Nelvana
Canadian animation studio and entertainment production company.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Nelvana is a Canadian animation studio and entertainment production company based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1971 by Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, and animator Clive A. Smith, it developed from a small film and television venture into one of Canada's best-known producers and distributors of animated children's entertainment. The company takes its name from Nelvana of the Northern Lights, a Canadian comic-book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle during the Second World War. Its production emblem, a polar bear looking toward the North Star, became one of the most recognizable symbols in Canadian animation. The founders initially worked across documentaries, live-action projects, commercials, television fillers, and experimental films. Their early interest in Canadian comic-book history led to a documentary for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and a travelling exhibition organized with the National Gallery of Canada. This cultural and documentary work established the company's identity while it developed the technical and commercial capabilities required for animation production. Nelvana's early animated specials included Small Star Cinema, Christmas Two Step, A Cosmic Christmas, The Devil and Daniel Mouse, Romie-0 and Julie-8, Please Don't Eat the Planet, Easter Fever, and Take Me Up to the Ball Game. A Cosmic Christmas attracted the attention of George Lucas and helped secure Nelvana's involvement in the 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special. The studio produced the animated segment commonly known as The Faithful Wookiee, which introduced the character Boba Fett to television audiences. During the 1980s, Nelvana expanded into feature animation, television series, live-action production, commercial work, and licensed character properties. Its first feature, Rock & Rule, was an ambitious science-fiction musical that took several years to complete but performed poorly after limited promotion. The company subsequently concentrated on television and licensed family properties. Its work on Care Bears proved transformational: the first Care Bears film became a commercial success, followed by additional features and a television series. Nelvana also produced the Star Wars-related series Droids and Ewoks, worked on Inspector Gadget, and developed live-action programs including The Edison Twins and T. and T. The studio's international profile grew significantly in the late 1980s and 1990s through programs based on established literary and character properties. Babar became one of its most successful international franchises, while other productions included The Adventures of Tintin, Little Bear, The Magic School Bus, Rupert, Dog City, Eek! The Cat, Ned's Newt, and Beetlejuice. Nelvana also produced or co-produced adult-oriented animation and live-action films, demonstrating a broader scope than its reputation as a children's studio might suggest. Its feature and co-production credits included Rock & Rule, Malice, Pippi Longstocking, and Babar: King of the Elephants. Nelvana developed a substantial international distribution business under names including Nelvana International and Nelvana Enterprises. By 2001, its library was reported to contain more than 1,650 half-hours of original programming. The company maintained or used international offices and distribution operations in markets including France, Ireland, Japan, and the United States. Its catalogue strategy combined owned and controlled productions with licensed adaptations of books, comics, toys, and other entertainment properties. In 2000, Corus Entertainment acquired Nelvana, bringing the studio into a larger Canadian media group. Under Corus ownership, Nelvana continued as an animation and children's-content label, with emphasis on production, licensing, distribution, and exploitation of its extensive library. Later work included major children's and youth properties such as Beyblade, Bakugan, and various original and adapted animated series. Nelvana remains asso…
History
Michael Hirsh and Patrick Loubert met while studying at York University in the late 1960s and began making films with fellow students. They later joined forces with animator and designer Clive A. Smith, who had worked in the United Kingdom on projects connected with The Beatles and Yellow Submarine before moving to Canada. The partners first operated under the name Laff Arts, producing small experimental and documentary films. The name was abandoned after they were advised that it did not present a sufficiently professional image. Nelvana was established in Toronto in 1971. The founders acquired rights to a collection of Canadian comic books from the 1940s and used the material as the basis for documentary and educational work. They produced a CBC documentary about Canadian comics and helped organize a National Gallery of Canada travelling exhibition on comic art from the 1941–1945 period. The company was named after Nelvana of the Northern Lights, a comic-book heroine created by Adrian Dingle. In its