Technicolor, DHX Media and A Stark Production announce that Netflix will begin streaming underwater animated adventure series The Deep in the U.S. on June 1. Technicolor is the underlying rights holder to the series, and oversees the series roll-out and brand management. The Deep is co-produced by A Stark in Australia (scripts, design, music) and DHX Media (animation, voices, post), which also handles distribution.
The Deep follows the adventures of the Nekton family—a brilliant team of underwater explorers. With state-of-the-art technology and an unquenchable thirst for discovery, the Nektons explore the mysterious depths of the ocean: a place where leviathans swim through sunken cities, pirates lurk amidst floating black markets, and where a mysterious group of Guardians hide long lost secrets.
The Deep is based on the Aurealis Award-winning graphic novel series created by writer Tom Taylor, illustrated by James Brouwer and published by Gestalt Comics. Taylor serves as series co-creator and lead writer, with Brouwer as co-creator and art director. In addition to Netflix, The Deep‘s broadcast partners include CBBC (U.K.), The Seven Network (Australia), Super RTL (Germany) and Family CHRGD (Canada).
Golden Globe winner Emily Blunt (Into the Woods) and Emmy, Grammy, Tony and Pulitzer winner Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) have been tapped to star in Walt Disney Studios’ Mary Poppins Returns, a sequel to the studio’s 1964 hybrid musical classic. The follow-up is slated for release on December 25, 2018.
Mary Poppins Returns is reuniting the filmmakers behind Disney’s hit fairytale musical Into the Woods, with Emmy & DGA Award winner Rob Marshall directing as well as producing with John Deluca and Golden Globe winner Marc Platt. The screenplay is being written by David Magee, with Tony winner Marc Shaiman composing an all-new score and writing original songs with another Tony winner, Scott Wittman.
Blunt will play Mary Poppins, and Miranda will take on a new character, a street lamplighter named Jack. Drawing from the wealth of material in P.L. Travers’ seven additional novels, the story will take place in Depression-era London (when the books were originally written) and follow a now-grown Jane and Michael Banks, who, along with Michael’s three children, are visited by the enigmatic Mary Poppins following a personal loss. Through her unique magical skills, and with the aid of her friend Jack, she helps the family rediscover the joy and wonder missing in their lives.
Based on P.L. Travers’ classic 1934 book, Disney’s Mary Poppins was released thirty years afterward, directed by Robert Stevenson and starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. The film adaptation won five Academy Awards, including Best Actress for Andrews. Travers wrote seven additional Mary Poppins books, published between 1935 and 1988.
Framestore has appointed internationally renowned animator Michael Eames as Global Director of Animation (Film). Eames will be based in London and will oversee Framestore’s diverse animation teams across London and Montreal. Eames first worked for the studio in 2000 as Animation Supervisor on Dinotopia, winning an Emmy for Outstanding Visual Effects and a BAFTA nomination.
“We are delighted to welcome Michael back to Framestore in this key creative leadership role,” said joint MDs of Film Matt Fox and Fiona Walkinshaw. “Michael was originally responsible for starting our Animation team and has the incredible in-depth knowledge of animation within the VFX industry, combined with a prolific career in VFX production.”
Eames has delivered innovative work in animation on leading VFX-heavy titles including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and Children of Men (2006). He recently served as Animation Supervisor on Avengers: Age of Ultron and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. A personal career highlight for Eames was working on the feature adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are.
FuseFX has hired Emmy-nominated VFX Supervisor and Producer James Tichenor onto its Vancouver studio team. The Canadian native will produce and supervise visual effects for television, feature films and other media projects while working with Senior VFX Supervisor Jason Dowdeswell — head of FuseFX Vancouver — to broaden the capabilities and scope of FuseFX’s regional operations.
Tichenor spend the past two years at Western Post in Vancouver, where he was VFX Supervisor on a series of Netflix original movies. Prior to this, he was Development and Bidding Producer at Prime Focus World. In his career, Tichenor has also been posted at Sony Television, MGM Television, Entity FX and Prime Focus.
Tichenor’s credits include Smallville, Stargate SG1, Kingdom Hospital and on-set VFX supervisor for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. He has been nominated for eight Emmy Awards, seven Gemini awards and four VES Awards. His current projects include CBS’s sci-fi thriller Zoo.
