Questar, Inc. (Questar Entertainment) is a Chicago-based digital, streaming OTT, production, acquisition and distribution company. Questar Entertainment launched two divisions: Cow Lamp Films in 2018, the companyâÂÂs independent features division, and GoTraveler in 2019, a streaming channel and VOD app digital linear travel channel and free, advertiser- supported video on demand (AVOD) service.
Albert Nader, a former Rand McNally employee, founded Questar in 1980 as The Travel Network; it took on the name Questar in 1985 after expanding beyond travel films. Under Nader, the company primarily released programs related to travel, history, and the Bible, some of which were broadcast on television channels such as PBS and Discovery. Nader died of a heart attack in December 2016 while on vacation in Palm Springs, California.
Questar Entertainment has produced approximately 100 original programs for Pureflix, PBS, the Discovery Channel, TLC, the Travel Channel, the History Channel, and PAX TV. Original titles include Touring Civil War Battlefields, The Dark, The Dream Motel, Real Pirates, and Where Jesus Walked.
Licensed titles distributed by Questar Entertainment include Rick Steves' Europe; ', with Rick Bayless; A Cook's Tour, with Anthony Bourdain; Women of the House, a spin-off of Designing Women; The Tribe; The New Adventures of Black Beauty; The Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson; My Classic Car; and It's a Miracle.
The Dream Motel is an original series produced by Questar Entertainment and Rossetti Productions. It was first released on Pureflix in October 2019. The series is about a motel where the guests have a chance to change their past, present, or their future. The showâÂÂs creator, Chip Rossetti, described the show as "a cross between Touched by an Angel, Quantum Leap and The Twilight Zone." The second season was released on October 1, 2021 on Pureflix.
Cow Lamp Films is the independent features division of Questar Entertainment. Cow Lamp Films focuses on diverse creative leaders in the midwest and beyond and also produces and distributes regional and international films and tv for an audience via major streaming platforms and cable television. The company is planning to release some of their films in theaters as well.
GoTraveler is a travel streaming channel and app digital linear travel channel and free, advertiser-supported video on demand (AVOD) service. GoTraveler content can be streamed through a number of desktop, mobile and internet-connected TV platforms including Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Vizio SmartCast, and Plex (company). GoTraveler is currently producing a new original TV show called Curbside Eats which is centered around takeout and curbside cuisine.
GoTraveler was listed on LifehackerâÂÂs "Top 10 YouTube Channels to Inspire You to Get Outside" and was spotlighted by Thrillist for its deep dive video into the Carlsbad Caverns.
AmbienceTV, a âÂÂSlow TVâ production company and division of Questar Inc., was launched in 2019. It includes footage of The Shedd Aquarium, Ping Tom Park in Chicago, and Niagara Falls.
New Dimension Media (NDM) has produced and distributed original K-12 core curriculum video content to schools and public libraries for over 40 years. In the last 5 years, New Dimension Media produced 44 series and 417 programs. NDM titles are correlated to state, national, and Canadian provincial standards.