View source for Working Dog Productions

{{short description|Australian production company}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{Use Australian English|date=November 2016}}

{{Infobox company
| name = Working Dog Productions Pty. Ltd.
| logo = Working Dog Productions logo.png
| type = [[Private company]]
| industry = [[Production company]]
| fate = 
| predecessor = <!-- or: | predecessors = -->
| successor = <!-- or: | successors = -->
| founded = {{Start date and age|1993}}
| founders = {{Unbulleted list|[[Santo Cilauro]]|[[Rob Sitch]]|[[Jane Kennedy (actor)|Jane Kennedy]]|[[Tom Gleisner]]|Michael Hirsh}}
| defunct = <!-- {{End date|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| hq_location_city = Melbourne
| hq_location_country = Australia
| area_served = <!-- or: | areas_served = -->
| key_people = 
| products = 
| owner = <!-- or: | owners = -->
| num_employees = 
| num_employees_year = <!-- Year of num_employees data (if known) -->
| parent = 
| website = {{URL|http://www.workingdog.com.au}}
}}
'''Working Dog Productions''' (originally '''Frontline Television Productions Pty. Ltd.''') is a [[film]] and [[television]] [[production company]] based in [[Melbourne]], [[Australia]].<ref name="SBS">{{cite web|last=Cassar|first=Jeremy|title=Working Dog: 30 years of biting at the cutting edge of comedy|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/guide/article/2016/10/07/working-dog-30-years-biting-cutting-edge-comedy|work=[[Special Broadcasting Service]]|date=7 October 2016|access-date=1 November 2016}}</ref> It was formed in 1993 by actors [[Santo Cilauro]], [[Rob Sitch]], [[Jane Kennedy (actor)|Jane Kennedy]], [[Tom Gleisner]], and producer Michael Hirsh.<ref name="SydneyMorningHerald">{{cite news|last=Enker|first=Debi|title=Utopia proves there's nothing else like a Working Dog formula|url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/utopia-proves-theres-nothing-else-like-a-working-dog-formula-20140804-1004w2.html|newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|date=7 August 2014|access-date=1 November 2016}}</ref>

== History ==
Working Dog was formed in 1993 by five collaborators who had worked together on earlier comedy projects; the company initially traded as '''Frontline Television Productions''' before adopting the name '''Working Dog Productions''' in the mid-1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Us – Working Dog |url=https://watch.workingdog.com/page/about-us/ |access-date=20 September 2025 |website=Working Dog Official}}</ref> The founders have described the company origin as “five friends formed a production company with a dodgy camcorder and a dream.”<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Us – Working Dog |url=https://watch.workingdog.com/page/about-us/ |access-date=20 September 2025 |website=Working Dog Official}}</ref>

The company name and mascot (an Australian Cattle Dog) reflect the founders’ affection for dogs, and the company has retained the original creative core across decades while expanding into multi-platform production and a small executive/staff structure.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Working Dog On Demand {{!}} About Us |url=https://watch.workingdog.com/page/about-us/ |access-date=2025-09-20 |website=Working Dog On Demand |language=en}}</ref>[[File:Tom Gleisner, Rob Sitch, Michael Hirsh 2012 (1).jpg|thumb|Three of Working Dog's founders: [[Tom Gleisner]] (left), [[Rob Sitch]] (middle), and Michael Hirsh (right).]]

==Television==

{{Color box|#CCFFCC|border=darkgray}} Programs with a shaded background indicate the program is still in production.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Title
! Network
! Genre
! Years
! Seasons
|-
| ''[[Frontline (Australian TV series)|Frontline]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Comedy, Satire || 1994–1997 || {{sort|039|3 seasons, 39 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Frontline (Australian TV series)|Behind the Frontline]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Documentary || 1995 || {{sort|001|1 documentary}}
|-
| ''[[Funky Squad]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Comedy || 1995 || {{sort|007|1 season, 7 episodes}}
|-
| ''The Campaign'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Documentary || 1996 || {{sort|002|2 episodes}}
|-
| ''[[A River Somewhere]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Documentary || 1997–1998 || {{sort|013|2 seasons, 13 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[The Panel (Australian TV series)|The Panel]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Talk show || 1998–2004 || {{sort|237|7 seasons, 237 episodes}} 
|- 
| ''[[All Aussie Adventures]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Mockumentary || 2001–2002, 2018 || {{sort|020|3 seasons, 20 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[The Panel (Australian TV series)#Christmas specials|The Panel Christmas Wrap]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Talk show || 2003–2007 || {{sort|005|5 annual specials}} 
|-
| ''[[All Aussie Adventures#Television movie (2004)|Russell Coight's Celebrity Challenge]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Mockumentary || 2004 || {{sort|001|1 telemovie}} 
|- style="background: #CCFFCC;"
| ''[[Thank God You're Here]]'' || [[Network Ten]] <small>(2006–2007, 2023–present)</small><br /> [[Seven Network]] <small>(2009)</small> || Improvised comedy || 2006–2009, 2023–present || {{sort|045|5 seasons, 49 episodes}}
|- style="background: #CCFFCC;"
| ''[[Thank God You're Here (American TV series)|Thank God You're Here]]'' || [[NBC]] || Comedy || 2007 || {{sort|007|1 season, 7 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[The Hollowmen]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Comedy || 2008 || {{sort|012|2 seasons, 12 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Santo, Sam and Ed's Cup Fever!]]'' || [[SBS (Australian TV channel)|SBS]] || Sport, Comedy || 2010 || {{sort|026|1 season, 26 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Santo, Sam and Ed's Sports Fever!]]'' || [[7mate]]/[[Seven Network]] || Sport, Comedy || 2012 || {{sort|010|1 season, 10 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Pictures of You (TV series)|Pictures of You]]'' || [[Seven Network]] || Talk show || 2012 || {{sort|016|1 season, 16 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Audrey's Kitchen]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Comedy || 2012–2013 || {{sort|020|2 seasons, 20 episodes}}
|-
| ''[[Santo, Sam and Ed's Total Football]]'' || [[Fox Sports (Australia)|Fox Sports]] || Sports, Comedy || 2013–2015 || {{sort|056|2 seasons, 56 episodes}} 
|- style="background: #CCFFCC;"
| ''[[Have You Been Paying Attention?]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Game show || 2013–present || {{sort|261|10 seasons, 261 episodes}}
|- style="background: #CCFFCC;"
| ''[[Utopia (Australian TV series)|Utopia]]'' || [[ABC (Australian TV channel)|ABC]] || Comedy || 2014–present || {{sort|032|5 seasons, 40 episodes}} 
|-
| ''[[Pacific Heat]]'' || [[The Comedy Channel]] || Animated Sitcom || 2016–2017 || {{sort|013|1 season, 13 episodes}} 
|-style="background: #CCFFCC;"
| ''[[The Cheap Seats]]'' || [[Network Ten]] || Comedy, Current Affairs || 2021–present || {{sort|044|4 seasons, 91 episodes}}
|}

