| CBS Eye Animation Productions | |
| Type: | Division |
| Industry: | Television animation |
| Predecessors: | Terrytoons |
| Location: | Television City, Los Angeles, California, US |
| Key People: | Alec Botnick (head of animation) |
| Parent: | CBS Studios |
| Divisions: | Late Night Cartoons, Inc. |
CBS Eye Animation Productions is an American animation studio, division of CBS Studios owned by Paramount Global. The studio is closely associated with the Star Trek franchise with its first projects, and . CBS reinstated it as an animation division in late 2018 before its re-merger with Viacom in late 2019.[1] [2]
In the 1950s, CBS began to invest further into television programs, creating many live shows as I Love Lucy and Captain Kangaroo. However, in 1955 CBS purchased Terrytoons from Paul Terry under CBS Films. After the deal's closure in 1956, CBS placed Terrytoons under the management of UPA's Gene Deitch (whom had already secured a contract with CBS). Deitch would soon produce animated Tom Terrific shorts for Captain Kangaroo in 1957. Terrytoons would continue animation under CBS until its closure in 1972 after the corporate spin-off of the original Viacom International.
Despite the change of operations, CBS would continue to air many animated programs such as Terrytoons (which they still owned) and Hanna-Barbera Productions through the 1970s and mid-1980s. Throughout the late 1980s and '90s, they acquired broadcasting rights to multiple series from different studios such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Garfield and Friends (both now owned by parent company Paramount Global), Muppet Babies (now owned by Disney), as well several toy-based shows.
The network would continue with broadcast syndication cartoons from several companies (such as Nelvana) up until the late 1990s. In the 2000s, CBS (now merged with Westinghouse) switched to licensing more educational shows. Viacom had also acquired CBS as it agreed to air Nickelodeon/Nick Jr. on CBS until 2006 (after Viacom & CBS' split).
CBS would later resume airing animated programs by launching Cookie Jar TV until 2013.
In late 2018, CBS Studios unveiled CBS Eye Animation Productions to produce animated content for CBS All Access (now Paramount+). would become the first animated television series, followed by (a co-production with sister studio Nickelodeon Animation Studio). Initially, the studio would only create shows based on the Star Trek franchise but has invested in other shows such as The Harper House and Showtime's Our Cartoon President, as well as critically acclaimed live-action/animated news program, Tooning Out the News.
On September 29, 2022, the CBS Eye Animation Productions employees formed a union with Animation Guild IATSE Local 839 to publicly submit a letter for voluntary recognition.
The Late Show host Stephen Colbert and his production company, Spartina Productions, founded Late Night Cartoons, Inc., an animation studio that has collaborated with developers of Adobe Character Animator to produce and provide real-time interactive animations for broadcast. Their topical productions range from a live interview with an animated cartoon version of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in 2016 to several animated series including; Showtime's Our Cartoon President, Paramount+/Comedy Central’s Tooning Out the News, and Comedy Central’s Fairview. Another series, Washingtonia, was announced with a trailer in October 2021, but has not been produced or aired as of May 18, 2023.
All productions are co-produced with CBS Studios (formerly CBS Television Studios).
| Title | Creator(s) / Developer(s) | Years | Co-production with | Network | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | ||||||
| 1 | Mike McMahan | 2020–present | Secret Hideout Important Science Roddenberry Entertainment Titmouse, Inc. | CBS All Access Paramount+ | Based on the 1966 TV series and its spin-offs by Gene Roddenberry | |
| 2 | The Harper House | Brad Neely | 2021 | Neely Comics 219 Productions Titmouse, Inc. | Paramount+ | |
| 3 | Kevin and Dan Hageman | 2021–2024 | Nickelodeon Animation Studio Secret Hideout Roddenberry Entertainment Brothers Hageman Productions | Based on the 1966 TV series and its spin-offs by Gene Roddenberry[3] | ||
| Upcoming | ||||||
| 4 | Everybody Still Hates Chris | Chris Rock Ali LeRoi | 2024 | CR Enterprises 3 Arts Entertainment Titmouse, Inc. MTV Entertainment Studios | Comedy Central Paramount+ | Revival of Everybody Hates Chris[4] [5] |
| 5 | Among Us | Owen Dennis | TBA | Innersloth Titmouse, Inc. | TBA | Based on the video game by Innersloth[6] |
| 6 | Golden Axe | Mike McMahan Joe Chandler | Important Science Original Film Sega Sammy Group Titmouse, Inc. Sony Pictures Television | Comedy Central | Based on the video game series by Sega[7] | |
| Title | Creator(s) / Developer(s) | Years | Co-production with | Network | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | |||||||
| 1 | Our Cartoon President | Stephen Colbert Chris Licht Tim Luecke R.J. Fried Matt Lappin | 2018–2020 | Spartina Productions Licht Media Solutions Showtime Networks | Showtime | ||
| 2020s | |||||||
| 2 | Tooning Out the News | Stephen Colbert R. J. Fried Chris Licht Tim Luecke Zach Smilovitz Mike Leech | 2020–2023 | Spartina Productions Licht Media Solutions RJ Fried Worldwide | CBS All Access Paramount+ Comedy Central | ||
| 3 | Fairview | R. J. Fried Stephen Colbert Chris Licht Tim Luecke Kim Gamble Grant Gish Mike Leech Zach Smilovitz | 2022 | Spartina Productions Licht Media Solutions RJ Fried Worldwide MTV Entertainment Studios | Comedy Central | ||