Nickelodeon’s 2017 Kids’ Choice Awards were celebrated on Saturday, with host WWE Superstar John Cena bringing the slime in a big way to the pop-culture fete. This year’s big animation winners were TV’s SpongeBob SquarePants and the movies Finding Dory and The Secret Life of Pets, with voice star Kevin Hart scoring three awards between Pets and his turn in Central Intelligence. Ghostbusters won Favorite Movie as well as Favorite Movie Actor/Actress (Chris Hemsworth and Melissa McCarthy).
The KCAs kicked off with Henry Danger star Jace Norman arriving fresh from the set to open the ceremony with the help of Kel Mitchell, JoJo Siwa, and Black-ish cast members Miles Brown and Marsai Martin. And this year’s musical performances included Machine Gun Kelly and Camila Cabello performing “Bad Things,” and a medley by Little Mix.
This year’s festivities also featured more kid-power than ever, with young viewers live voting on what would happen as celebs took the stage for a variety of oddball stunts, and Nick’s digital platforms offering real-time play alongs, interactive polls, and real-time updates with photos and videos.
The 2017 KCAs were broadcast live from USC’s Galen Center in Los Angeles. Replays are set this week for TeenNick on Monday, March 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT and on Nicktoons on Thursday, March 16 at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT. The show is also on Nickelodeon On Demand.
The animated winners of Nickelodeon’s 2017 Kids’ Choice Awards are:
TELEVISION
Favorite Cartoon: SpongeBob SquarePants
MOVIE
Favorite Animated Movie: Finding Dory
Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie: Ellen DeGeneres(Dory, Finding Dory)
Favorite Villain: Kevin Hart(Snowball, The Secret Life of Pets)
Favorite Frenemies: Ginnifer Goodwin & Jason Bateman(Judy/Nick, Zootopia)
Most Wanted Pet: Snowballfrom The Secret Life of Pets (Kevin Hart)
#Squad: Finding Dory(Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Kaitlin Olson, Hayden Rolence, Willem Dafoe, Ed O’Neill, Ty Burrell, Eugene Levy)
OTHER
Favorite Video Game: Just Dance 2017
Sponsors of Nickelodeon’s 2017 Kids’ Choice Awards include Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Crest, Hot Wheels, Nintendo, Skechers, Toyota, Walmart and Verizon. The 2017 KCA was produced by Nickelodeon Productions. Elizabeth Kelly, Michael Dempsey, Shelly Sumpter Gillyard and Jay Schmalholz are executive producers.
Taichung Int’l Animation Festival Calls for Entries
Three-year-old Taiwanese fest has opened an international call for entries this year, introducing new categories International Short Films and Student Short Films to its competition lineup. The deadline to submit is June 30.
Why It Works: ‘Dragaon Maid’s Yamada Touch
Nick Creamer details the comedy anime’s stand-out two-parter eighth episode, directed by Naoko Yamada (A Silent Voice) and produced by Kyoto Animation, for crunchyroll.com.
Is TV Really Sheltering Kids from Climate Change?
Execs and creatives weigh in on how popular animated series like Nature Cat, Dora the Explorer, Bubble Guppies and Ready Jet Go! approach the taboo topic, and whether little ones are actually absorbing more info than we think.
Sandra Oh on Boosting Diversity in Animation with ‘Window Horses’
The Golden Globe-winning actor exec produced the Ann Marie Fleming feature and voices the main character, Rosie Ming. “In animation and animated films, there still is not enough representation at all. So from a personal point of view, I wanted to tell this story and get this character on screen.”
Longtime Voice Actress Russi Taylor on Playing Minnie Mouse and Falling for Mickey in Real Life
Taylor has voiced Minnie for over 30 years, along with Donald Duck’s triplet nephews, Pebbles Flintstone, Baby Gonzo, and a whole lot more. “I never wanted to be famous. The characters I do are famous, and that’s fine for me. I like being able to go to the grocery store and know that nobody knows what I do or who I am.”
Watch This Supercut of How Animation Evolved from 1833 to 1990
YouTube channel The Solomon Society has created a three-minute trip through toon history, from the earliest animations of vaudeville, through the silent classics, the advent of color, the Golden Age, and the first touches of CGI.
Animation Career Review has released its 2017 rankings for animation programs at colleges and universities in the United States and across the globe. The ACR has been issuing these lists since 2012, and relies on a variety of criteria to determine its rankings, including academic reputation, admissions selectivity, depth and breadth of the program, value (regarding tuition/student debt) and geographic location (proximity to industry hubs).
The 50 top-ranked US schools this year include the usual heavyweights, and the top 25 international programs list is full of globally recognized names, but as always there are a few breakthroughs. We’ve copied the top 25 schools in both categories below.