==Film==

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Title
! Genre
! Release date
! Distributor
|-
| ''[[The Castle (1997 Australian film)|The Castle]]''
| Comedy
| {{dts|10 April 1997}}
| [[Village Roadshow]]
|-
| ''[[The Dish]]''
| Comedy
| {{dts|19 October 2000}}
| [[Village Roadshow|Roadshow Entertainment]]
|-
| ''[[Any Questions for Ben?]]''
| Comedy
| {{dts|9 February 2012}}
| [[Village Roadshow|Roadshow Films]]
|}

==Other==
In addition to television and film, Working Dog Productions have also ventured into books, stage shows, and podcasts.<ref>{{cite web|title=Working Dog’s Pacific Heat to air on Foxtel November 27|url=http://if.com.au/2016/10/05/article/Working-Dogs-Pacific-Heat-to-air-on-Foxtel-November-27/PCLTGAHYUY.html|work=IF.com.au|date=6 October 2016|access-date=7 November 2016}}</ref>

===Books===
{{expand section|date=November 2016}}
Books which have been published by Working Dog include, but are not limited to, mock travel guides.<ref name="SydneyMorningHerald"/> Books published by Working Dog include:
*''[[Molvania]]: A Land Untouched by Modern Dentistry'' by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner and Rob Sitch, 2003. {{ISBN|1-58567-619-5}}
*''[[Phaic Tan]]: Sunstroke on a Shoestring'' by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner and Rob Sitch, 2004. {{ISBN|0-8118-5365-9}}
*''[[San Sombrero]]: A Land of Carnivals, Cocktails and Coups'' by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner and Rob Sitch, 2006. {{ISBN|0-8118-5619-4}}
*''Molvanian Baby Names: With Meanings, Derivations And Probable Pronunciations'', by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner and Rob Sitch 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-74066-859-0}}

===Stage===
Working Dog produced the stage show ''The Speechmaker''. The show was written by Working Dog's Sitch, Cilauro and Gleisner and had a sellout season at the [[Melbourne Theatre Company]].<ref name="SydneyMorningHerald"/> Gleisner has produced a musical under the Working Dog brand titled ''[[Bloom (musical)|Bloom]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/sydney/article/Christie-Whelan-Browne-And-John-Waters-Join-The-Cast-Of-BLOOM-at-STCs-Roslyn-Packer-Theatre-20250220 |website=[[BroadwayWorld]] |title=Christie Whelan Browne And John Waters Join The Cast Of BLOOM at STC's Roslyn Packer Theatre |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250226110020/https://www.broadwayworld.com/sydney/article/Christie-Whelan-Browne-And-John-Waters-Join-The-Cast-Of-BLOOM-at-STCs-Roslyn-Packer-Theatre-20250220 |archive-date=26 February 2025 |access-date=26 February 2025 |date=20 February 2025 |first=Chloe |last=Rabinowitz |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Podcasts===
* ''Santo, Sam & Ed's Total Football Podcast'' (2017–present on [[ABC iview]])
* ''Santo, Sam & Ed's Cup Fever! Podcast'' (2018 on [[ABC iview]])

==See also==
{{Portal|Television|Australia}}
*[[List of film production companies]]
*[[List of television production companies]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*{{official|https://www.workingdog.com/}}

{{Animation industry in Australia}}
{{Longford Lyell Award}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Film production companies of Australia]]
[[Category:Companies based in Melbourne]]
[[Category:Television production companies of Australia]]
[[Category:Longford Lyell Award recipients]]