“James is well known in the Vancouver production community as someone who gets the best from his artists and consistently delivers great results,” noted Dowdeswell. “The diversity of his experience makes him a real asset in the facility and on the set.”
INK ALC has taken on representation for Beyblade — the popular spinning battle toy that has turned into a top boys’ animation property of the last two decades. Sunrights Inc., which manages the latest incarnation Beyblade Burst outside of Asia, has appointed INK ALC to rep the brand in the Nordics, CEE and Russia/CIS across media, consumer products, promotions and publishing.
Produced by d-rights, the Beyblade series followed a group of characters who form teams and do battle with one another using highly powerful spinning tops. The franchise was created by Tomy Company and was inspired by traditional Japanese battling tops, known as Bei-Goma. The property quickly became a worldwide hit, inspiring seven series, two movies and three spin-off series.
Beyblade Burst offers a fresh take on the original 1999 show, with brand new storylines and characters and a theme of real sports, competition and friendship aimed at increasing accessibility for the key demographic of boys ages 6-11.
A new toy line from Hasbro will tie into the themes of Burst, with spinning tops that burst apart when defeated, adding more excitement to battle play. The range will also include playset stadiums and accessories for battle customization. The new toys will also include a digital component for an immersive play experience.
Finding Nemo as Told by Emoji
Disney Interactive Media unfolds its latest “As Told By Emoji” short in honor of the film’s 13th anniversary (and ahead of that little-mentioned sequel, Finding Dory).
The KLIK! Amsterdam Animation Festival will take place October 25-30 at EYE Filmmuseum Amsterdam. The ninth edition of the festival promises six days of “hilarious, weird, playful, artistic, dramatic, overwhelming and touching animated films.” The program includes features, shorts, premieres, previews, talks, installations, workshops, masterclasses and a can’t-miss closing party.
These year’s special focus theme is “Nature and Landscapes.” In addition to planned feature and short film presentations, KLIK will also host a special animated paintings exhibition with works from international artists, as well as an interactive, three-dimensional landscape which visitors can help change and evolve in a process to be recorded in time-lapse video. Visitors can also celebrate the theme by taking in local scenes through a cycling film screening tour through three North Amsterdam locations.
One of the key firsts of KLIK 2016 is the exclusive premiere of Sync, a documentary by Joop van den Beucken and Bob van der Houven which explores the world of Dutch animated film dubbing, in collaboration with the creators of the nostalgic online series Stemmen van toen (Voices from the Past). Sync blends interviews with voice actors, directors, translators, technicians and directors to highlight this unique creative industry and its impact on Dutch pop culture.
KLIK will also present a special screening of episodes of Cartoon Network’s 1990s The Powerpuff Girls series, with a Q&A with a to-be-announced key creative.
Film submissions are open until June 15. Follow www.klik.amsterdam for more information as the festival draws near.
Makiko Futaki, a long time Japanese feature animator whose most recent work was on Hiromasa Yonebayashi’s When Marnie Was There, died May 13 of an “unspecified illness,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. She was 57 years old.
Futaki had worked at Studio Ghibli for over 30 years, beginning her stint with the legendary animation house in 1981. She worked on every one of director Hayao Miyazaki’s films following Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (for which, according to a Twitter user named Hyun Park, she handled the baby Omu scene).
Futaki was a key animator on Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke and Kiki’s Delivery Service. Her animation career began with the classic Lupin III feature and she also was a key animator on Katsuhiro Otomo’s legendary Akira (1988) and worked on Hiroyuki Yamaga’s Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise (1987).
Ben Ettinger’s AniPages blog gives an admiring account of Futaki’s work, saying that she “tends to be given scenes that demand an eye for intricate and delicate motion, and she packs tremendous nuance into her scenes with lush and fluid animation.” The artist’s passing was honored with a private family funeral earlier this month.
Canadian animation house Cuppa Coffee Studios has lent its irreverent flair to the U.S. presidential race by producing a bizarre animated journey inside the iconically coifed noggin of the Republican nomination frontrunner: Trump Unhinged.
“It’s our surreal take on what is going on inside The Donald’s head,” says Adam Shaheen, Cuppa Coffee’s Executive Producer.