ACR 2017 Top Animation Schools – US
California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota, FL
University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
School of Visual Arts, New York, NY
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
Savannah College of Art and Design, Savannah, GA
Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
New York University – Tisch School of the Arts, New York, NY
Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY
Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadenca, CA
Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, IL
California College of the Arts, San Francisco & Oakland, CA
University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL
The New School – Parsons, New York, NY
Gnomon School of Visual Effects, Hollywood, CA
Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA
DePaul University, Chicago, IL
Chapman University, Orange, CA
ACR 2017 Top Animation Schools – International
GOBELINS, The School of Visual Communication, Paris & Noisy-le-Grand, France
Organizers of the 24th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film (ITFS) have revealed some of the key programming highlights attendees can expect at this year’s event, taking place May 2-7 under the banner “Animation without Borders.” More than 80,000 people — including approximately 2,500 industry gatekeepers — are expected to visit the festival’s screenings and explorations of films, games, transmedia and VR projects.
“In 2017 we have strengthened the connections to the disciplines of games, transmedia, virtual reality and music,” said ITFS artistic director Prof. Ulrich Wegenost. “We are thereby opening up ourselves and the genre to creative, productive and economic synergies.”
Leading industry events such as Animation Production Day; FMX; and spotlight Festival; and Arab Animation Forum also coincide with ITFS.
“By closely connecting ITFS with the Animation Production Day and our co-operation events FMX International Conference on Animation, Effects, VR, Games and Transmedia as well as the spotlight Festival for Moving Picture Communication, we have created a platform found nowhere else in the world,” added Dittmar Lumpp, ITFS Managing Director of Organization and Finance. “Our close partnerships and continuous development turn Stuttgart into the global center of animation, visual effects, virtual reality, and moving picture communication at the beginning of May.”
Highlights of the ITFS film program — spanning nine competition categories with over 70k EU in total prizes — include the International Competition for short film, which will introduce audiences to Lebanese animator Chadi Aoun’s SAMT (Silence) and return festival stars such as Spela Cadez (Slovenia) with Nighthawk, Franck Dion (France) with The Head Vanishes, and the prolific Jochen Kuhn (Germany).
This year’s feature competition AniMovie has some strong Asian contenders like Sunao Katabuchi’s In This Corner of the World (2017 Japan Academy Prize for Best Animation) and the ethereal Chinese fantasy Big Fish & Begonia from Xuan Liang & Chun Zhang. Attendees also mustn’t miss Roger Mainwood’s Ethel & Ernest, Bill Plympton and Jim Lujan’s recently premiered Revengeance, and the world premiere of international co-pro Birds Like Us by Faruk Sabanovic & Amela Cuhara, featuring the voices of Alicia Vikander and Jeremy Irons and soundtrack by Peter Gabriel. The latter is the first 3D feature from Bosnia-Herzegovina and is co-produced by Turkish Television, Fork Film (US) and Autonomous (UK).
Curator Iris Loos (VHS Stuttgart: Treffpunkt Kinder) has put together an imaginative mix of recent international shorts, series from Film-und Medienfestival, and feature films for the children’s festival Trick for Kids, including Jakob Schuh & Jan Lachauer’s Revolting Rhymes (Magic Light Pics., Triggerfish). Youngsters can also check out an art exhibition in honor of Thilo Graf Rothkirch, creator of Laura’s Star, The Little Polar Bear and Tobias Totzore at Treffpunkt Rothebuhlplatz (Mar. 15-May 9) and screening of his films during ITFS. Tick for Kids events are also set for the Stuttgart Zoo, the Gerber, Schlossplotz Festival Garden and Mercedes-Benz Museum, which will host family workshops the weekend before the festival.
Special focus will be placed on feature country Croatia, with the presentation of many co-productions, studios and workshops including Adriatic Animation, Bonobo Studio and Zagreb Film, plus a “Best of” film program curated by AnimaFest Zagreb head Daniel Suljic. The In Persona series will honor renowned animators with tributes to Italian master Bruno Bozzetto, Katrin Magnitz (Germany), Joanna Priestley (US) and Ann Marie Fleming (Canada). ITFS will also present an homage to Russian animator, director and screenwriter Fyodor Khitruk (1917-2012) in honor of what would have been his 100th birthday, May 1, with the premiere of a new documentary by Dimitry Zolotov (Studio Schor) on May 6 at 8 p.m.; a program of his short films; and Otto Alder’s 1998 documentary The Spirit of Genius: Fyodor Khitruk and His Films on May 7.
