Starburns Industries
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Animation, Production |
| Founded | 2010 |
| Founder | Dan Harmon, Dino Stamatopoulos, Joe Russo II, James A. Fino, Duke Johnson |
| Headquarters | Burbank , United States |
Area served | United States |
| Products | Animation series and films |
Starburns Industries, LLC is a U.S.-based animation studio and production company located in Burbank, California. Established in 2010 by Dan Harmon, Dino Stamatopoulos, Joe Russo II, James A. Fino, and Duke Johnson, the firm concentrates on animation projects driven by original creators.
Starburns Industries gained recognition for producing series including Mary Shelley's Frankenhole, the initial two seasons of Rick and Morty on Adult Swim, HarmonQuest for Seeso and later VRV, as well as Animals on HBO.
History
The name of the company pays homage to Alex "Star-Burns" Osbourne, a recurring character from Harmon's sitcom Community, portrayed by Stamatopoulos.
Starburns began its journey with the Emmy-winning stop-motion holiday special "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas" created for Community. This achievement set the tone for the company's commitment to top-tier, creator-focused animation.
In January 2020, Dan Harmon departed from Starburns to dedicate his efforts to other ventures, notably Rick and Morty. The production responsibilities for Rick and Morty transitioned to Rick and Morty LLC, a distinct entity operating out of Starburns’ premises.
TV
| Title | Creator / Developer(s) | Co-production(s) | Premiere date | End date | Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mary Shelley's Frankenhole | Dino Stamatopoulos | ShadowMachine Fragical Productions (both; season 1) |
June 27, 2010 | March 25, 2012 | Adult Swim | Produced only season 2. |
| Rick and Morty | Justin Roiland Dan Harmon |
Justin Roiland's Solo Vanity Card Productions! (seasons 1–8) Harmonious Claptrap |
December 2, 2013 | present | Aired seasons 1-2 exclusively. The studio’s longest-running series. | |
| Animals | Phil Matarese Mike Luciano |
Karen BBQ Duplass Brothers Television HBO Entertainment |
February 5, 2016 | October 5, 2018 | HBO | |
| Great Minds with Dan Harmon | Dan Harmon Richard Korson |
Matador Content | February 25, 2016 | June 16, 2016 | History Channel | |
| HarmonQuest | Dan Harmon Spencer Crittenden |
Harmonious Claptrap Universal Content Productions |
July 14, 2016 | October 20, 2019 | Seeso (2016) VRV (2017-19) |
|
| Good Game | Jesse Cox Michele Morrow |
August 30, 2017 | September 27, 2017 | YouTube Premium | ||
| Alpha Betas | Chris Bruno David Howard Lee |
3BLACKDOT Bush House Bruno & Lee Octopie Studios |
March 14, 2021 | present | YouTube | Only involved in episode one. |
| The Freak Brothers |
|
Pure Imagination Studios WTG Enterprises Lionsgate Television |
November 14, 2021 | Tubi | Produced only season one. |
Films
| Title | Director(s) | Release Date | Distributor | Co-production Partner(s) | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmontown | Neil Berkeley | March 8, 2014 | The Orchard | 1 hour | |
| Anomalisa | Charlie Kaufman Duke Johnson |
September 4, 2015 (Telluride Film Festival) |
Paramount Pictures |
1 hour 30 minutes | |
| Dope State | Gabriel Sunday | April 20, 2019 | YouTube | Route One Entertainment | 2 hours 12 minutes |
Online Series
| Title | Creator / Developer(s) | Co-production Partner(s) | Premiere Date | Conclusion Date | Platform | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woman in the Book | Crypt TV | June 4, 2021 | August 6, 2021 | Facebook (Facebook Watch) |
TV Specials
| Series | Special Title | Air Date | Broadcast Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community | "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas" | December 9, 2010 | NBC | First project produced by Starburns Industries; stop-motion animation special. |
| Moral Orel | "Beforel Orel: Trust" | November 18, 2012 | Adult Swim |
Independent Specials
| Title | Air Date | Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Emperor's Newest Clothes | November 15, 2018 | HBO |
Short Films
| Title | Release Date | Director(s) | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unholy 'Mole | September 8, 2019 | David Bornstein | |
| The Black Hole | July 21, 2021 | Sofia Åström | Pilot episode for an animated series intended for Syfy, but not developed into a full series. |
| Better Call Saul Presents: Slippin' Jimmy | May 23, 2022 | Zac Palladino | Six-episode miniseries available on AMC+. |
| My Year of Dicks | February 17, 2023 | Sara Gunnsardóttir |
Podcasts
| Title | Creator(s) | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harmontown | Dan Harmon | June 16, 2012 | December 3, 2019 |
| Before You Were Funny | Justin Michael Jacob Reed |
July 2012 | September 2016 |
| Whiting Wongs | Dan Harmon Jessica Gao |
2017 | 2018 |
Starburns Audio
Starburns Audio functioned as the podcast network and audio production branch of Starburns Industries, established in 2018. It partially originated from the assets of the now-defunct Feral Audio network and was responsible for producing shows such as Harmontown, The Duncan Trussell Family Hour, Dumb People Town, The Boogie Monster, and Singsongers. This division discontinued its activities in April 2023.
SBI Press
SBI Press represents the publishing sector of Starburns Industries, founded in 2017 and headquartered in Burbank, California. Its primary focus lies in releasing comic books, graphic novels, and specialized print materials. SBI Press offers a streamlined platform for creators to develop original intellectual property outside the conventional timelines of film and television production.