The Toronto studio is launching www.trumpunhinged.com on June 1, and will be offering new doses of political insanity daily (also to be available through Twitter and Facebook feeds). Each animation begins with a caricatured, stop-motion Trump puppet literally flipping his lid before the toon dives in to the inner machination of The Donald’s mind.
“It took a team of 9 artists over a month to dream up and create everything in this big collection of little films. Our dedicated team shot over 4,000 frames, went through three pounds of blue jelly beans, endless cans of gold spray paint, and a small fortune in chocolate gold coins to create this original peek into Trump’s mind.” Chris Morris, Cuppa’s Creative Director, added “You could say, we’re mimicking the insanity with our own brand of the ridiculous!”
GKIDS Launches Brand New Website
The new GKIDS.com comes with the company’s first ever store featuring home ent. Sets and exclusive merchandise for artsy GKIDS animation titles.
Renowned video game designer and ArtPlay Inc. co-founder/producer Koji Igarashi has been confirmed as a Guest of Honor for Anime Expo 2016 — taking place at the L.A. Convention Center July 1-4. Igarashi will be hosting a panel to discuss his recent and past works on July 3. He will also be available for three autograph sessions through the weekend.
Igarashi is best known for his work as the producer and scenario writer for Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, which was successfully funded through Kickstarter to the tune of $5.5 million. He also developed the classic Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and a variety of social media apps.
You can find a complete list of confirmed guest for AX 2016 here.
The godfather of independent animation Bill Plympton may have just hit his 70th birthday, but he’s a long way from slowing down. The internationally acclaimed filmmaker just released a trailer for his eight animated feature: Revengeance, a collaboration with another prolific indie animator, Jim Lujan (Party Warriors).
Revengeance is the story of a low-rent bounty hunter named Rod Rosse, “The One Man Posse,” who gets entangled in a web of danger when he takes on a job from an ex-biker/ex-wrestler turned U.S. senator named “Deathface.”
Plympton serves as producer, director and animator for the project, which is undergoing final touches at Plymptoon Studios in Manhattan, according to Cartoon Brew. Lujan wrote the project and created the characters, as well as providing original music and voice work. Revengeance also features the voices of Kristina Wong, Lalo Alcaraz and Ken Mora with Dave Foley and Matthew Modine.
Revengeance will soon hit the festival circuit, and you can keep track of it at revengeancethemovie.blogspot.com. In other Plympton news, don’t forget that Hitler’s Folly is having a premiere screening at NYC’s SVA Theater on June 1 and will be released as a free download at plymptoons.com on June 3.
Award-winning animation producer Brown Bag Films — a subsidiary of Toronto’s 9 Story Media Group — inaugurated a new, 30,000 square foot studio in Smithfield, Dublin on Friday. Ireland’s Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Mary Mitchell-O’Connor joined Cathal Gaffney (MD, Brown Bag Films/COO, 9 Story Media Group) and Neil Court (Executive Chairman, 9 Story Media Group) at the opening event.
“I am delighted to be here in Smithfield at the opening of Brown Bag Films’ new flagship studio. It is hugely encouraging to see this company move into an expanded space with plans for future job growth,” said Mitchell-O’Connor. “Brown Bag is a great Irish success story since its foundation 22 years ago and is a fine example of what an innovative Irish company can achieve in the global market. This exciting company is successfully competing in the dynamic and very competitive world of creative animation. It is clear to me that this announcement is a further illustration of the range of Irish talent available for dynamic companies across diverse sectors. I wish Brown Bag Films’ and their team every success for the future.”
Brown Bag currently employs 184 creative and production staff in its headquarters in Dublin, a studio in Manchester, England, and an office in Los Angeles. The studio is well known for producing hit animated children’s series Octonauts, Doc McStuffins, Bing and Henry Hugglemonster. The studio is currently producing the CG animated adaptation of Richard Adams’ novel Watership Down for Netflix and BBC.
DHX Media and Dentsu Entertainment USA has signed a global deal to develop, co-produce, distribute and jointly manage licensing for a brand new Mega Man animated series, based on the classic Capcom video game character. The deal was announced Thursday by Yuichi Kinoshita, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc., and by Asaph Fipke, Chief Content Officer of DHX.
