Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Main / SpecialThanks

Go To

1Special thanks is a common phenomenon when people not directly involved making the film, video game etc. are listed. These are most often found at the end of [[ClosingCredits Closing Credits]].
2
3People who get special thanks are usually:
4* Friends of the makers of the work
5* Family members of the makers of the work, and their production babies
6* Executives from the network
7* Experts who were consulted while [[ShownTheirWork doing the research]]
8* [[ThankingTheViewer And especially you!]]
9
10Friends and family members often get special thanks because the creators of the work genuinely want to acknowledge their contribution to project morale, practical advice... or because they cooked the staff a particularly memorable meal during production. Executives may receive special thanks because the creators felt it was necessary to their careers, because it's really the network's pet project or because the executives were helpful in securing funding for the ''creator's'' pet project. Experts often appreciate acknowledgement for their advice in the same way as an actor or makeup assistant appreciates acknowledgement of their roles.
11
12Occasionally, special thanks may be given to random things, which might not even be people. At that point, it's safe to assume the creators are going for a [[CreativeClosingCredits Creative Closing Credits]] and [[RuleOfFunny are not being entirely serious]].
13
14Also see InMemoriam.
15
16----
17!!Examples:
18
19[[foldercontrol]]
20
21[[folder:Anime]]
22* Creator/KoichiMashimo gets thanked in the 26th episode of ''VideoGame/ArcTheLad.''
23* ''Manga/SeiyusLife'' has an InUniverse example in Episode 9. Futaba reads a submitted letter from Konno (using a pen name obviously), and thanks her during their radio show segment. The Earphones trio then proceeds to sing their thanks to all real-life voice actor managers for their work in their business.
24** The trio then sung their thanks to the entire animation industry in Episode 10.
25[[/folder]]
26
27[[folder:Fan Works]]
28* ''WebAnimation/TheMarionetteTriesToListenToHisMusicbox'': The special thanks section in the end credits thanks [[VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys Foxy the Pirate]] for his role in TheStinger, the viewer of the video, the animator's deodorant, keyboard, and friends on Platform/{{Steam}}, and [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment "Special Thanks for Special Thanks"]].
29[[/folder]]
30
31[[folder:Film - Animated]]
32* ''WesternAnimation/Fantasia2000'': "A special thank you to the entire Feature Animation family for their dedication, support and encouragement in the making of this film."
33* ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'': Almost all of the names under Special Thanks are wildlife organizations like the Los Angeles Zoo, the San Diego Zoo and the Fowler Center for Wildlife Education.
34* ''WesternAnimation/ShrekForeverAfter'': "Heartfelt thanks to all the talented artists who worked on Shrek for the last decade!"
35[[/folder]]
36
37[[folder:Film - Live Action]]
38* ''Film/BicentennialMan'': The producers include a "wish to thank" section in the credits to express their appreciation for many of the sites they used to film the setting, such as Oracle Corporation and Eldorado National Forest, as well as to the family of Creator/KenJones.
39* ''{{Film/Gravity}}'': A few notable names on the Special Thanks roster were fellow directors, including Creator/JamesCameron, Creator/DavidFincher and Creator/GuillermoDelToro.
40* ''Film/{{Superdome}}'': "Grateful acknowledgement is given to the Louisiana Superdome and the HMC Management Corporation."
41* ''Film/MackintoshAndTJ'': "A special thanks to the 6666 Ranch, and the people of Guthrie, Matador and Dickens, Texas, and the Texas Department of Public Safety."
42* ''Film/MostLikelyToMurder2018'' gives special thanks to a long list of people and organizations, and a very special thanks to the New York City Mayor's Office of Film, Television, and Broadcasting.
43* ''Film/MetallicaThroughTheNever'': "Metallica would like to thank our significant others, our children & our families. Thank you, THE METALLICA FAMILY OF FANS." Then there's a long list of people under "Special Thanks," and then "Special Thanks to the forgotten one, ANNA PANDORF."
44* ''Film/NaturalBornKillers'': City of Gallup, MN; City of Chicago, IL; City of Winslow, AZ; WGN TV, Navajo Nation.
45* ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'': there is a message in the end credits that thanks all the fans who [[SendingStuffToSaveTheShow campaigned]] to get it released.
46* ''Film/TheAirUpThere'': "Deep gratitude to the wonderful Samburu extras from Maralal, Kenya for their kindness, enthusiasm and hard work."
47* ''Film/{{Whitewash}}'' has a long list of people and organizations, along with "A very special thank you to KIM NGUYEN for inspiring us with his crazy ideas" and "...and all the extras who played in the film."
48* ''Film/SkyRiders'': "The producers express gratitude to the various government ministries and the armed forces of Greece without whose assistance this film could not have been made."
49* ''Film/ABoyCalledPo'' has a long list of people and organizations, including Music/BillyIdol and Music/SherylCrow, both of whom contributed to the soundtrack.
50* ''Film/SugarHill1974'': "We wish to thank the City of Houston and the State of Texas for their cooperation."
51* ''Film/IThinkIDo1997'' has two screens full of names listed under "Very special thanks."
52* ''Film/WandaNevada'' has "The producers wish to acknowledge special thanks to:" followed by a list of organizations that starts with the Grand Canyon National Parks Services.
53* ''Film/WhenTheBoughBreaks1994'' has "The producers gratefully acknowledge the following," followed by a list of people and organizations.
54* ''Film/WheresWillie'': "Our deepest thanks to the Texas Film Commission, and the citizens and officials of Kerrville, Texas... (It's a nice place to live!)"
55* At the beginning of ''Film/TheBeastsAreOnTheStreets'', a voice reads words on the screen: "The producers of this program wish to thank the American Humane Society and Dr. Joe Cannon, D.V.M. for their supervision of the animal sequences of this film." The end credits have, "The producers wish to thank the people of Grand Prairie, Texas and the International Animal Exchange, Inc. for their cooperation in making this film."
56* ''Film/TheAngelLevine'': "Our special thanks to" followed by a long list of names, followed by "who, with the help of the Ford Foundation, helped initiate the first apprentice program for minorities in the American film industry."
57* ''Film/TheDrummerAndTheKeeper'': "With very special thanks to the Strypes," a rock band who appear [[AsHimself as themselves]] towards the end of the movie.
58* ''Film/TheGhostGoesGear'': "The producers gratefully acknowledge the facilities given to them at Puttenden Manor, Lingfield, Surrey and the Phillipines, Sevenoaks, Kent."
59* The end credits of ''Film/TheHanoiHilton'' have a list of former [=POWs=], including UsefulNotes/JohnMcCain, who helped make the movie more realistic. Later on there's a longer list of people and organizations.
60* ''Film/MingAndMing'' has a long list of names, all of which are in Chinese except for "Jose" and "Robert."
61* ''Film/DarkAugust'': "Thanks to the town of Stowe Vermont and Harriet Lewis."
62* ''Film/TheStrawberryStatement'': "The producers of this film gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of the people of UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco and another anonymous locale for participating in the production of this motion picture. Other cities refused to cooperate - perhaps feeling that strawberries are irrelevant."
63* ''Film/SatansTriangle'': "Our sincerest thanks to the 11th District United States Coast Guard, the officers and crew of the U.S.S. VENTUROUS and special thanks to helicopter pilot LCDR H.L. JOHNSON."
64* The 2005 remake of ''Film/FunWithDickAndJane'' ends with [[TakeThat sarcastic thanks to the executives of Enron]], [[RippedFromTheHeadlines whose scandalous bankruptcy inspired the film]], as well as the executives of other companies that bankrupted their employees.
65[[/folder]]
66
67[[folder:Music]]
68* It's common for the liner notes of [=CD=]s to include a separate Special Thanks list for every member of the band, and sometimes the producer as well.
69* Music/WeirdAlYankovic always kicks off his Special Thanks with the artists whose songs are parodied on it. More recently this list also includes artists his non-parodies are InTheStyleOf, such as Music/TheBeachBoys for "Pancreas" or Music/TheDoors for "Craigslist."
