Big Idea was founded in February 1989 under the name GRAFx Studios by
Phil Vischer to create graphics in television commercials. In 1991, Vischer created a 12-second short film called ''Mr. Cuke's Screen Test
using the recently developed Softimage 3D. This short inspired him and Mike Nawrocki to create VeggieTales'', with Nawrocki coming up with the name. Vischer thought the name "GRAFx" no longer suited a company about to create children's videos, so he renamed it as Big Idea Productions, Inc. on August 6, 1993. However, renovation delays, unforeseen building conditions, and lengthy zoning battles resulted. In the interim, the company was guided by Lombard Village officials to rent space at the
Yorktown Center, a local mall. In a co-production with
FHE Pictures, Big Idea released its first theatrical feature film,
Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie on October 4, 2002. On September 2, 2003, Big Idea declared bankruptcy after encountering management and financial issues and a lawsuit by
HIT Entertainment in 2001. By the end of the year, it was auctioned off to Classic Media for $19.3 million. After its purchase, the company relocated to
Nashville in 2004. Big Idea partnered with Toronto-based
Starz Animation to produce its second theatrical feature film, ''
The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie'', which was released on January 11, 2008 by
Universal Pictures. In April 2009,
Entertainment Rights fell into voluntary
administration and sold its UK- and US-based
subsidiaries, including Big Idea and its parent company, Classic Media, to
Boomerang Media. As of 2011 Big Idea, Inc. has been repackaged officially as Big Idea Entertainment, LLC. In July 2012, Big Idea's parent company, Classic Media, was acquired by
DreamWorks Animation and began trading as
DreamWorks Classics. On April 28, 2016,
NBCUniversal announced that it would be acquiring DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion. The sale was completed on August 22, 2016. On July 3, 2018, Vischer confirmed that Big Idea's offices in Franklin were shut down. While marketing employees continued to work for Big Idea during this time, DreamWorks sold the
Franklin, Tennessee studio in late 2017. In 2018, NBCUniversal licensed the properties of the studio to The Trinity Broadcasting Network. They launched the production of a new series entitled
The VeggieTales Show in 2019 through a collaboration between NBCUniversal and Trilogy Animation Group. Vischer confirmed on Twitter that he and Nawrocki were both returning to work as head writers for the new series. On June 29, 2021,
Phil Vischer announced that he and
Mike Nawrocki were no longer working on VeggieTales due to pay disputes and creative differences. ==
VeggieTales history==