Borderless animation will be highlighted with a special preview on May 6 in Musikhalle Ludwigsburg of the musical animation/theater experience Cat and Mouse from 1927 Theatre Company and Village Underground. Inspired by George Herriman’s Krazy Kat, the piece is directed and created by London animator Paul Barritt, with music provided by the Officer Pub Band. And Opera & Animation will be presented with the Staatsoper Stuttgart company, projecting Bellini’s La Sonnambula on a giant LED screen with live actors at the Schlossplatz on May 7. Barritt, who previously animated stage images for The Magic Flute at Berlin’s Komische Oper, will hold a workshop on animation and opera.
2017 will see the debut and reinvention of industry honors. The Animated Games Award Germany will be presented at ITSF. The 5,000EU national award is funded by MFG Media, Baden-Wuerttemberg mbH and Film-und Medienfestival GmbH. The winner will be announced following the GameZone opening tour May 3. For the first time, the Animated Com Award will be presented at a joint award gala with the spotlight Festival in the Alte Reithalle on May 6, offering great networking opportunities for artists, agencies and ad pros. And the Trickstar Business Award — a first business-focused, international animation honor — will be presented by ITFS during Animation Production Day on May 5 in a joint gala with the German Animated Screenplay Award and Tricks for Kids; the 7,500EU prize is funded by Region Stuttgart.
This year features an even bigger GameZone special focus in a 2k sq.m. venue. Themed “Playful Art/Meaningful Games,” the showcase curated by Prof. Sabiha Ghellal (Stuttgart Media Univ.) and Dr. Stephan Schwingeler will present current game culture trends and forward-looking university projects which unite game aesthetics and social relevance, plus the latest in AR and VR which visitors can play on-site. This includes the 16m x 4m playable art installation “Long March: Restart” by Feng Mengbo; players guide a Red Army Soldier through this classic game-inspired experience which debuted at MoMA PS1 in 2010.
24th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film
Director and Pixar brain-trustee Lee Unkrich unveiled a colorful new poster for Disney-Pixar’s upcoming underworld adventure, Coco (due out Nov. 22). The helmer also noted in his tweet that the first trailer will bow in theaters next week.
The — err, lively? — poster art shows a quite pleased dog with a large bone in its mouth (named “Dante,” per a nearby bowl) being patted on the head by a skeletal arm, and a lovely bone-white guitar with a skull shaped headstock.
These focal points rest against an old brick wall topped by strings of bright papel picado flags which hint at scenes from the movie, so get your zoom-clicking fingers warmed up.
Unkrich has reunited with his Toy Story 3 playmate, producer Darla K. Anderson, for Coco, which is being co-directed by Adrian Molina (story artist, Monsters University).
Synopsis: Despite his family’s baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel (voice of newcomer Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz (voice of Benjamin Bratt). Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Hector (voice of Gael Garcia Bernal) and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel’s family history.
The latest edition of Cartoon Movie wrapped up in Bordeaux on Friday with the announcement of the 2017 Cartoon Tributes winners. Over 800 animation professionals attending the event voted for their preferred nominees in the categories of Director, Distributor and Producer of the Year.
This year’s honorees represented a ripe harvest for My Life as a Courgette (“Zucchini” in the states), with related creatives and companies sweeping all three categories:
Director of the Year went to Claude Barras for My Life as a Courgette (Switzerland).
Distributor of the Year was given to Angel Films (Denmark), which has been the Scandinavian distributor of My Life as a Courgette as well as Phantom Boy, Ernest & Celestine, Pinocchio and Tad, The Lost Explorer.
Producers of the Year was bestowed on Rita Productions (Switzerland), Blue Spirit Productions and Gebeka Films (France) for My Life as a Courgette.
Visit www.cartoon-media.eu for more information on all events presented by CARTOON.
Nickelodeon has teamed up with child rights organization Plan International for a new pro-social campaign dedicated to promoting gender equity this spring, inviting kids to “rock themselves to greatness” with Together We Rock — comprised of a new digital game and an international marathon of empowerment-themed episodes of hit series School of Rock.
The campaign has launched and will run through the month of May.
“At Nickelodeon, we’re fortunate to have a global platform that allows us to encourage the world to be a more playful place for kids everywhere,” said Mario Cader-Frech, SVP of Public Affairs & Social Responsibility at Viacom International Media Networks. “Giving young girls creative tools that empower them to be proactive, bold leaders and help them navigate their world is an important part of that responsibility. Working with Plan International, we created Together We Rock specifically to remind kids that anyone can be a leader, regardless of gender.”
As part of Nickelodeon’s Together For Good initiative, the two entities are launching the Together We Rock game for free through Nick.com (playable on desktop and mobile). The game is led and narrated by Tomika from School of Rock, with players joining her on a quest to recruit new band members and unlock customizable elements through gameplay that lead to conquering bigger rock venues on their climb to the top — all while using concepts in coding to progress.
