| Hyperion Pictures | |
| Location: | Los Angeles, California |
| Key People: | Thomas L. Wilhite Willard Carroll Chris Young |
| Industry: | Filmmaking |
| Owner: | The Walt Disney Company |
| Subsid: | Hyperion Animation Company, Inc. Jambalaya Studios |
Hyperion Pictures (also known as Hyperion Films or Hyperion Studios or Hyperion Animation) is an American independent film production and distribution company founded by Thomas L. Wilhite, who had previously been the head of motion picture and television production for The Walt Disney Company, and writer/director Willard Carroll. The company produces both live-action and animated productions such as The Brave Little Toaster[1] and The Runestone.
A subsidiary of the company is its animation division, Hyperion Animation Company, Inc. which has produced animated feature films and television series, including its most successful media franchises: The Brave Little Toaster, The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars, The Brave Little Toaster to the Rescue, The Itsy Bitsy Spider and The Oz Kids. In 1998, the company produced the live-action film Playing by Heart for Miramax.[2] Also, on December 9, 1998, it signed a deal with Showtime in order to develop a telefilm based on the hit book series Bad News Ballet.[3]
On October 5, 1999, Hyperion, along with Disney's animation designer Bruce W. Smith, launched a joint venture Jambalaya Studios to produce shows aimed at a black audience.[4] On September 22, 2002, Hyperion Pictures decided to expand into a memoir and a series of pulp novels into feature film production.[5]
The studio has been dormant since 2007, but their website was recently updated in 2019, stating that it was under construction. It then returned a year later. However, the company is not involved with .
The first Brave Little Toaster received an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program nomination[6] and a Special Jury recognition from the Sundance Film Festival.[7]