Dentsu Ent. USA and DHX will manage all global rights. DHX will take on distribution and licensing in the U.S. in collaboration with Dentsu Ent. USA. Parent company Dentsu Inc. will manage distribution and licensing in Asia, and DHX will handle all other territories.
Aimed at kids 6 to 9, (and their gamer parents), the show will feature exciting new technologies and robots, as well as the introduction of Mega Man’s alter-ego, Aki Light, a normal, upbeat, schoolboy robot. When activated, his skin re-forms into a suit of impenetrable nanocore armor, including the iconic Mega Buster arm cannon and helmet. Beloved characters like Rush will return, while new characters, like Mega Mini, will make their debut! The new Mega Man is slated for 2017, coinciding with the franchise’s 30th anniversary.
Man of Action Entertainment (creators of Ben 10, Generator Rex and original Big Hero 6; executive producers/writers for Ultimate Spider-Man and Marvel’s Avengers Assemble) will executive produce the all-new Mega Man.
Read more about this project in the June/July 2016 issue of Animation Magazine (#261), out soon.
A new Amazon Video pilot season kicks off on June 17 in the US, UK, Germany, Austria and Japan. And this year’s crop includes five new kids’ animation series to keep an eye on: Little Big Awesome, Morris and the Cow, Toasty Tales, The Curious Kitty and Friends and Jazz Duck. (There’s also a live-action project from Sid & Marty Krofft: Sigmund and the Sea Monsters.)
Little Big Awesome (kids 6-11) combines 2D animation, puppetry, and live-action footage to create the whimsically weird world of Ballopolis. The show follows Gluko, a jelly giant, and Lennon, a small kid-like creature with a fuzzy hat, who are inseparable buddies. They adventure through a universe where sea turtles fly, flowers talk, and tear drops splash around on a hot summer day. Gluko and Lennon’s desire to help those around them can, at times, lead them to epically outlandish places, but at the end of the day, this show is about two best buds making their own fun and enjoying the wonderfully strange world around them. Created by Tomas Dieguez (TRONCO), written by Ben Gruber (SpongeBob SquarePants and SuperJail), and animated by Emmy award winning studio Titmouse (Randy Cunningham and Metalocalypse).
Morris and the Cow(kids 6-11) follows Morris, a 10 year-old determined to follow his passion and become a cowboy! Wearing homemade chaps and joined by his best friend, a talking cow named Florence, the duo explores the city of South Krumpton while confronting everyday problems with a mix of grit, determination and country wisdom. The show is created and written by Andreas Trolf (Sanjay and Craig) and Luke Watson (Memphis Beat), with production and animation by Emmy-winning Bento Box Entertainment (Bob’s Burgers). Featuring the voice talent of Jermaine Fowler (College Humor, Robot Chicken) as Morris, Riki Lindhome (The Muppets, Adventure Time) as Florence, and Thomas Lennon (Bob’s Burgers, Dawn of the Croods) as Jimmy Ray Royce. Also starring Zoë Kravitz (Divergent, Mad Max), Michael Peña (Ant Man, The Martian), and Erik Griffin (Workaholics).
Toasty Tales (kids 6-11) stars Waffle, Burger and Pants– three best friends who happen to be Marshmallows living in the long forgotten Move-Along National Park. Every day is a new adventure filled with strange creatures, perilous excursions, and epic tomfoolery, always served with a side of pancakes, hot off the griddle! Together, the trio explore the mysteries of Move-Along, and spin tall tales that maybe…just maybe…. have a hint of truth. Created by Thomas Borowski and Caroline Foley (Rick and Morty, Robot Chicken), written by Merriwether Williams (SpongeBob SquarePants, Adventure Time), and animated by Stoopid Buddy Stoodios (Robot Chicken).
The Curious Kitty and Friends (preschool) is a stop-motion animated show that follows the upbeat and colorful adventures of kitty cat Komaneko as she explores the wonderful world with her friends Mimmi Bear, Radibo and Yeti. With her trusty video camera and knapsack in tow, creative and curious Komaneko makes her own movies, usually starring her two favorite dolls, Wink and Ink. This playful show is produced by Dwarf Studios and comes from the mind of Tsuneo Goda, the creator and director of the world-famous DOMO among other numerous characters and award-winning films and series. The talent also includes recognized lead animator Hiro Minegishi, music by Kevin Kiner (Star Wars Rebels, Jane the Virgin) and script by Kent Redeker (Doc McStuffins, Special Agent Oso).