During the game’s development process, Nick and members of the Plan International Youth Delegation — including young leaders aged between 16 and 25 from El Salvador, Uganda and the US — met at Viacom’s New York headquarters for a brainstorming session, coinciding with International Day of the Girl last fall. The meeting explored how the serious subject of gender equity could be explored in a fun way.
International Day of the Girl is a global observance day declared by the United Nations to grow opportunities for girls and increase awareness of the challenges and gender barriers to education, healthcare, legal rights and more faced by girls worldwide.
“Plan International is thrilled to continue our partnership with Nickelodeon International. As a child-centered, rights-based organization, we are impressed with and grateful for Nickelodeon’s commitment to tackling global gender inequity and teaching about gender equality in a fun and accessible way for young people,” says Tessie San Martin, President and CEO of Plan International USA. “Plan believes in the importance of youth having a voice at the decision-making table. Inviting game design participation and feedback from a diverse group of young people is a powerful example of Nickelodeon walking the talk around investing in youth, achieving gender equity, and promoting child rights.”
Nickelodeon channels will be airing a School of Rock marathon during the month of May across more than 170 countries and territories internationally, showcasing episodes from the live-action show that put female role models, equity-themed moments, and self-confidence in the spotlight.
Rising Sun Pictures Sinks Its Claws into ‘Logan’
The Aussie VFX studio reunited with director James Mangold for the intense “Wolverine” finale, contributing some 230 shots and working on everything from animating his adamantium claws to meticulous matte paintings of locations.
’Game of Thrones’ Sets Season Seven Premiere
HBO finally thawed out the official re-start of National Nail-Biting Season with a theme FB Live video. In other news, GoT season 11 confirmed to premiere before George R.R. Martin finishes The Winds of Winter.
We’ve got a shiny new edition of an anime classic that will make all your cybernetic dreams come true to give away, with Mamoru Oshii’s Ghost in the Shell in a new steelbook Blu-ray with limited edition Mondo art. Anchor Bay Ent. is releasing the Production I.G feature on Blu-ray and Digital HD on March 14.
Originally released in 1995, Ghost in the Shell centers on Major Motoko Kusanagi — a cybernetic government agent inhabiting a future world on the trail of a mysterious computer virus threat known as “The Puppet Master,” capable of infiltrating human hosts. With her fellow agents from Section 9, the Major embarks on a high-tech race against time to capture the entity.
All you have to do is answer the following question correctly and email your name and address to webmaster@www.animationmagazine.net, with the subject line Ghost in the Shell Giveaway.
Question: Director Mamoru Oshii has said he believes he is a reincarnation of this breed of dog, which makes an appearance in Ghost in the Shell and other of his films…
Moore College of Art & Design has revealed details of its four-day festival of animated films created by women (five features and 30 shorts), which will further celebrate the impact of women in the industry with Meet-the-Artists discussions, an Adobe Creative Jam, and panel featuring women game designers. The event is a timely precursor to Moore’s first Animation & Game Arts program graduation in May.
Taking place during Women’s History Month, the 2017 MooreWomenArtists: Women in Animation Film Festival will run March 23-26 in Stewart Auditorium at the college’s Philadelphia campus. All events are open to the public, and admission is free. More information available at moore.edu/womeninanimation2017.
Screening highlights will include Ann Marie Fleming’s Window Horses, Signe Baumane’s Rocks in My Pockets, a short film focus on Emily Hubley and Faith Hubley, and even an anime injection with a feature inspired by Rumiko Takahashi’s popular Inuyasha.
Women in Animation Film Festival Schedule
Thursday, March 23: 6:30 pm
Game Changers: Women Making Games
Kat Webster from Bioware, Lauren Brown from EA Games, Harley Dwortz from Rooster Teeth Productions and Melissa Soest from BioWare will discuss their creative process, careers and how they are effecting change in the industry. The panel will be followed by Q&A with the audience and a reception with the panelists.
Friday, March 24: 7:00 pm
Window Horses
Asian-Canadian filmmaker, writer and visual artist Ann Marie Fleming’s Window Horses (2016) features the voices of Sandra Oh and Ellen Page. Window Horses (The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming) follows Rosie Ming (Sandra Oh), a young Canadian poet of mixed descent who grew up believing her father abandoned her. She’s been invited to perform her poetry at a festival in Iran, where she finds that what she’d been told as a child may not necessarily be the entire truth. The film will be followed by a Meet-the-Artist Q&A.
Saturday, March 25: 1:00 pm
Emily Hubley screens works by Faith Hubley
This afternoon of animation will include a juried program of shorts by women and then American filmmaker and animator Emily Hubley will screen a program of her films and those by her mother and animation pioneer Faith Hubley, who died in 2001. Faith, who often collaborated with her husband John, combined elements of myth, jazz and a deeply felt humanism into her films, which included the Academy Award-winning shorts Moonbird (1959), The Hole (1962) and A Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass Double Feature (1966), as well as the Oscar-nominated Windy Day, Of Men and Demons, Voyage to Next and A Doonesbury Special. The film will be followed by a Meet-the-Artist Q&A.