70[[/folder]]
71
72[[folder:Pinball]]
73* The apron for ''[[Pinball/BugsBunnysBirthdayBall Bugs Bunny's Birthday Ball]]'' has this just below the drain:
74-->With special thanks to: Creator/ChuckJones, Creator/FrizFreleng, Creator/RobertMcKimson, Creator/BobClampett, Creator/TexAvery, Creator/MelBlanc, and all of the Warner Bros. animators who have brought so much happiness and laughter to the world throughout the years.
75[[/folder]]
76
77[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
78* ''TabletopGame/IsaacAsimovsRobots'': The ClosingCredits ends by the producers thanking a long list of groups and people involved in designing and renting costume and set design.
79[[/folder]]
80
81[[folder:Video Games]]
82* In ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'', at the end of the regular credits are credits listing everything imaginable: things they ate, their family members, their pets, bands that made records they listened to, civil rights activists, favorite characters, the guy who stocked their soda machine...
83* ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'' did something similar, probably so they had an excuse to play the [[EpicRocking whole nine minutes]] of the song Music/{{Yes}} composed and recorded especially for the game over said credits. [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic Sitting through the whole thing is no hardship.]]
84* Sculptured Software both played this straight ''and'' parodied it in their SNES port of ''VideoGame/MortalKombatII''. After a list or two of typical special thanks, they get to a list of "People We Owe No Thanks To". In addition to probably two more personal friends, they unthank Music/ElvisPresley, Creator/HowardHughes, and [[Music/TheDoors Jim Morrison]].
85* ''VideoGame/StarWarsRacer'' thanks several pets, [[{{VideoGame/Pokemon}} Arcanine]] and [[WesternAnimation/RoadRovers Blitz and Exile.]]
86* Since ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' was Creator/{{Bungie}}'s last ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' game, they inserted a "Tribute Room" EasterEgg into the ninth level that includes several messages dedicated to various parts of the fan community, including the members of [[https://halo.bungie.org/ halo.bungie.org]], the staff of Creator/RoosterTeeth, and the first person to record the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGQIQljaAc0 Warthog Jump]].
87* ''VideoGame/TheNeverhood'': The first person credited in the game's Special Thanks is Hoborg, the game's BigGood. The rest of the credits are just the friends and family of the devs.
88* ''VideoGame/{{Lisa}}'': In ''LISA: The Painful'', the credits leave a Special Thanks for Martin Armstrong, the abusive father of Brad and Lisa. Since Marty's actions are responsible for how the two influence the plot of the games, it can be read as sarcastically thanking him for "contributing" to their development. [[spoiler:As the credits are implied to also contain Brad's last thoughts, the same can be said for Brad "thanking" Marty for putting him on the path to this point.]]
89* Both ''VideoGame/MightyNo9'' and ''VideoGame/YookaLaylee'' include a list of every single person who contributed to their crowdfunding campaigns, even at the very lowest tier. The result was two of the longest end credits in the history of any medium.
90* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'', whose list of backers was ''much'' shorter, turned it into a dodging minigame to break up the monotony.
91[[/folder]]
92
93[[folder:Web Videos]]
94* ''WebVideo/FreshyKanal Rap Battles'': The ending credits of the Part 4 finale "Money Heist vs. The Wolf of Wall Street" has a long list of Special Thanks, thanking nearly everyone who have ever been involved with the series, even if they aren't involved with that episode or that Part, and lastly thanking the series' inspiration ''WebVideo/EpicRapBattlesOfHistory''.
95[[/folder]]
96
97[[folder:Western Animation]]
98* Many episode credits of ''WesternAnimation/MollyOfDenali'' feature Special Thanks. For example, Special Thanks was given to Amaya Shaw, Koso Shaw, and Leeyadaakhan Shaw for the episode "Molly of the Yukon."
99* ''WesternAnimation/RazzberryJazzberryJam'': Each episode’s credits thank the school that episode’s live-action segments were hosted in.
100[[/folder]]
101
102[[folder:Other]]

Top