BVS Entertainment, Inc., previously known as Saban Productions, Saban Entertainment and Saban International, is a dormant subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company. Founded on April 24, 1980, as a music production company by Haim Saban[1] and Shuki Levy, it slowly transitioned to or gravitated towards television production and distribution, where it is most known for producing and distributing children's programs for Fox Family/ABC Family and defunct channels Fox Kids and Jetix.
The company imported, dubbed and adapted various media formats from Japan such as Maple Town, Noozles, Funky Fables, Samurai Pizza Cats, and the first three Digimon series to North American and international markets over syndication, including both animation and live-action shows. Saban also adapted various tokusatsu shows from Toei Company, including Power Rangers (based on the Super Sentai series), Big Bad Beetleborgs (based on Juukou B-Fighter), VR Troopers (featuring elements of various Metal Hero series), and Masked Rider (featuring elements of Kamen Rider Black RX).
Saban has also distributed and provided music for television programs produced by outside companies such as The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Inspector Gadget and the first two dubbed seasons of Dragon Ball Z.
In the 1990s, Saban also operated the Libra Pictures label which produced programs targeted towards older audiences than Saban's usual kid-friendly output,[4] as well as a syndicated subsidiary Saban Domestic Distribution, whose primarily purpose was to distribute shows for first-run and off-net syndication.[5]
Saban Entertainment was formed on April 24, 1980, as Saban Productions, Inc., which was initially a music production company. In 1981, it formed a longtime relationship with DIC Audiovisuel and DIC Enterprises to create soundtracks for their programs; Saban also composed music for companies like Ruby-Spears Enterprises and Filmation.[6][7]
In 1984, Saban moved into production outright with its first television program Kidd Video, a co-production with DIC Enterprises, and it was picked up by NBC as part of their Saturday morning lineup.[8] The next project Saban produced was Macron 1, an English version of GoShogun featuring pop music, which was picked up for syndication by Orbis Communications for the fall of 1986.[9]
In 1986, Saban Productions bought the foreign rights to the DIC Enterprises library of children's programming from DIC's parent DIC Animation City and then sold the rights to Créativité et Développement shortly afterward, leading to DIC suing Saban for damages before reaching a settlement in 1991. In 1987, DIC expanded its relationship with Saban Productions to co-produce several shows, with Saban handling international distribution.[10] That year, both DIC and Saban Productions collaborated to provide series commitments to 26 episodes of I'm Telling! and 13 episodes of The New Archies for NBC.[11]
On June 10, 1987, Saban Productions expanded to live-action TV and theatrical features with plans for a television film on NBC, an hour-long late-night series for CBS, a first-run strip for syndication, and a theatrical feature film. Several pilots such as Love on Trial, Hidden Rage, Shocking But True were produced but never realized.[12]
In late October 1987, Saban Productions had obtained three independently produced projects as part of its first slate for the NATPE conference. The three strips included Love Court, a collaboration with television syndicator Orbis Communications; All-American Family Challenge, a game show taped at Six Flags; and Alphy's Hollywood Power Party, a teen celebrity dance show; the fourth project would be a network game show version of the board game Uno, which was set for NBC, and was to be produced by Peter Berlin and Rob Fiedler, who joined Saban shortly after Wordplay was cancelled.[13]
In 1988, Saban Productions and Washington-based newspaper columnist Jack Anderson agreed to produce four quarterly specials under the branding American Expose, with then-future Cops creator/producer John Langley and Malcolm Barbour serving as producers.[14] Orbis Communications, who previously syndicated Macron 1, signed on to distribute the programs.[15] Saban International N.V would distribute the same programs and other non-Saban television material,[16] including international sales of DIC programs such as Hey Vern, It's Ernest! prior to a lawsuit in 1990.[17]
By early 1989, Saban formed the Saban/Scherick Productions division for production done with Edgar Scherick, primarily miniseries and made-for-TV films.[18] Around this time, they also began syndicating the film library of New World Pictures (which had been sold to Trans-Atlantic Entertainment, consisting of ex-New World employees) to television stations. As the company grew, additional executives were hired to push into new areas like prime time programming. Saban created a division, Saban International N.V., based in both the U.S. and the Netherlands, for the international distribution of its shows (not to be confused with the interchangeable but separate company Saban International Paris). Saban hired Stan Golden from Horizon International TV to head their international distribution arm. Then in August 1989, Tom Palmieri came from MTM Enterprises to become Saban's president. On September 13, the company renamed itself Saban Entertainment, Inc.[19] CLT in Luxembourg had signed a deal with Saban to market TV shows.[20]
