Format Films

Format Films was an American animation studio established in October 1959 by Herbert Klynn, a former UPA animator, with Jules Engel serving as vice president. Its founding group also included animators Bob McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini. The company began in Burbank, California, with a staff of approximately 15 people and quickly expanded as demand grew for animated television commercials, industrial films, television programs, and theatrical shorts. The studio’s early growth was unusually rapid. In 1960 it moved to a larger facility in the Valley Village area of Los Angeles, occupying a building of approximately 10,000 square feet. Its workforce increased from 62 employees in May 1960 to 125 by April 1961. During its first two years, Format reportedly completed about 90 television commercials and several industrial shorts. On March 11, 1960, Jerry Abbott, previously a Chicago-based sales representative at UPA, became the company’s vice president. In October of that year, Format entered a reciprocal arrangement with Mark VII Limited under which Format supplied animation for Mark VII television spots. Format’s most prominent television success was The Alvin Show, produced for Ross Bagdasarian’s production interests and broadcast in the early 1960s. Format produced all 26 episodes, reportedly at a total budget exceeding $1.5 million. The studio also produced more than 100 episodes of Popeye the Sailor and developed other television projects, including the unsold pilot The Shrimp. Its work placed the company within the expanding American television-animation production system, where studios commonly combined original series, commissioned advertising, industrial work, and subcontracted animation. The company also pursued theatrical animation. Its first theatrical short was A Tale of Old Wiff, released in 1960 and presented in 70mm with an experimental Smell-O-Vision format that incorporated odors into the screening experience. In 1962, Format released Icarus Montgolfier Wright, a poetic and visually distinctive short based on a Ray Bradbury story. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film in 1963, giving the studio one of its clearest markers of critical recognition. Format experienced organizational disruption in 1963 when Jules Engel left the United States for Paris to direct The World of Siné. Herbert Klynn briefly closed the studio but later reopened it, reportedly by 1965, under the name Format Productions. Henrietta Jordan became vice president, and the company relocated its headquarters to Studio City. In this later phase, the studio worked on television and theatrical projects and subcontracted a number of Warner Bros. and DePatie–Freleng Enterprises shorts in the Road Runner, Daffy Duck, and Speedy Gonzales series. It also produced The Lone Ranger animated television series for CBS from 1966 to 1969. The surviving record presents Format Films primarily as a production studio rather than a consumer-facing entertainment label. Its output ranged from original television series and pilots to animation services for outside producers, commercials, industrial films, and theatrical shorts. The available reference material does not establish a precise closure date, a successor company, ownership structure, or a current operating presence. The studio is therefore treated as defunct, with Format Productions representing its later operating name.

Format Films emerged from the UPA school of animation at a time when American animation production was extending beyond theatrical cartoons into television, advertising, and industrial communication. Herbert Klynn founded the studio in October 1959 with Jules Engel as vice president and with Bob McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini among the founding animators. The first studio operated in Burbank with about 15 employees. The company expanded quickly. Jerry Abbott, a former UPA sales representative based in Chicago, became vice president in March 1960. By July, Format had moved to a 10,000-square-foot facility in Valley Village, Los Angeles. Its staff grew from 62 people in May 1960 to 125 in April 1961. During its first two years, the studio produced approximately 90 television commercials and several industrial shorts, demonstrating a business model that combined commissioned work with entertainment projects. Format also developed relationships with outside production and distribution organizations. In October 1960 it arranged to provide animation for Mark VII Limited television spots. The studio produced television material connected with Popeye the Sailor and became the animation producer for The Alvin Show, its most significant early success. The Alvin Show consisted of 26 episodes and was made for a reported total budget of more than $1.5 million. Format also completed a pilot for The Shrimp, although the proposed series did not proceed after the project was rejected by CBS. A proposed film adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s The Illustrated Man was likewise not produced. Theatrical work formed another part of the studio’s identity. A Tale of Old Wiff, released in 1960, was Format’s first theatrical animated cartoon and was made for an experimental Smell-O-Vision presentation. Format’s second theatrical short, Icarus Montgolfier Wright, appeared in 1962. Based on a Bradbury story, it was noted for its stylized visual design and literary tone and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film in 1963. The studio’s early leadership changed in the same period. Jules Engel left the United States for Paris in 1963 to direct The World of Siné. Klynn briefly closed Format Films, but the operation later resumed, reportedly by 1965, as Format Productions. Henrietta Jordan became vice president, and the company moved to Studio City. The later studio undertook service and subcontracting work, including eleven shorts in the Warner Bros. Road Runner theatrical series and three shorts involving Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales. It also produced the animated television series The Lone Ranger for CBS from 1966 through 1969. Format’s credited work in the second half of the 1960s extended across television programs, theatrical shorts, and animation assignments associated with Warner Bros. and DePatie–Freleng Enterprises. The listed television and film work includes projects such as I Spy, Honey West, The Glory Guys, Clambake, The Mothers-in-Law, Hee Haw, and Curiosity Shop, although the nature and extent of Format’s participation differed by production. The available record does not provide a definitive closure date or detailed account of the studio’s final ownership. Format Films is consequently remembered as a historical American animation studio whose work bridged UPA-influenced design, television production, advertising, and theatrical short subjects.

