Rainmaker Entertainment
Public (TSX: RNK) Subsidiary | |
Industry | Computer animation |
Predecessor | Mainframe Entertainment |
Founded |
1991 2007 (as Rainmaker) | (as Mainframe)
Founders |
Ian Pearson Phil Mitchell Gavin Blair John Grace |
Headquarters | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
Key people |
Craig Graham, CEO[1] Michael Hefferon, President[1] |
Products | Television, motion pictures, home video |
Parent | WOW! Unlimited Media Inc. |
Divisions |
Rainmaker British Columbia Rainmaker Los Angeles |
Website |
www |
Rainmaker Entertainment, Inc. (formerly Mainframe Entertainment Inc.) is a Canadian computer animation and design company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are best known for producing the first ever CGI animated series ReBoot, as well as the Transformers spin-off Beast Wars: Transformers and Transformers: Beast Machines. In recent years they have also become known for producing most of the Barbie film series for Mattel.
Rainmaker Income Fund announced on August 29, 2006, that RNK Capital Limited Partnership would acquire the 38% of shares it didn't own by merging with Rainmaker Income Fund. After the merger, Rainmaker announced on January 31, 2007 that Mainframe Entertainment's name would be changed to Rainmaker Entertainment. On November 29, 2007, Rainmaker Income Fund announced the sale of Rainmaker Visual Effects and Rainmaker Post to Deluxe Entertainment Services Group, leaving only the animation business.
The current Rainmaker name and insignia was adopted from an older division, the DVD encoding company Rainmaker Digital Pictures, which encoded DVDs as early as 1997.
In 2013, Rainmaker relaunched Mainframe Entertainment as its television division, starting with a CG-animated television series, Bob the Builder.[2][3]
In 2016, Rainmaker acquired American animation studio Frederator Studios and announced that they have consolidated its divisions (including Frederator) under its new holding company WOW! Unlimited Media Inc.[4]
Productions
Television series
Title | Years | Network |
---|---|---|
as Mainframe Entertainment | ||
ReBoot | 1994–2001 | ABC Syndication |
Beast Wars: Transformers | 1996–1999 | Syndication |
Max Steel | 2000–02 | Kids WB!/Cartoon Network |
Weird-Oh's | 2000–01 | Fox Family |
Beast Machines: Transformers | 1999–2000 | Fox Kids |
Films
- Shadow Raiders/War Planets (1998–2000)
- Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (2003)
- Action Man (not to be confused with the BKN series) (2000)
- Heavy Gear (2001)
- Max Steel (season 3 episodes "Endangered Species", "Forces of Nature" and "Countdown") (2000)
- Scary Godmother (2003)
- Scary Godmother: The Revenge of Jimmy (2005)
- several Barbie fairy tale movies (continuing into the Rainmaker era):
- the 1985 music video for "Money for Nothing", a song by Dire Straits (prior to Mainframe's founding proper) that won an MTV Video Music Award
- Inspector Gadget's Biggest Caper Ever (2005)
- Zixx series (Levels One and Two) (2004–2006)
- Arthur's Missing Pal (2006)
- 2003 MTV Movie Awards
- 2006 MTV Movie Awards
- Harriet the Spy
- Ghost Hunter Dax
Rainmaker era
Title | Release Date | Notes |
---|---|---|
Bob the Builder | 2015–present | as Mainframe Entertainment; with HiT Entertainment |
Mickey and the Roadster Racers | January 2017 | as Mainframe Entertainment; with Disney Television Animation |
Sly Cooper | TBA | Video game-to-film adaptation |
Surf's Up 2: WaveMania | 2017 | Produced in collaboration with Sony Pictures Animation |
ReBoot: The Guardian Code | 2017 | Sequel series to ReBoot |
- WET (video game trailer)
- Prototype (video game trailer)
- Barbie Mariposa and Her Butterfly Fairy Friends
- 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand (video game trailer)
- Legion of 5[7]
- Barbie in a Christmas Carol
- Ghostbusters: The Video Game[8] (Pre-rendered cut scenes)
References
- 1 2 "Rainmaker Entertainment Names Michael Hefferon President". Deadline. November 14, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
- ↑ Wolfe, Jennifer (October 7, 2013). "Rainmaker Launches TV Division". Animation World Network. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ↑ McLean, Tom (April 6, 2014). "Mainframe to Animate HIT's New 'Bob' Series". Animation Magazine. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ↑ http://www.awn.com/news/rainmaker-entertainment-acquires-frederator-rebranding-wow
- ↑ MAINFRAME ENTERTAINMENT AND THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY TEAM UP FOR CG ANIMATED THE NUTTY PROFESSOR
- ↑ http://www.awn.com/news/open-season-scared-silly-lands-retail-march-8
- ↑ Vancouver Sun - Vancouver-based Rainmaker Animation strikes movie deal Archived March 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Work - Ghostbusters". Rainmaker. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
External links
- Official website
- Rainmaker Entertainment at the Internet Movie Database
- Mainframe Entertainment at the Internet Movie Database