In 1990, Saban entered into a partnership with video game publisher Acclaim Entertainment and syndicator Bohbot Entertainment to develop the program Video Power.[21] Also that year, Saban started Saban Video, with distribution being handled by Video Treasures.[22] In 1991, Saban Entertainment struck a home video deal with Prism Entertainment that would allow Saban International the international distribution rights to select films.[23] In 1992, Saban signed a domestic distribution deal with Bohbot Communications to syndicate Saban's Around the World in Eighty Dreams and Saban's Gulliver's Travels as part of its Amazin' Adventures block.[24]
In 1992, Saban partnered with the Marvel Entertainment Group to produce an animated series based on Marvel's comic-book heroes the X-Men. Saban obtained the rights in a joint partnership with PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and the Fox Kids Network, becoming Saban's first hit program (running until 1997) and the company's first breakthrough, in partnership with another company.[25] The following year, Saban brought another hit to the Fox Kids lineup, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, an adaptation of the Japanese Super Sentai franchise. In 1994 alone, licensed Power Rangers merchandise made Saban over a billion dollars in profits.[26] At distinct times in the 1980s, both Loesch and Saban had attempted adaptations of these shows, but had found themselves repeatedly rejected by other networks.[27][28][29]
Later on in 1992, Saban formed a syndication subsidiary, Saban Domestic Distribution,[5] and unveiled a $50 million development slate. David Goodman, formerly of Goodman Entertainment Group, served as senior vice president of the company.[30] In 1994, Saban Entertainment launched Libra Pictures in an effort to gear films for older audiences, while the Saban name was used for kid-friendly material, in a similar manner what The Walt Disney Studios and Touchstone Pictures would have to offer.[4] In the same year, Saban signed a deal with A*Vision Entertainment to distribute cassettes under the Saban Home Entertainment and Libra Home Entertainment banners.[31]
In December 1994, Saban launched a partnership/joint venture with UPN to establish the UPN Kids block.[32] The block would eventually premiere on September 10, 1995, with Space Strikers and Teknoman.[33] In 1995, the Saban Interactive unit was established to produce CD-ROM software based on the Power Rangers franchise.[34]
On October 17, 1995, Libra Pictures president Lance Robbins was made Saban's president of motion pictures and television.[35] On November 3, 1995, Saban Entertainment and the Fox Broadcasting Company entered into a partnership where the two companies would create children's programing channels and services, develop and distribute programing and build licensing and merchandising opportunities on a global basis, and help expand Saban programs' reach.[36]
In February 1996, Saban Domestic Distribution launched a Syndicated television block in the United States, entitled "The Saban Network for Kids!". The block consisted of two newly produced programmes - Saban's Adventures of Oliver Twist and The Why Why Family, new episodes of VR Troopers and repeats of Samurai Pizza Cats and Tenko and the Guardians of the Magic. Some of the block's programmes corresponded with FCC mandates, with The Why Why Family being the first FCC-friendly program produced by the company.[37][38]
In July 1996, Fox Kids Network secured rights from Marvel Entertainment Group for Captain America, Daredevil and Silver Surfer and additional characters to be developed into four series and 52 episodes over seven years.[39] In the same month, Saban formed a new division, Saban Enterprises International, to handle international licensing, merchandising and promotional activities under president Michael Welter. Oliver Spiner, senior vice president of Saban International, took over operational duties previously handled by Welter. Eric S. Rollman was promoted from senior vice president production to executive vice president of Saban Animation.[40]
Also in 1996, Fox Kids Network merged with Saban Entertainment to form Fox Kids Worldwide, which included the Marvel Productions and Marvel Films Animation library.[41][42][43] Shortly afterwards, Saban terminated its home video distribution deal with WarnerVision Entertainment and moved to Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.[44] In December 1996, Saban Domestic Distribution announced that they would launch an additional syndicated block - "X-Men … and More!" in the Fall of 1997, of which the hour-long serials would consist of an episode of X-Men: The Animated Series and other Marvel programmes such as Iron Man and Fantastic Four. Saban also announced that they would produce a revival of Captain Kangaroo for the now-named Saban Kids Network.[45]
In 1998, Saban Entertainment began exclusively producing programs for Fox Kids and Fox Family, while its syndication unit Saban Domestic Distribution refocused on developing films for syndication outside of Fox channels.[46]
In 1996, New World Animation (The Incredible Hulk), Saban (X-Men), and Marvel Films Animation (Spider-Man) each produced a Marvel series for television.[47] Marvel was developing a Captain America animated series with Saban Entertainment for Fox Kids to premiere in fall 1998.[48] However, due to Marvel's bankruptcy, the series was canceled before the premiere.[49] Both Marvel and Saban would become parts of The Walt Disney Company; Saban (renamed BVS Entertainment) in 2001 and Marvel by the end of 2009.
