| Genre: | Children's Christmas |
| Creator: | Evan Spiridellis Gregg Spiridellis |
| Based On: | StoryBots |
| Starring: | Ed Asner |
| Voices: | Judy Greer Erin Fitzgerald Fred Tatasciore Jeff Gill Gregg Spiridellis Evan Spiridellis |
| Composer: | Gabe Sokoloff |
| Language: | English |
| Runtime: | 24 minutes |
| Company: | JibJab Bros. Studios |
| Network: | Netflix |
A StoryBots Christmas is a children's animated television holiday special based on the characters from the digital educational program StoryBots and the original television series Ask the StoryBots and StoryBots Super Songs. It was created and produced by JibJab Bros. Studios (now StoryBots Inc.) and premiered exclusively on Netflix on December 1, 2017. It received six nominations for the 45th Daytime Emmy Awards and won two, including for Outstanding Special Class Animated Program.
The special features an appearance by Ed Asner as Santa Claus, a role he also played a few times in media such as the film Elf, Regular Show, and the television special Olive, the Other Reindeer. He received an Emmy nomination for the role.
Bo mistakenly thinks that her friends do not like her gifts, so she heads to the North Pole to ask Santa Claus for help making awesome presents for her friends. She learns along the way that Christmas is about something far more than presents.
A StoryBots Christmas received positive reviews. Common Sense Media gave it a five-star review, calling it a "dynamic and positive special [that] highlights the importance of sharing time with loved ones during the holidays".[1] The Star Tribune also named it a top TV pick and praised it as a "silly but charming animated special".[2]
| Award | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Special Class Animated Program | Evan Spiridellis, Gregg Spiridellis, Meridith Stokes, Sarah Kambara | |
| Outstanding Interactive Media Enhancement to a Daytime Program or Series | Gregg Spiridellis, Evan Spiridellis, Daniel Haack, Marc Geraldez, Greg Mako, Rafael Frensley, Sarah Kambara, Jeff Gill, Jacob Streilein, Nikolas Ilic, Logan Chang, Ian Gerstel, Philip Emokpare, Dave Baer, Suruchi Shingre, Phillip Lamplugh, Samrod Shenassa, Blake Petetan | ||
| Outstanding Performer in a Children's, Preschool Children's or Educational and Informational Program | Ed Asner | ||
| Outstanding Writing in a Preschool Animated Program | Ian Worrel, Taylor Clutter, Jeff Gill, Nikolas Ilic, Kendall Nelson, Taylor Price, Evan Spiridellis, Jacob Streilein, Nate Theis, Eddie West | Evan Spiridellis, Gregg Spiridellis, Nate Theis | |
| Outstanding Directing in a Preschool Animated Program | Leonardo Nasca, Jared Nugent, Jeffrey Shiffman | Evan Spiridellis, Jeff Gill | |
| Outstanding Sound Editing for a Preschool Animated Program | Jeffrey Shiffman, David Carfagno, Brad Meyer, Nicholas J. Ainsworth, Elliot Herman | Jeffrey Shiffman, Nicholas J. Ainsworth, Kevin Hart, James Singleton, Jacob Cook | |
A StoryBots Christmas: Music from the Original Special was released on December 8, 2017 on all major digital music platforms, including iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music. The music release includes the original song "Sharing Christmas (With the Ones You Love)" from the television special, as well as "Crazy for Christmastime" from the StoryBots short-form video.[3]