Shorts Program: “All Our Lives Combined”
Includes Lingua Absentia by Kate Raney; The Biggest Wad Is Mine by Samantha Gurry; More Dangerous Than a Thousand Rioters by Kelly Gallagher; The Mirror by Tori Huynh; Something Has Happened by Hannah Burke; Lady Disaster by Megan Barker; “I AM” A Meditation by Danielle Dunnigan; About Death by Eunjae Lee; Lady Secrets by Lori Damiano; Yogalaxy by Therese Schnoell; and Earth Emergency by Su Yeon Lim.
Saturday, March 25: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Adobe Creative Jam Tournament & Presentations
Adobe will present a Creative Jam event where local thought leaders share a behind-the-scene peek into their processes and projects; meanwhile, teams compete in a tournament that puts their creative skills to the test using Adobe Creative Cloud. The tournament begins at 5:00 pm in Moore’s studios and will be followed with presentations by thought leaders and the winning teams in Stewart Auditorium and a reception in Widener Memorial Gallery. Participation and admission are free. For more on this event: nvite.com/CreativeJam/moore.
Saturday, March 25: 8:30 pm
Jessica Ciocci’s Animation Mix Tape
A program of shorts will be followed with a mix by Jessica Ciocci, founding member of the Pittsburgh, PA/Providence, RI art collective Paper Rad. The collective creates comics, zines, video art, net art, MIDI files, paintings, installations and music, and has work exhibited in major museums and galleries, including The New Museum of Contemporary Art and Deitch Projects. Ciocci’s work includes drawing, painting, craft, home-recording, photography, performance and animation. Her animated program will be loosely based on her audio collage mix tapes and include a fully integrated video collage of inspiring women animators whom she admires. The screening will be followed by a Meet-the-Artist Q&A.
Shorts Program: “What keeps us up at night?”
Includes The Woman and Countryside by Adrienne Zeidler; Ontology by Brianna Hayes; “The Metal East” (music video) by Lale Westvind; Mary’s Trip by Kara Crombie; Truthful Innards by Margaret Polzine; Flight: Now in Grape by Hannah Burke; Boxes by Katherine Ohlson; Paper Cuts; and Reddish Brown and Blueish Green by Samantha Gurry.
Sunday, March 26: 2:00 pm
Inuyasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time
A program of family friendly shorts will be followed by this contemporary classic. Created by the beloved female artist Rumiko Takahashi, the 2001 anime film is the first in the Inuyasha movie series. In it, the half-demon Inuyasha is set free from the Legendary Tree by Kagome, a girl who has traveled 500 years through time. During their journeys they meet up with Sango, Miroku, Shippou, Kaede and Myoga and together try to stop Menomaru from becoming the most powerful Chinese demon ever. Menomaru’s father, known as Hyoga, came to invade Japan 300 years ago but was stopped by Inuyasha’s father. This film is being shown Courtesy of Viz Media.
Shorts Program: “The Heart That Smiles”
Includes Man vs Machine by Kyerra Brown; Use Your Head by Lauren Niedelman; Pepita & Max – an alpine blessing for Monsieur Raf by Stephanie Knoebl; The Letter by Katherine Woods; The Open Road by Victoria Chen; Breathe by Catherine Chen; FiFi va a la Plage by Kathryn Roake; Little Buggies by Katie Graziano; The Man Who Lives on a Hill by Jackie Bauwens; and How Ideas Are Made by Alleanna Harris.
Sunday, March 26: 7:00 pm
Rocks in My Pockets
Rocks in My Pockets is directed by Latvian-native Signe Baumane. Now living in New York City, the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow in Film worked for independent animator Bill Plympton and later went on to create her own animated films, including Birth and Rocks in My Pockets. A story of mystery and redemption, this moving work is based on true events involving Baumane and four other women in her family, exploring their battles with depression. It raises questions of how much family genetics determine who we are and if it is possible to outsmart one’s own DNA. The film will be followed by a Meet-the-Artist Q&A.
2017 MooreWomenArtists: Women in Animation Film Festival
Tokyo production company Ichigo Ichie Films has signed on a director for its CG animated feature project Lobo, with Student Academy Award-winner Alyce Tzue set to helm the kids’ book adaptation. Tzue is an LA-based director and artist who was named one of Variety’s Top 10 Animators to Watch in 2016. Her Oscar-winning short Soar was developed as her thesis project at San Francisco’s Academy of Art University.
The producers are aiming for a 2019 release.
