The 2023 Kidscreen Hot50 has been announced, and we are thrilled to share that Brown Bag Films and 9 Story Media Group have once again placed in the Top 10 on this year’s list, voted in at #4 in the Production category!

Now in its tenth year, the Hot50 rankings are determined by an industry vote that Kidscreen’s 16,500-plus print and digital subscribers are invited to take part in. We’re proud to be ranked among such high-performing companies and celebrate the superb work that our teams have produced this past year. It means a tremendous amount for both Brown Bag Films and 9 Story to be acknowledged in this way. Most awards ceremonies recognize individual productions, but the Kidscreen Hot50 honours companies as a whole, acknowledging the talent in every department from HR, Finance and Tech alongside our Directors, Producers and Animators. An award like the Hot50, which is voted for by our peers and not a jury, is truly very special. 

It has been a strong year for both Brown Bag Films and our 9 Story family. Our teams worked hard, maintaining our studio’s 16 active pipelines across Dublin, Toronto, and Bali, which delivered 238 half-hours of content, including the animated series Rosie’s Rules for PBS KIDS, Eva the Owlet for Apple TV+, Lu & The Bally Bunch, which premiered on Cartoonito, CBC & TVNZ+, and Open Season: Call of Nature, which launched on Family Channel in Canada. While 9 Story’s growing liv-action division continuted to flourish. Their new series A Kind of Spark, premiered on BBC and BYUtv in March, and received a season 2 greenlight for the critically acclaimed show this October. 

See the full list of Kidscreen Hot50 Production honorees below:

PRODUCTION
1. Aardman Animations
2. Ludo Studio
3. Atomic Cartoons
4. 9 Story Media Group/Brown Bag Films
5. Fred Rogers Productions
6. Sinking Ship Entertainment
7. Titmouse
8. Cheeky Little Media
9. Mattel TV
10. BBC Studios Kids & Family

And our top 10 accreditation in Production isn't the only fantastic news to share. Three additional shoutouts go to our 9 Story family who placed #1 in Distribution, #2 in Licensing, and #6 in Digital Media!

Check out the full Distribution, Licensing, and Digital Media honoree lists below:

DISTRIBUTION
1. 9 Story Distribution International
2. CAKE
3. Jetpack Distribution
4. Sinking Ship Entertainment
5. WildBrain
6. Sesame Workshop
7. Aardman Animations
8. Banijay Kids & Family
9. Guru Studio
10. Australian Children’s Television Foundation

LICENSING
1. Mattel
2. 9 Story Brands
3. Aardman Animations
4. WildBrain
5. Spin Master
6. BBC Studios Kids & Family
7. Sesame Workshop
8. Jazwares
9. Sinking Ship Entertainment
10. Paramount Consumer Products

DIGITAL MEDIA
1. PBS KIDS
2. Moonbug Entertainment
3. Aardman Animations
4. WildBrain
5. Sesame Workshop
6. 9 Story Media Group
7. Mattel
8. Headspace
9. The LEGO Group
10. Dubit

To see the full list of Kidscreen honorees, visit kidscreen.com and check out the Kidscreen Hot50 special digital issue.

The number-one ranked companies will be honored at the 2024 Kidscreen Awards ceremony taking place during Kidscreen Summit (Feb 4-7) in San Diego on Monday, February 5.

A huge thank you again to our extraordinary crews at 9 Story Media Group and Brown Bag Films, without whom opportunities like these would not exist. It’s truly incredible to see what we can achieve together!

And finally, an enormous congratulations to all the 2023 Kidscreen Hot50 honorees!