children's Television Workshop
Mighty Max	Mark Zaslove Rob Hudnut		Bluebird Toys Canal+ D.A. Bohbot Entertainment
The Critic	Al Jean Mike Reiss	1994–1995	Gracie Films Columbia Pictures Television
The Baby Huey Show	Bob Jaques	1995	Carbunkle Cartoons (season 1) Harveytoons Claster Television	Season 2 only Currently distributed by NBCUniversal Television Distribution
The Mask: Animated Series	Duane Capizzi	1995–1997	Dark Horse Entertainment Sunbow Entertainment New Line Television	Currently distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
Klutter!	David Silverman Savage Steve Holland	1995–1996	Savage Studios Fox Children's Productions	As part of Eek! Stravaganza Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat	Pat Sullivan Otto Messmer Joseph Oriolo	1995–1997	Felix the Cat Productions	Currently distributed by NBCUniversal Television Distribution
C Bear and Jamal	Earl Richey Jones Todd R. Jones	1996–1997	TaurusFilm
Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm	Sean Catherine Derek	1996	Threshold Entertainment New Line Television USA Studios	Currently distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
Richie Rich	Timothy Williams	1996	Harveytoons Claster Television	Currently distributed by NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Bruno the Kid	Joel Madison	1996–1997	Camelot Entertainment Sales Active Entertainment
King of the Hill	Mike Judge Greg Daniels	1997–present	Deedle-Dee Productions Judgemental Films 3 Arts Entertainment 20th Television (1997-2010)	Originally cancelled in 2010, a revival is currently in production on Hulu
The Mr. Potato Head Show	Dan Clark Doug Langdale	1998–1999	Hasbro
Family Guy	Seth MacFarlane	1999–2000	Fuzzy Door Productions 20th Television	Production season 1 only
Mission Hill	Bill Oakley Josh Weinstein	1999–2002	Bill Oakley/Josh Weinstein Productions Castle Rock Entertainment	Currently distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
The Man Show	Adam Carolla Jimmy Kimmel Daniel Kellison	1999–2002	Jackhole Industries (seasons 1-5) Stone Stanley Entertainment Comedy Partners	Animation^[10] Currently distributed by Eagle Rock Entertainment
X-Men: Evolution	Marty Isenberg Robert N. Skir David Wise	2000–2003	Marvel Studios	Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
The Oblongs	Angus Oblong Jace Richdale	2001–2002	Jobsite Productions Mohawk Productions Warner Bros. Television
Free For All	Brett Merhar	2003	Showtime Networks
Charlie's Angels: Animated Adventures	Ivan Goff Ben Roberts	2003	Sony Pictures Digital Hilltop New Media, Inc.	Web series^[11] Based on Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Tripping the Rift	Chris Moeller Chuck Austen	2004–2007	Space Teletoon (season 3) CinéGroupe
Eloise: The Animated Series	Kay Thompson Hilary Knight	2006	HandMade Films
Law & Order	Dick Wolf	2006	Wolf Films NBC Universal Television Studio	Visual effects^[12]
Eon Kid	Designstorm	2006–2007	Manga Entertainment BRB Internacional Daiwon Designstorm Screen 21 TVE	English dub
Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!	Bob Boyle	2006–2010	Bolder Media
Slacker Cats	Andy Riley Kevin Cecil	2007–2009	Laika ABC Family
The Goode Family	Mike Judge John Altschuler Dave Krinsky	2009	Ternion Pictures 3 Arts Entertainment Judgemental Films Media Rights Capital	Currently distributed by Shout! Factory
The Super Hero Squad Show	Stan Lee	2009–2011	Ingenious Media (season 1) Marvel Animation	Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes	Ciro Nieli Joshua Fine Christopher Yost	2010–2012	Ingenious Media (season 1) Marvel Animation	Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
Dan Vs.	Dan Mendel Chris Pearson	2011–2013	The Hatchery
Beavis and Butt-Head	Mike Judge	2011	Ternion Pictures 3 Arts Entertainment Judgemental Films MTV Production Development	Season 8 only
Ultimate Spider-Man	Marvel Animation	2012–2017	Marvel Animation	Currently distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution
Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H.	Paul Dini Henry Gilroy Marvel Animation	2013–2015	Marvel Animation
Camp WWE	Seth Green	2016–2018	Stoopid Buddy Stoodios WWE Studios
Heathcliff	George Gately	TBA	Creators Syndicate
This Modern World	Tom Tomorrow
The Untamed