Since Lobo’s is anchored by Asian identity through its setting and main human character, Ichigo Ichie Films’ president and producer Hiro Masuda was determined to find a director who shared this experience: “I feel a lack of female directors is even more urgent issue today because it seems not to fix anytime soon, and it is about time to take an action. And, of course, I believe that Asian female centered story Lobo will be perfect to be told by Asian female director.”
Lobo is based on acclaimed American children’s book The Pup Who Cried Wolf by Chris Kurtz. The film follows Lobo, a tiny Chihuahua living in New York City who dreams of joining a wolf pack. When his owner, Zi, takes her niece Mei and the pets on a trip to a national park, Lobo finally has a chance to find his wolf “brothers.” With the help of his endearingly quirky family—a smart Spanish-speaking parrot named Glory and a wisecracking white rat named Heckles—Lobo finally slips his leash. But is the wild really where a feisty little five-pound pup belongs?
Alyce Tzue is represented by WME and Gotham Group.
Veteran French producer Millimages has secured a number of deal for its best-selling titles which will bring them to audiences across Asia. “Asia is a proven market and we are very happy for the great performance of our programs,” said group commercial director Grace Lee. “I am positive that the market will get bigger and bigger with extension of the digital market.”
Numerous pubcasters have hopped on the non-dialogue short series Molang (104 x 3’30”), following its pan-regional acquisition by Disney Asia, including EBS (Korea), TVB (Hong Kong), PBS (Thailand), OKTO (Singapore) and PTS (Singapore). Disney India has also picked up the 2017 International Kids Emmy-nominated series, having already committed to another non-dialogue short format from Millimages: Kung Fu Bunny (12 x 7).
Top European-produced toon 64 Zoo Lane, now offering seasons 3 and 4 (52 x 11), is still going strong years after its 1999 debut. The show has recently sold to Disney Japan after its successful launch on Disney Junior; to Daekyo TV (Korea) for its Baby TV; and to Nickelodeon India — along with Louie (117 x 7) — for its new VOOT platform.
Further, new kids’ series Paper Port (26 x 11) has sold to HBO Asia as well as Sony India, which picked it up in a three-title deal which also includes Me and My Robot (52 x 13) and Trust Me, I’m a Genie (52 x 13).
Disney-Pixar has revealed key voice cast and characters for its upcoming feature Cars 3 (June 16). According to director Brian Fee, the star-powered roster includes both new and returning characters: “We’re introducing some fun and really appealing characters in Cars 3, so we really wanted to find the right voices to help us breathe life into them. We hit a homerun with this group; I couldn’t be happier.”
The newcomers will join Cars franchise vets and previously announced additions to the lineup: Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen, Cristela Alonzo as Cruz Ramirez, and Armie Hammer as Jackson Storm.
Cars 3 new cast members:
Kerry Washington (ABC’s Scandal, HBO’s Confirmation) lends her voice to Natalie Certain, a highly respected statistical analyst who knows her numbers. Book-smart and mathematically gifted, Certain may earn top marks in her ability to evaluate a racer’s stats, but she could be underestimating the importance of determination.
Nathan Fillion (ABC’s Castle, Modern Family) voices Sterling, a brilliant businesscar who runs Rust-eze Racing Center—one of the most successful elite training facilities in the country. The always dapper Sterling comes across as unassuming and laid back, but business is business, and Sterling is driven to ensure all of his investments pay off.
Lea DeLaria (Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black) provides the voice of Miss Fritter, a local legend at the Thunder Hollow Speedway demolition derby. Fritter’s formidable school-bus size is intimidating, but it’s her smoke stacks of doom, razor-sharp stop sign and crazy collection of her victims’ license plates that usually steers her opponents in the other direction.
Lewis Hamilton (three-time Formula One world champion) was called on to voice Hamilton, a fully loaded, built-in voice command assistant to high-tech trainer Cruz Ramirez. When Lightning McQueen takes his training off road, Cruz enlists Hamilton’s help to keep the struggling racer on track.
Returning Cars characters:
Lightning McQueen’s best buddy Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) and No. 1 fan Sally (voice of Bonnie Hunt).
Friends Fillmore (voice of Lloyd Sherr), Sarge (voice of Paul Dooley), Lizzie (voice of Katherine Helmond), Ramon (voice of Cheech Marin), Sheriff (voice of Michael Wallis) and Flo (voice of Jenifer Lewis).
Loyal transporter Mack (voice of John Ratzenberger), big-hearted Italian Fiat 500 Luigi (voice of Tony Shalhoub) and charming little Italian forklift Guido (voice of Guido Quaroni) continue to support Lightning McQueen.
World-renowned sports announcer Bob Cutlass (voice of Bob Costas) is still calling the races, and Chick Hicks (voice of Bob Peterson) is back, now a commentator on the Racing Sports Network.