• 1966

  The Lone Ranger television production

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Format Productions begins producing the animated television series The Lone Ranger for CBS.

• 1965

  Reorganized as Format Productions

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Following a temporary closure, the studio reopens under the Format Productions name and relocates to Studio City.

• 1963

  Academy Award nomination

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Icarus Montgolfier Wright is nominated for Best Animated Short Film at the Academy Awards.

• 1962

  Icarus Montgolfier Wright released

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Format releases its Bradbury-based theatrical short Icarus Montgolfier Wright.

• 1961

  The Alvin Show production

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Format produces the complete 26-episode run of The Alvin Show.

• 1960

  Expansion and relocation

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  The studio moves from Burbank to a larger Valley Village facility and substantially increases its staff.

• 1960

  First theatrical short

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  A Tale of Old Wiff becomes Format’s first theatrical animated cartoon and uses an experimental Smell-O-Vision presentation.

• 1959

  Studio founded

  [1]Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org

  Herbert Klynn establishes Format Films in October with Jules Engel, Bob McIntosh, and Joseph Mugnaini.

A mid-century American animation production studio combining original television programming with commercial, industrial, theatrical, and subcontracted animation work.

• Animated television series · 1961

  The Alvin Show

  Format Films’ best-known original television production, The Alvin Show was a 26-episode animated series based on the musical characters associated with Ross Bagdasarian. The studio produced the complete series during its early period of rapid expansion. The program became the company’s largest reported television success and helped establish Format as a significant supplier of American television animation.

• Animated television series · 1960

  Popeye the Sailor

  Format Films produced more than 100 episodes of the Popeye the Sailor television animation program. The work formed part of the studio’s early television-service business and demonstrated its ability to handle a substantial volume of episodic production for an established cartoon property.

• Theatrical animated short · 1962

  Icarus Montgolfier Wright

  Released in 1962, this short was adapted from a Ray Bradbury story and was characterized by literary writing, explanatory historical material, and distinctive artistic design. It earned Format a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1963.

• Animated television series · 1966

  The Lone Ranger

  Produced under the Format Productions name for CBS, The Lone Ranger was a later television assignment that ran from 1966 to 1969. The project reflected the reorganized studio’s continued focus on contracted and series-based animation production.

• Theatrical animated short · 1960

  A Tale of Old Wiff

  Format’s first theatrical animated cartoon, released in 1960. The short was presented in 70mm and associated with the experimental Smell-O-Vision process, which added synchronized odors to the viewing experience.

• Television pilot · 1961

  The Shrimp

  A proposed half-hour animated television series for which Format completed an unsold pilot. The project was initially associated with CBS and later connected with Four Star Television, but no continuing series resulted.

• 1965

  Reopen and operate as Format ProductionsStrategy

  Background

  Jules Engel’s departure for Paris was followed by a temporary closure of the studio under its original operating identity.

  Action taken

  Herbert Klynn reopened the operation under the Format Productions name, with Henrietta Jordan as vice president and a new base in Studio City.

  Aftermath

  The reorganized studio continued with television production and subcontracted theatrical animation, including work connected with Road Runner, Daffy Duck, and Speedy Gonzales shorts.

  Source

• 1960

  Expand into commercial animation servicesStrategy

  Background

  Format needed a broader production base while developing its own television and theatrical projects.

  Action taken

  The studio moved to a larger Los Angeles facility, expanded its workforce, and entered a reciprocal arrangement with Mark VII Limited to supply animation for television spots.

  Aftermath

  Commercial and industrial assignments became an important part of the studio’s early operating model alongside entertainment production.

  Source

1. 1Format Filmsen.wikipedia.org