Films and specials

Title	Year	Co-production(s)	Notes
Garfield in the Rough	1984	United Media	The studio's inaugural production
Garfield's Halloween Adventure	1985
Garfield in Paradise	1986
Garfield Goes Hollywood	1987
A Garfield Christmas	1987	United Media Paws, Inc.
Happy Birthday, Garfield	1988	Paws, Inc.
Garfield: His 9 Lives	1988	United Media Paws, Inc.
Garfield's Babes and Bullets	1989	United Media Paws, Inc.
The Pink Panther		MGM Television	Unreleased live-action/animated pilot
Garfield's Thanksgiving		United Media Paws, Inc.
Garfield's Feline Fantasies	1990	United Media Lee Mendelson Productions Paws, Inc.
Garfield Gets a Life	1991	United Media Lee Mendelson Productions Paws, Inc.
Tom and Jerry: The Movie	1992	Live Entertainment Turner Entertainment Co. WMG Film Miramax Films	Currently distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
Nick & Noel	1993	Bohbot Entertainment
A Cool Like That Christmas	1994
The Bears Who Saved Christmas	1994	Bohbot Entertainment
Izzy's Quest for Olympic Gold	1995	International Olympic Committee
The Story of Santa Claus	1996	Arnold Shapiro Productions CBS Productions
The Magic Pearl	1997	Greengrass Productions
Puss in Boots	1997
Super Bowl XXXIII (The Simpsons short)	1999	Gracie Films 20th Television
Johnny Tsunami	1999	Disney Channel	Live-action
Hairballs	2000		Unsold TV series pilot created by Mr. Lawrence
Motocrossed	2001	Stu Segall Productions Disney Channel	Live-action
My First Mister		Total Film Group ApolloMedia Film Management GmbH Paramount Classics	Live-action
The Santa Claus Brothers		Sitting Ducks Productions Disney Channel Nelvana
Second Time Around	2002	Mei Ah Entertainment	Visual effects
Hellraiser: Hellseeker	2002	Dimension Home Video
Daredevil	2003	20th Century Studios Regency Enterprises Marvel Enterprises Horseshoe Bay Productions
The Fallen Ones	2003	The Fallen Ones Inc. Sci Fi Channel
I, Robot	2004	20th Century Studios Davis Entertainment Laurence Mark Productions Overbrook Films Mediastream IV
Demon Hunter	2005	New Arc Entertainment
All Souls Day		Anchor Bay Entertainment
Weebles: Welcome to Weebleville!		Playskool Hasbro
Weebles: Sharing in the Fun!		Playskool Hasbro
The Happy Elf		HC Productions DKP Studios
Voodoo Moon	2006	IDT Entertainment Sci Fi Channel	Visual effects
Slayer		Anchor Bay Entertainment Sci Fi Channel
Jackass Number Two		Paramount Pictures MTV Films Dickhouse Productions Lynch Siderow Productions
Hellboy: Sword of Storms		Revolution Studios
Mosaic	2007	POW! Entertainment Manga Entertainment
Hellboy: Blood and Iron		Revolution Studios
The Thirst		Anchor Bay Entertainment	Visual effects
The Simpsons Movie		20th Century Studios 20th Century Animation Gracie Films Rough Draft Studios AKOM	Pre-production split between Film Roman and Rough Draft Studios
Sands of Oblivion		Starz Productions Sci Fi Channel	Visual effects
Rush Hour 3		New Line Cinema Roger Birnbaum Productions Arthur Sarkissian Productions Unlike Film Productions	Visual effects Trailer only
Illegal Tender		Universal Pictures	Visual effects
Hairspray		New Line Cinema Ingenious Media Zadan/Meron Productions Storyline Entertainment Offspring Entertainment	Visual effects Trailer only
The Great Buck Howard	2008	Magnolia Pictures Playtone Walden Media Bristol Bay Productions	Visual effects
Turok: Son of Stone		Classic Media
Speed Racer		Warner Bros. Pictures Village Roadshow Pictures Silver Pictures Anarchos Productions	Visual effects
Sex and the City		Warner Bros. Pictures New Line Cinema HBO Films	Visual effects Trailer only
Tripping The Rift: The Movie		CinéGroupe
Wubbzy's Big Movie!		Bolder Media
Dead Space: Downfall		Electronic Arts
Secrets of the Furious Five		DreamWorks Animation Reel FX Creative Studios	2-D sequences
Cranberry Christmas		Ocean Spray Productions
Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!: Wubb Idol	2009	Bolder Media
The Haunted World of El Superbeasto	2009	Carbunkle Cartoons	Planned for theatrical release
Dante's Inferno: An Animated Epic	2010	Electronic Arts	"Prologue", "The Arrival", "Entry to Hell" only
Dead Space: Aftermath	2011	Electronic Arts Visceral Games
Max Steel: Turbo-Charged	2017	Mattel Creations
Max Steel: Turbo-Warriors	2017	Mattel Creations

Miscellaneous

Get in Line (Barenaked Ladies music video)
Frijolero (Molotov music video)
The Simpsons Game (2007, produced by Electronic Arts) (cutscenes only)
The Simpsons Ride (2008, amusement simulator ride film produced for the attraction of the same name at Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood)
The Simpsons: Tapped Out (2012, freemium mobile game produced for Fox Digital Entertainment and Electronic Arts) (cutscenes only)