Jazz Duck (preschool) encourages young viewers to listen and express themselves as they explore the sounds and musical potential of their world! Jazz Duck is part duck, part saxophone, and loads of physical fun. With the friendship of the Narrator and his animal friends, he embarks on adventures through the noisy Big City that culminate in a musical jam. Created by Tom Jobbins, co-directing with Mark Perrett, the show is animated by award-winning studio Nexus Productions and features a kid-filled voice cast including Myla Beau, Britain Dalton, Tony Espinosa, Aiden Ledowski, and Ava Priestley with saxophonist Ross Hughes as Jazz Duck.
The Annie Award-nominated series Star vs. The Forces of Evil will return with even more interdimensional, magical mayhem as season two premieres Monday, July 11 at 10:30 a.m. ET on Disney XD, and the Disney XD app. Fans can also check out a brand new game, Star vs. The Forces of Evil: Quest Buy Rush!, where players help Star defeat Ludo’s henchmen — launching July 8 on the app.
The second season follows the further adventures of fiercely awesome teen princess (from another dimension), Star Butterfly, as she uncovers the mythology around her Royal Magic Wand, her family’s history and the powers she will one day fully possess. Weirder and wilder episodes await Star and Marco as they meet new magical characters.
Guest stars this season include Al Yankovic, Big Bang Theory’s Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch, Zosia Mamet (Girls), Nick Lachey (98 Degrees), Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy), Carl Weathers (Rocky), Constance Schulman (Orange Is the New Black), Eric Christian Olson (NCIS: Los Angeles) and Yvette Nicole Brown (The Odd Couple). Reprising their roles are Jeffrey Tambor (Transparent) and comedian Jim Gaffigan.
Created and executive-produced by Daron Nefcy, Star vs. The Forces of Evil stars Eden Sher, Adam McArthur (Star Wars: The Clone Wars) as Marco Diaz; Alan Tudyk (Broadway’s Spamalot) as Star’s nemesis Ludo and her dad, King Butterfly; Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) as Star’s adopted mom on Earth, Mrs. Diaz; Artt Butler (Her) as Star’s adopted dad on Earth, Mr. Diaz; Jenny Slate (Parks and Recreation) as Pony Head and Dee Dee Rescher (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) as Skullnick.
The Annecy International Animation Festival & MIFA film market are rapidly approaching, and the details of its incredibly valuable artistic and professional programming are starting to gel. René Broca and Christian Jacquemart have once again planned a cycle of professional conferences on production organization and creation that are among the can’t-miss sessions this year.
(Another can’t-miss: The June/July 216 issue of Animation Magazine which will be at the event!)
Annecy 2016 Conferences:
Production Operations (Chambre de Metiers Salle Mont-Blanc)
Choosing a 2D Pipeline Tuesday June 14, 9:30 am-12:30 pm
Software, skills, organisation: What 2D pipelines are available in today’s market and what are the best options?
Speakers: Pascal Aupry (Mercury Filmworks, Canada), Peter Dodd (Lupus Films, UK), Bastien Dubois (director, France) and Camille Serceau (Je suis bien content, France). Moderator: Marie-Pierre Journet (KLD Productions, France).
Emerging Tools Friday June 17, 9:30 am-12:30 pm
Innovation is strategic in a sector that is confronted with the need to optimise productivity and enhance skills. Learn about what videogame and VFX tools are contributing to animation.
Speakers: Jérôme Bacquet (Texels, France); Mathieu Muller and Silvia Rasheva (Unity Technologies, USA); Géraldine Ricart and David Toyou (Bleank, France). Moderator: Baptiste Heynemann (CNC, France)
Feature Films: Four Case Studies Wednesday June 15, 2:30 pm-5:30 pm
Speakers: Marie-Claude Beauchamp (Carpe Diem Film & TV, Canada) for Snowtime; Ivan Cappiello, Marino Guarnieri, Alessandro Rak and Dario Sansone (Mad Entertainment, Italy) for Cinderella the Cat; Sarita Christensen (Copenhagen Bombay Productions, Denmark) for Next Door Spy; Robin Lyons (Calon, UK) for Morten on the Ship of Fools. Moderator: Patrick Caradec (Freelance Journalist, France).