Lovable duo Dusty (voice of Ray Magliozzi) and Rusty (voice of Tom Magliozzi) return as Rust-eze’s chief proprietors—though they have big things in store for Lightning McQueen.
Cartoon Network is powering of a connected, original world which weaves TV and gaming together with the greenlight of animated action series OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes, plus an integrated console/PC game jointly developed with indie studio Capybara Games. The game, an action brawler with RPG elements, will be previewed at PAX East on March 10.
Created by Ian Jones-Quartey and produced by Cartoon Network Studios, OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes is set in Lakewood Plaza, a mall for heroes, where K.O. and his cool crew are ever trying to outdo each other by leveling up to overcome the obstacles their evil foe, Lord Boxman, sends their way in his schemes to destroy the Plaza. The series will be sneak-peeked at SXSW on March 13, and is set to premiere this summer in the US before rolling out worldwide.
“For me, video games and animation have a lot in common and having fun is the main goal,
Said Jones-Quartey. “OK K.O.! is a video game-inspired world expressed through the language of animation, but mostly an adventurous playground with heart-warming heroes who battle against robots.”
To build the concept’s highly-developed world, Cartoon Network opened the door to the gaming and creative communities to produce custom multiplatform content. At a Game Jam last year, indie developers created original games based on the characters. This was followed by an Animation Jam, where college undergrads crafted 15-second shorts using the IP.
Last year, a standalone mobile game OK K.O.! Lakewood Plaza Turbo, based on Jones-Quartey’s short from Cartoon Network’s Emmy-winning artist program, was launched.
“This combined launch marks the culmination of a unique multimedia development process,” said Rob Sorcher, Chief Content Officer for Cartoon Network. “The result is an entirely connected world which provides deeper satisfaction as fans get further into the property from every access point.”
Jones-Quartey joined Cartoon Network in 2010 as a storyboard artist on Secret Mountain Fort Awesome. Most recently, he was co-executive producer on Emmy-nominated series Steven Universe. He is an alumnus of the School of Visual Arts in New York City.
Nimble Collective & Chocolate Soop Present “March of Robots” Challenge
The industry’s first cloud native animation platform and Dacosta Bayley’s animation studio celebrate the month with this community drawing challenge meant to get artists to their personal goals, improve skills, and create cool robots. Follow the march on IG with #marchofrobots.
Wonder Woman: 2009 Animated Movie Is Getting an R-Rated Director’s Cut
Following the mature auds success stories of Deadpool, Logan and animated Batman: The Killing Joke, Lauren Montgomery’s animated DCU home movie is going to up the ante with a new cut just in time for the Amazon’s live-action solo feature. (Page loads with video playing.)
This Women’s Day Campaign Highlights the Gender Disparity of Animated Characters
A video campaign by UK charity Inspiring Girls takes aim at the lack of strong female role models in cartoons, directed by Strange Beast’s Sophie Markatatos. Meet “Angela the Astronaut” (designed by Lizzie Campbell), “Cathy the Carpenter” (BeTowers/Bea Torres), “Sally the Scientist” (Ariane Pelissoni) and “Carla the Coder” (Abigail de la Cruz).
Mondo TV Suisse, a division of major European animation producer/distributor Mondo TV, has secured a global licensing and merchandising agreement for the brand-new YooHoo & Friends kids’ series with Panini SpA. The deal will see the publishing subsidiary create and market a line of products including stickers, trading cards and photocards featuring the characters in local languages, set to launch in early 2018.
“Having Panini as a partner in the YooHoo & Friends licensing campaign is a major boost for the ongoing development of licensed property based on this exciting animated series co-produced by Mondo TV Suisse and Aurora World Corporation,” said Valentina La Macchia, Director of Mondo’s Consumer Products Division. “YooHoo & Friends is not only a major project for the Mondo TV Group overall, but a potentially major revenue driver for Mondo TV Suisse as it moves beyond the production stage to licensing, merchandising and television rights for this delightful and engaging new children’s show.”
YooHoo & Friends is a new animated children’s series launching this year which follows five cute friends who help endangered animals. The show is inspired by the globally successful plush toy line created by Aurora World, which has sold more than 80 million units since its 2007 debut.
Canada’s Youth Media Alliance announces the appointment of Sarah Haasz, Director of Original Production for DHX Television, as a member of its board of directors. Haasz is taking over for her DHX TV colleague Michael Goldsmith, Director of Original Programming, whom YMA thanks for his generous contribution to the organization.
As Director of Original Production for DHX Television, Sarah Haasz oversees the creative aspects of development and production for Family Channel, CHRGD, Family Jr. and Télémagino, including series and movies such as The Next Step, Lost & Found Music Studios, Backstage, Gaming Show, Playdate and Justin Time. Haasz was also Creative Producer for The Next Step Live On Stage Tour 2015 & 2016.