Commercials

Alpo
Ask Jeeves (2000) (five-minute branding reel)
Burger King (2001–2003)
Butterfinger (1992–1994, 1998–2001, 2007)
CC's (1998)
C.C. Lemon (2000–2002)
Embassy Suites Hotel
Expedia (2003)
Garfield Fruit Snacks^[13]
General Foods
Honey Nut Cheerios (1993) (Garfield ad only)^[14]
Intel (1998)
Matchbox (2002) (CGI sales presentation animated by Forum Visual Effects)
Microsoft (2003)
Mirinda (2005–2006, 2008)
Partnership for a Drug-Free America (2002)
RC Cola (1999)
SeaWorld (1998)
SHO Too (2002)^[15]
Toyota (1992–1993)
Trix (1991)

Unreleased projects

Blues Brothers: The Animated Series^[16] (Canceled due to irreplaceable casting of the original actors)
Max Degree TV^[8] (Cancelled due to lack of international backers)
Big Bug Man (Canceled after actor Marlon Brando died during production)^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b ^c McNary, Dave (November 12, 2015). "'Simpsons' Animator Film Roman Bought by Waterman Entertainment". Variety. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
^ DataBase, The Big Cartoon. "Film Roman Productions Studio Directory". Big Cartoon DataBase (BCDB). Archived from the original on June 24, 2014. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
^ ^a ^b Hofmeister, Sallie (April 2, 1998). "COMPANY TOWN; Drawing on Creativity; A Struggling Film Roman Tries to Reanimate Itself". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-12-23.
^ Kirkland, Mark (2004). The Simpsons The Complete Fourth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Kamp Krusty" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
^ Bernstein, Sharon (1992-01-21). "'The Simpsons' Producer Changes Animation Firms". The Los Angeles Times. p. 18. Retrieved 2011-08-24.
^ Schlosser, Joe (July 19, 1999). "Film Roman on syndie march" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. p. 48. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
^ Pursell, Chris (1999-07-19). "Film Roman to ride teen wave". Variety. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
^ ^a ^b "No Max deal" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. December 13, 1999. p. 118. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
^ N'Duka, Amanda (21 November 2016). "Film Roman Teams With Boxel Studios To Form Film Roman Baja J.V." deadline.com. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
^ "Film Roman To Produce Animation For The Man Show". June 5, 2001.
^ Head, Steve (May 6, 2003). "Angels Ready for Animated Debut". IGN. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
^ "AdamKlein_resume.qxd" (PDF).
^ "Credits".
^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Honey Nut Cheerios with Garfield (1993)". YouTube.
^ "Film Roman Gets Shagged For Sho Too". May 29, 2002.
^ "Blues Brothers - The Animates Series". Blues Brothers Central. Archived from the original on April 29, 2009.

External links

Official website

[vty-1] McNary, Dave (November 12, 2015). "'Simpsons' Animator Film Roman Bought by Waterman Entertainment". Variety. Retrieved May 17, 2017.

[2] DataBase, The Big Cartoon. "Film Roman Productions Studio Directory". Big Cartoon DataBase (BCDB). Archived from the original on June 24, 2014. Retrieved 2023-04-25.

[:0-3] Hofmeister, Sallie (April 2, 1998). "COMPANY TOWN; Drawing on Creativity; A Struggling Film Roman Tries to Reanimate Itself". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-12-23.

[Mark_Kirkland.-4] Kirkland, Mark (2004). The Simpsons The Complete Fourth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Kamp Krusty" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.

[switch-5] Bernstein, Sharon (1992-01-21). "'The Simpsons' Producer Changes Animation Firms". The Los Angeles Times. p. 18. Retrieved 2011-08-24.

[6] Schlosser, Joe (July 19, 1999). "Film Roman on syndie march" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. p. 48. Retrieved August 24, 2023.

[7] Pursell, Chris (1999-07-19). "Film Roman to ride teen wave". Variety. Retrieved 2023-08-24.

[:1-8] "No Max deal" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. December 13, 1999. p. 118. Retrieved August 24, 2023.

[dl-9] N'Duka, Amanda (21 November 2016). "Film Roman Teams With Boxel Studios To Form Film Roman Baja J.V." deadline.com. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2020.

[10] "Film Roman To Produce Animation For The Man Show". June 5, 2001.

[11] Head, Steve (May 6, 2003). "Angels Ready for Animated Debut". IGN. Retrieved September 22, 2020.

[KleinResume-12] "AdamKlein_resume.qxd" (PDF).

[13] "Credits".

[14] Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Honey Nut Cheerios with Garfield (1993)". YouTube.

[15] "Film Roman Gets Shagged For Sho Too". May 29, 2002.

[16] "Blues Brothers - The Animates Series". Blues Brothers Central. Archived from the original on April 29, 2009.

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Film Roman

History

Background

Formation

Waterman Entertainment ownership

Location

Television series

Films and specials

Miscellaneous

Commercials

Unreleased projects

See also

References

External links

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