Atlantis Films

Atlantis Films Ltd. was founded by Michael MacMillan, Seaton S. McLean, Janice L. Platt, Andy Rednick, and Nick Kendall in April 1978 after the group had recently graduated from Queen’s University’s Film Studies department. Working out of a Toronto house that served as living and office quarters, the group originally named their company Birchbark Films, only to quickly change it to Atlantis Films. While Kendall did not remain with the project for long, the group picked up fellow Queen’s graduates Ted Riley and Peter Sussman in the early going. Originally the company worked with a focus on producing films for corporate and industrial clients, as well as creating film adaptations of short stories as a means of gaining a foothold in the industry. The first dramatic production shot by Atlantis was the 1981 drama The Olden Days Coat. After
struggling in the early years to achieve financial stability, Atlantis experienced a breakthrough with the film Boys and Girls, which starred a young Meghan Follows, and won an Academy Award for best live action short film in 1984. After this turning point, Atlantis grew steadily over the years into a major production, distribution, and broadcasting corporation. Throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s Atlantis produced projects for the C.B.C. and C.T.V. in Canada, and each of the major American networks, while also expanding its international presence. The company set up an international distribution arm called Atlantis releasing in 1984, and the first significant project of international scope that Atlantis tackled was the television series The Ray Bradbury Theater. The successful show was coproduced with American company Home Box Office (HBO) and aired on HBO and the USA network in the United States and the Global television network in Canada. Eventually, foreign offices in Amsterdam, Sydney, and Los Angeles helped to generate a significant percentage of the company’s profits. Throughout the 1990’s Atlantis continued to grow, not only through the production of various projects for film and television, but also by acquiring film studios, real estate, film and television libraries, and distribution rights to productions that originated outside the studio. By 1997 almost 90 percent of the company’s revenue was generated through foreign sales and export. Throughout its existence, Atlantis Communications Inc. achieved international recognition and earned numerous industry awards. Apart from winning one Academy Award and being nominated for another, Atlantis productions have also won 24 CableACE Awards, 35 Gemini Awards, and an American Emmy Award, as well as numerous less prestigious recognitions.
On July 20, 1998, Atlantis officially merged with Alliance Communications to become Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc. The merger resulted in the new company becoming the 12th largest film and television production company in North America. The Atlantis Films fond contains audio visual and textual records from numerous productions (listed below) dating from the company’s founding up until the merger with Alliance Communications in 1998.

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