With over 20 years of experience in television production, Haasz is credited for her work on over 2,500 hours of children’s programming in a variety of genres. Her previous roles include Executive in Charge of Production for CBC Children’s and Youth Department, Director of Development for Bardel Entertainment and Production Executive for YTV, TreehouseTV and Discovery Kids Canada. Haasz was also an instructor at Centennial College in Toronto for the Children’s Entertainment Post Graduate Program.
The YMA board of directors now consists of Co-Chairs Guillaume Aniorté (Frima Studio) and J.J. Johnson (Sinking Ship Entertainment); Treasurer Vince Commisso (9 Story Media Group); Secretary Michele Paris (Knowledge & BBC Kids); and Members Judith Beauregard (Tobo), Frank Falcone (Guru Studio), Athena Georgaklis (Nelvana), Laurent Guérin (Groupe Média TFO), Sarah Haasz (DHX Television), Madeleine Lévesque (Sardine Prod.), Ira Levy (Breakthrough Ent.), Marie McCann (CBC Kids), Peter Moss (PDM Ent.) and Alexandra Raffé (Thunderbird Ent.)
Hulu has secured a string of new deals to expand its growing kids’ library with episodes of hit animated series Dot. (from The Jim Henson Company) and Disney XD favorites Counterfeit Cat (Tricon/Wildseed) and Camp Lakebottom (9 Story), as previously announced. All three shows will debut on the premium streaming service in the coming months.
Hulu acquired exclusive SVOD rights to all episodes of Dot., based on the book by New York Times best-selling author and tech expert Randi Zuckerberg. The tech-themed preschool series has been a top performer on Sprout since its fall launch, following the adventures of inquisitive 8-year-old Dot as she sets off on adventures to fearlessly solve problems. All past episodes, produced by Industrial Brothers in association with Jim Henson Co. and Canadian Broadcasting Corp., will be available April 15.
The service has also snapped up exclusive streaming rights to all episodes of award-winning original animated series Counterfeit Cat in a deal with Wildseed Studios and Tricon Kids & Family. Following its successful first season on Disney XD in the US, the odd couple comedy about the friendship between a lazy, selfish house cat and an excitable, naive alien (in a homemade purple cat suit) will debut on Hulu March 17.
As reported in February, all past episodes of 9 Story Media Group’s worldwide hit Camp Lakebottom will be available only on Hulu starting April 8. The children’s series had its US premiere on Disney XD and follows 12-year-old prankster McGee and his off-kilter adventures at the ridiculously spooky but most-fun-ever Camp Lakebottom.
Anke Schäferkordt has announced she is stepping down from her post as co-CEO of Luxembourg-based entertainment giant RTL Group and resigning from the group’s board of directors and executive committee, effective April 19. Bert Habets will replace her as co-CEO with Guillaume de Posch.
Currently CEO of RTL Nederland, Habets will step into Schäferkordt’s position on the executive committee alongside de Posch and CFO Elmar Heggen. It is also expected that Habets will join the board of directors as Executive Director on April 19, the date of the annual general meeting. He remains in charge of RTL Nederland for the time being, with the Group planning to announced his replacement before the end of the year.
Schäferkordt is leaving the board and committee at her own request, and will continue as CEO of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland — the Group’s largest business unit, which she has headed since September 2005.
“On behalf of the whole Board, I would like to thank Anke Schäferkordt for her outstanding entrepreneurial performance at the head of RTL Group. Together with her colleagues on the Executive Committee, she has succeeded in making RTL Group more digital, more international and faster growing. At the same time, she and her management team in Germany have continued the success story of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland,” commented Thomas Rabe, Chairman of the Board of Directors. “While I regret her decision, I fully respect her reasons and I’m very happy that she will continue to lead and advance our largest business unit—and that she will continue to contribute her unique experience and expertise to the digital transformation of our Group.
“To a large extent, RTL Group’s long-lasting success is based on the quality, continuity and experience of its management team. I am delighted that we have found, in Bert Habets, a strong leader and digitally savvy media entrepreneur from within the group as new co-CEO of RTL Group. Since Bert Habets joined our group in 1999, he has proven his outstanding leadership and creative skills. He transformed RTL Nederland from a traditional broadcaster into a media company which entertains its audience across all digital platforms. Bert Habets embodies RTL Group’s total video strategy. I look forward to working with him, and wish him every success in his new position.”
In addition to owning and operating nearly 60 TV stations and 30-odd radio stations across Europe and Asia, RTL Group (majority-owned by Bertelsmann) is a world-leading producer of TV content through its ownership of FremantleMedia. The London-based subsidiary produces many reality series and soaps, as well as animated fare through its kids & family arm including Kate and Mim-Mim, Tree Fu Tom and the new Danger Mouse.