earliest period, the studio operated with very limited resources, working from modest premises and making documentaries, live-action films, commercials, and short animated pieces for Canadian television. Nelvana's first television work included Small Star Cinema, which blended live action and animation from a child's perspective, and the 1975 special Christmas Two Step. A succession of specials followed, including A Cosmic Christmas in 1977 and The Devil and Daniel Mouse in 1978. The former brought the studio to the attention of George Lucas and led to a commission for the Star Wars Holiday Special. Nelvana created the animated sequence The Faithful Wookiee, which featured the principal Star Wars voice cast and introduced Boba Fett. The early 1980s brought both risk and expansion. Nelvana devoted substantial time and resources to Rock & Rule, a science-fiction musical feature inspired in part by The Devil and Daniel Mouse. The film was released in 1983 but received limited promotion and was not commercially successful. The company survived by undertaking television work, including children's series, live-action programs, and production assignments such as the first season of Inspector Gadget. It also made specials and series based on toy and greeting-card properties, including Strawberry Shortcake, Madballs, and My Pet Monster. Care Bears became Nelvana's decisive commercial breakthrough. The studio acquired production rights connected with the American Greetings characters and produced a feature in 1985. Its success supported two further films and a television series, while establishing Nelvana's expertise in transforming licensed characters into recurring screen franchises. The company also co-produced the Star Wars animated series Droids and Ewoks, continued live-action production, and created the commercial-production unit BearSpots. During the decade it co-produced the Clifford the Big Red Dog video series and the live-action series T. and T.; the latter was threatened when an original distributor failed, creating another serious financial crisis for the studio before replacement distribution was secured. At the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s, Nelvana built a broad international catalogue. Its adaptation of Babar became an important international co-production and was followed by projects based on The Adventures of Tintin, Little Bear, The Magic School Bus, and Rupert. Original or partially original productions included Eek! The Cat, Dog City, Ned's Newt, and other animated series. The studio also produced adult animation and live-action features, including Malice, which became one of its strongest North American box-office performers, as well as Pippi Longstocking and Babar: King of the Elephants. Nelvana's business during the 1990s combined production, co-production, distribution, licensing, and library management. It participated in projects for broadcast television, home video, theatrical release, and interactive entertainment. Some planned feature collaborations did not reach completion, including projects developed with Paramount Pictures. The company also explored video games, including Toonstruck, and absorbed Windlight Studios in 1997, adding computer-animation capability and personnel. In 2000, Corus Entertainment acquired Nelvana. The studio subsequently operated as part of Corus's media portfolio while retaining the Nelvana identity for animation production, distribution, and franchise activity. Its later catalogue included internationally distributed children's properties such as Beyblade and Bakugan, alongside continuing exploitation of established library titles. Nelvana's historical significance rests on its role in building a Canadian animation industry with international reach, its ability to adapt literary, comic-book, and toy properties, and its creation of a durable catalogue spanning preschool, children's, family, and selected adult-oriented entertainment.
- 2000
Acquisition by Corus Entertainment
[1]Corus Entertainment acquires Nelvana and incorporates it into its Canadian media operations.
- 1997
Windlight Studios is absorbed
[1]Nelvana absorbs the assets of computer-animation company Windlight Studios.
- 1989
Babar gains international distribution
[1]Nelvana's Babar film and television work expands the studio's international family-entertainment profile.
- 1985
Care Bears becomes a breakthrough franchise
[1]The first Care Bears feature becomes a commercial success and leads to sequels and television production.
- 1983
Rock & Rule is released
[1]Nelvana's first animated feature reaches theatres after a lengthy and resource-intensive production.
- 1978
Star Wars Holiday Special collaboration
[1]Nelvana produces the animated segment The Faithful Wookiee for the Star Wars television special.
- 1977
A Cosmic Christmas
[1]The special helps establish Nelvana's animation credentials and attracts George Lucas's attention.
- 1975
First television special
[1]Christmas Two Step becomes one of the studio's earliest television specials.
- 1971
Nelvana is founded in Toronto
[1]Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, and Clive A. Smith establish Nelvana as a Canadian film and animation company.
