Burbank Films Australia
Encyclopedia
Burbank Films Australia was an Australia
n animation
-production company that in a span of eight years produced over thirty different animated films. These films were presented to the public through television or direct-to-video debuts.
; these first few films characterized themselves by their grim appeal. The sketch-styled backgrounds and the simplicity of the original score, such as in Oliver Twist
(1982), added to the dramatic tone of those first stories. The eight total Dickens adaptations were produced during two years. At the same time, in 1983, the company produced a short series of adaptations of Sherlock Holmes
stories, adapted from the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In the years that followed, until 1988, Burbank Films Australia adapted the works of many other well known authors and legends, including Kenneth Grahame
's The Wind in the Willows
, Miguel de Cervantes
' Don Quijote de la Mancha, J. M. Barrie
's Peter Pan, Lewis Carroll
's Alice in Wonderland and Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers
among many others.
In 1991, the company was resurrected under the name of Burbank Animation Studios, from them until the present time, the new studio has continued the production of "animated classics".
. The Burbank Films Australia catalogue is an example of the type of budget copyright content regularly parallel licenced to multiple DVD distributors.
When the Burbank Films Australia parent company Film Funding and Management Pty Ltd went into liquidation the distribution rights to the "Animated Classics Series" were transferred to ABR Entertainment Co and the copyright was later fully assigned to Omnivision Ltd. These are now owned by Pulse Distribution and Entertainment and administered by digital rights management firm NuTech Digital
. These titles are currently available in the US on Nutech's Digital Versatile Disc Ltd and DVD Ltd labels. They have also been licensed to Genius Entertainment. (Low Budget releases from Digiview Entertainment have also been sighted, but their legality is unknown.)
The distribution rights to "The Dickens Collection" (A Christmas Carol, Great Expectations, Tale of Two Cities, The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, The Old Curiosity Shop and Nicholas Nickleby), "The Sherlock Holmes Collection" (The Sign of Four
, The Baskerville Curse, The Valley of Fear
and A Study in Scarlet
), The Black Tulip and The Corsican Brothers were transferred to Rikini Inc , which later became International Family Classics or IFC Inc, who onsold the films to HS Holding Corporation who currently own the titles . Alice Through the Looking Glass
is now also owned by HS Holding Corporation who purchased the rights from INI Entertainment Group, the distributor of Burbank Animation Studios' post 1991 films. These titles are currently distributed by Liberty International
in the US, through Liberation Entertainment and Genius Entertainment. (As with the "Animated Classics Series," budget-priced releases from Digiview have been sighted, but again, their legality is unknown.)
Payless Entertainment Australia began reissuing the Burbank Films catalogue in June 2008.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
-production company that in a span of eight years produced over thirty different animated films. These films were presented to the public through television or direct-to-video debuts.
History
The company's first animated productions in 1982 were a series of adaptations of books from Charles DickensCharles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
; these first few films characterized themselves by their grim appeal. The sketch-styled backgrounds and the simplicity of the original score, such as in Oliver Twist
Oliver Twist (1982 film)
Oliver Twist is a 1982 Australian 72-minute made-for-television animated film from Burbank Films Australia; a part of the studio's series of adaptations of Charles Dickens' works made from 1982 through 1985. It was originally broadcast in 1982 through the Australian Nine Network Australia...
(1982), added to the dramatic tone of those first stories. The eight total Dickens adaptations were produced during two years. At the same time, in 1983, the company produced a short series of adaptations of Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
stories, adapted from the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In the years that followed, until 1988, Burbank Films Australia adapted the works of many other well known authors and legends, including Kenneth Grahame
Kenneth Grahame
Kenneth Grahame was a Scottish writer, most famous for The Wind in the Willows , one of the classics of children's literature. He also wrote The Reluctant Dragon; both books were later adapted into Disney films....
's The Wind in the Willows
The Wind in the Willows
The Wind in the Willows is a classic of children's literature by Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced, it focuses on four anthropomorphised animal characters in a pastoral version of England...
, Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel, is a classic of Western literature, and is regarded amongst the best works of fiction ever written...
' Don Quijote de la Mancha, J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
's Peter Pan, Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , better known by the pseudonym Lewis Carroll , was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, as well as the poems "The Hunting of the...
's Alice in Wonderland and Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
among many others.
In 1991, the company was resurrected under the name of Burbank Animation Studios, from them until the present time, the new studio has continued the production of "animated classics".
Copyright status
There has been confusion as to whether ownership of these films has fallen into the public domain. Despite the number of releases of these films, every Burbank Film has a valid US copyright and cannot be considered an Orphaned Work or Public DomainPublic domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
. The Burbank Films Australia catalogue is an example of the type of budget copyright content regularly parallel licenced to multiple DVD distributors.
When the Burbank Films Australia parent company Film Funding and Management Pty Ltd went into liquidation the distribution rights to the "Animated Classics Series" were transferred to ABR Entertainment Co and the copyright was later fully assigned to Omnivision Ltd. These are now owned by Pulse Distribution and Entertainment and administered by digital rights management firm NuTech Digital
NuTech Digital
NuTech Digital is a US corporation that translates, packages, and dubs hentai anime, live-action pornography, and concerts.In November 2005, the company lost its hentai anime licenses after losing a lawsuit for failure to pay royalties. The titles it acquired have since been redistributed to other...
. These titles are currently available in the US on Nutech's Digital Versatile Disc Ltd and DVD Ltd labels. They have also been licensed to Genius Entertainment. (Low Budget releases from Digiview Entertainment have also been sighted, but their legality is unknown.)
The distribution rights to "The Dickens Collection" (A Christmas Carol, Great Expectations, Tale of Two Cities, The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, The Old Curiosity Shop and Nicholas Nickleby), "The Sherlock Holmes Collection" (The Sign of Four
The Sign of Four
The Sign of the Four , also called The Sign of Four, is the second novel featuring Sherlock Holmes written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle wrote four novels and 56 stories starring the fictional detective.The story is set in 1887...
, The Baskerville Curse, The Valley of Fear
The Valley of Fear
The Valley of Fear is the fourth and final Sherlock Holmes novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story was first published in the Strand Magazine between September 1914 and May 1915, and the first book edition was published in New York on 27 February 1915.- Part I: The Tragedy of Birlstone...
and A Study in Scarlet
A Study in Scarlet
A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, introducing his new character of Sherlock Holmes, who later became one of the most famous literary detective characters. He wrote the story in 1886, and it was published the next year...
), The Black Tulip and The Corsican Brothers were transferred to Rikini Inc , which later became International Family Classics or IFC Inc, who onsold the films to HS Holding Corporation who currently own the titles . Alice Through the Looking Glass
Alice Through the Looking Glass (1987 film)
Alice Through the Looking Glass is a 1987 Australian-Italian animated film nominally based on the novel Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll. It was directed by Andrea Bresciani and...
is now also owned by HS Holding Corporation who purchased the rights from INI Entertainment Group, the distributor of Burbank Animation Studios' post 1991 films. These titles are currently distributed by Liberty International
Liberty International
Liberty International plc was a British property investment company. It switched to Real Estate Investment Trust status when REITs were introduced in the United Kingdom in January 2007...
in the US, through Liberation Entertainment and Genius Entertainment. (As with the "Animated Classics Series," budget-priced releases from Digiview have been sighted, but again, their legality is unknown.)
Payless Entertainment Australia began reissuing the Burbank Films catalogue in June 2008.