On July 23, 2001, it was announced that the group would be sold to The Walt Disney Company as part of the sale of Fox Family Worldwide/Fox Kids Worldwide (which Disney renamed ABC Family Worldwide) by Haim Saban and News Corporation,[50] and on October 24, 2001, the sale was completed[1][2] with Saban Entertainment, Inc. rebranding as BVS (Buena Vista Studios) Entertainment, Inc.[3] on November 29, 2001.[51] The final program fully produced and distributed by Saban Entertainment and Saban International N.V. was Power Rangers Time Force, which ran throughout 2001, however, Power Rangers Wild Force was the final series created and pre-produced by Saban as MMPR Productions, the producer of the Power Rangers series from 1993 to 2001.
Following Disney's acquisition of Saban, its subsidiaries were also rebranded, with Saban International N.V. becoming BVS International N.V. and Saban International Services, Inc. becoming BVS International Services, Inc. Saban's 49.6% stake of Saban International Paris was purchased along with Fox Family Worldwide after Saban stepped down from the studio and the studio was rebranded as "SIP Animation" in October 2002, as the studio was not allowed to use the "Saban" brand after its take-over.
Saban's distribution branch was folded into Buena Vista Television on May 1, 2002.[52] A week prior, Fox Kids Europe announced that Buena Vista International Television would take over distribution services of Saban's children's library from Saban International on the same day. The strategy remained the same with Fox Kids Europe continuing to handle all television rights in Europe and the Middle East with Buena Vista handling servicing, while Saban content not under FKE would be handled exclusively by Buena Vista for all territories including rights outside of Europe and the Middle East.[53]
Saban's European licensing subsidiary based in the United Kingdom, Saban Consumer Products Europe, which had been integrated within Fox Kids Europe since the end of 2000,[54] was renamed as Active Licensing Europe on April 13, 2003,[55] and eventually Jetix Consumer Products on May 4, 2004.[56]
Prior to the sale, Disney was only involved with one title produced by Saban Entertainment and its extensions. Susie Q, commissioned by Disney on behalf of Super RTL and Disney Channel, was produced by Saban's adult label Libra Pictures and was released in 1996. Disney would gain the Susie Q copyrights following its purchase of Saban in 2001.[57] Including the shows produced after the sale, Susie Q is the only BVS Entertainment property to be directly Disney-branded among the other BVS properties.
Following the completion of the sale, Disney shut down Saban Entertainment's animation unit, but animation production continued at SIP Animation, which BVS held a minority stake in at the time. In this period, all shows produced and owned by BVS Entertainment (which did not receive its own logo) and SIP Animation were distributed by Buena Vista International Television and ended with their logos.[58][59][60][61]
The portion of Saban that handled ADR production and post-production services for anime's English-language dubbing was renamed by ABC Family Worldwide as "Sensation Animation" on September 9, 2002;[62] and remained as such so Disney could continue dubbing Digimon (the second half of Digimon Tamers and Digimon Frontier) episodes. Once production ended in July 2003, Sensation Animation was closed and folded into Walt Disney Television Animation. Disney would later go on to dub the four remainder Digimon films, Revenge of Diaboromon