Products and positioning
Family-oriented animation studio and global children's entertainment producer, with additional activity in adult animation, live-action production, distribution, and franchise licensing.
Animated television series and film · 1989
Babar
Nelvana's adaptation of Jean de Brunhoff's Babar books became one of the studio's defining international productions. The franchise included a feature film and television programming and helped establish Nelvana as a producer capable of turning literary children's properties into long-running global entertainment brands.
Animated feature films and television · 1985
Care Bears
Based on characters owned by American Greetings, Care Bears was Nelvana's most important breakthrough of the 1980s. The studio produced a successful feature in 1985, followed by additional films and a television series. The property demonstrated Nelvana's ability to combine animation production with character licensing and franchise merchandising.
Educational animated television series
The Magic School Bus
Nelvana produced an animated adaptation of Joanna Cole's educational book series. The program combined classroom comedy with science education and became one of the studio's most widely recognized educational children's properties.
Animated television series
The Adventures of Tintin
Nelvana developed animated programming based on Hergé's Tintin books. The production formed part of the studio's 1990s expansion into internationally recognizable literary and comic-book properties.
Preschool animated television series
Little Bear
Based on the books by Maurice Sendak, Little Bear is a gentle preschool series centered on imaginative play, family relationships, and everyday discovery. It represents Nelvana's substantial contribution to preschool television.
Animated feature film · 1983
Rock & Rule
Rock & Rule is a science-fiction musical feature and Nelvana's first major animated theatrical film. It was unusually ambitious for a Canadian studio of its period, incorporating a rock-music setting and an adult-oriented tone, although its initial commercial release was unsuccessful.
Animated television franchise
Beyblade
Beyblade is part of Nelvana's later international franchise activity. The studio was involved in bringing the spinning-top toy property to animated television audiences and in supporting its distribution and licensing across international markets.
Animated television and multimedia franchise
Bakugan
Bakugan is a later-generation youth franchise associated with collectible toys, animated storytelling, and international licensing. Nelvana's participation reflects its post-acquisition focus on globally scalable children's entertainment properties.
Brand decisions
2000
Sale to Corus EntertainmentM&ABackground
Nelvana had developed a substantial international production and distribution library but required a larger corporate platform for continued media operations.
Action taken
Corus Entertainment acquired Nelvana and placed the studio within its media group.
Aftermath
Nelvana continued as a Corus-owned animation and children's-content label, with its library and production capabilities supporting Corus's broader entertainment portfolio.
1985
Launch of the first Care Bears featureProduct launchBackground
Nelvana obtained production rights connected with the American Greetings Care Bears characters.
Action taken
The studio released its first Care Bears animated feature and subsequently expanded the property into further films and television.
Aftermath
The film became a major commercial success and materially improved Nelvana's position in children's entertainment.
1980
Shift toward television franchises after Rock & RuleStrategyBackground
The prolonged production and weak commercial performance of Rock & Rule placed considerable pressure on the studio's resources.
Action taken
Nelvana concentrated more heavily on television series, specials, licensed children's properties, and live-action production.
Aftermath
The strategy helped the company continue operating and created the platform for the later Care Bears breakthrough.
Recent events
- Unconfirmed
Nelvana teams up with Keith Chapman to develop preschool series[2]
Nelvana teamed up with children’s TV writer, producer and creator Keith Chapman to develop and produce the preschool animated series Bella’s Bro-Bots.
FilmRise and Nelvana announce children's content distribution partnership[3]
Reported:
FilmRise announced a partnership with children's content licensor Nelvana to distribute approximately 800 hours of programming to SVOD and AVOD platforms across the U.S., U.K., Ireland, and Germany.
Cinedigm signs multi-year content deal with Nelvana[4]
Reported:
Cinedigm signed a multi-year deal with Nelvana to bring children’s titles to Cinedigm’s Dove Channel and CONtv, adding 52 hours of children’s content to the streaming channels.
Sources4 sources
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