Sterner Stuff

Background
Sterner Stuff is a production company ran by former bodybuilder and producer Julia West and screenwriter, producer and director Phil Sterns, based in Decatur, Illinois. It initially began as a small vanity label known as Sterns/West Productions, but changed their name to Sterner Stuff in 1995 to mark a transition to multimedia. Sterner Stuff produced television shows, films, even licensed characters for video games. The company went dormant in 2011, beyond managing rights to their properties, but would merged with Caruso/McCormick Entertainment in 2018. The Sterner Stuff name would get revived as a subsidiary for short-form entertainment and to handle an exclusivity agreement with Amazon.

Sterns/West Productions
(1987-1992)

Logo: On a white background, we see the letters "S" and "W" with a slash between them. "STERNS/WEST Productions" is below in black.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds A simple synth tune.

Availability: Seen on the syndicated run of The Halloween Gang. It also appeared on One Last Christmas.

Sterner Stuff
1st Logo (1997)

Logo: On an orange gradient background, we see a black picture of a house. The front door is open, revealing a wide open field. "STERNER STUFF" is below the logo in a black Times New Roman font.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: A five note theme.

Availability: This was only seen on the Christmas special Miracles by Page.

2nd Logo (1997)

Logo: On a grey background, we see the company name slide in. "STERNER" is white and "STUFF" is red, and a thick black outline surrounds each letter. "CHARACTERS CREATED BY" appears above in white, along with copyright information.

FX/SFX: The sliding.

Music/Sounds: A hip hop tune.

Availability: Seen on the video game Green Jean 2: Enter the Nega Jean for the SEGA Saturn, PlayStation and PC.

3rd Logo (1999-2003)

Logo: On a white background, we see a muscular woman in a striped shirt sitting on a patch of land. She turns and reveals she has a male head to her left on her shoulder. She zooms back as "STERNER STUFF" in black fades in beneath the Chicago skyline.

FX/SFX: 3D animation.

Music/Sounds: A dreamy tune.

Availability: Appeared on the television show The Halloween Kids, as well as the films Lockin and Minor Kill It also appeared at the start of the video game Green Jean.

4th Logo (2020-)

Logo: We cut in to a city with searchlights and planes, as the two headed creature from prior Sterner Stuff logos appear in a triumphant pose. The company name is below them in a bent fashion. Suddenly, the name falls forward and we zoom back to see the footage is taken from an editing bay, this just being a movie set. The camera goes to the actors as a man in a gecko mask (referencing Strange and his Gecko Studios label) puts up the sign before walking back. The camera returns to the editing bay and the logo resumes from the start. The image distorts in a TV shut-off fashion.

Variant: A more common short version exists, showing the tail end.

FX/SFX: 3D animation.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant tune, along with sounds corresponding to the actions and studio banter, ending with a guitar tune and a distorted voice saying the company name.

Availability: First seen on the 2020 reboot of Princess Natasha. Can also be seen on Sami and The G.E.E.Ks. The full version appeared on the company’s Vimeo page.