From Feature Film to TV Series (and Vice Versa) Wednesday June 15, 9:30 am-12:30 pm
While adapting a TV series into a feature film has become an all too common exercise, the opposite approach is less frequently seen
Speakers: Didier Brunner, Julien Chheng, Jean-Christophe Roger and Thibaut Ruby (Folivari, France); Stéphane Margail and Jean-François Tosti (TAT Productions, France). Moderator: Alice Delalande (CNC, France).
Creation (Chambre de Metiers Salle Mont-Blanc)
Anatomy of a Studio Pt. 1: TeamTO Thursday June 16, 2:30 pm-3:30 pm
Speaker: Guillaume Hellouin (TeamTO, France). Moderator: René Broca (Consultant, France).
Anatomy of a Studio Pt. 2: Framestore Thursday June 16, 3:45 pm-5:30 pm
Speaker: Kevin Spruce (Framestore, UK). Moderator: Baptiste Heynemann (CNC, France).
The Challenges of Virtual Reality Tuesday June 14, 2:30 pm-6:15 pm
Virtual reality is getting a lot of attention, but the technology faces challenges in technical implementation, storytelling and distribution.
Speakers: Michel Bams and Catherine Cuenca (Happy IP, France); Jason Bartholomew and Tim Ruffle (Aaardman Animations, UK); Eric Darnell (Baobab Studios, USA); Mark Davies and Felix Massie (Nexus Productions, UK); Michel Nicolas (Folimage, France) and François Bertrand (Camera Lucida, France). Moderator: Thierry Barbier (AmaK, France).
VFX Thursday June 16, 9:30 am-12:30 pm
A look at the VFX work of The Jungle Book and Warcraft, as well as an opportunity to exchange skillsets and promote mutual enrichment between VFX and animation.
Speakers: Peta Bayley and Gabriele Zucchelli (MPC, UK) for the VFX in The Jungle Book; Hal Hickel (ILM, USA) for the VFX in Warcraft; Robyn Luckham (Double Negative, UK) for the VFX in In the Heart of the Sea. Moderator: Simon Vanesse (Isart Digital, France).
Business (L’Imperial Palace Verdi A&B)
Digital Platforms in Broadcasting: Revolutionary or Evolutionary? Wednesday June 15 11:30 am-1:00 pm
VOD, SVOD, AVOD: With so many new modes of content consumption, broadcasters are going to have to keep up with the times.
Speakers: Jon Benoy (Wild Brain, U.K.), Avril Blondelot (Eurodata TV / Mediametrie, FEtrance), Julien Borde (France Televisions), Hélène Etzi (Walt Disney Co., U.K.). Moderator: Natalie Altmann (Media Valley, France).
Distributing Short Film Programs for Young Audiences Wednesday June 15, 9:30 am-11:00 am
Animated short programs are very popular in French theatres. So, how do you make and distribute this sort of program and which other elements should be added?
Speakers: Arnaud Demuynck (Les Films du Nord, France), Petra Rockenfeller (FTB, Germany), Nicolas Schmerkin (Autour de Minuit, France), Rose-Marie Strand (Folkets Bio AB, Sweden). Moderator: Laurent Crouzeix (Sauve Qui Peut le Court Metrage, France).
How Can Independent European Animated Features Fare at the Box Office? Thursday June 16, 9:30 am-11:00 am
In this challenging economy, producers and distributors also navigate a great diversity of titles, communication strategies and audience preferences.
Speaker: Henri Magalon (Maybe Movies, France). Moderator: Laurent Cotillon (Le Film Francais, France).
Shout! Factory and Legacy Classics have entered a long-term, multifaceted production partnership and film distribution deal for a slate of new family films based on best-selling kids’ books. The announcement was made by Shout! Factory’s Richard Foos, Bob Emmer and Garson Foos, and Legacy Classic filmmakers and founders Dan Chuba and Mark Dippé.
The initial plan calls for a minimum output of four features in the first two years. The first wave includes three new animated movies based on best-selling titles from Gertrude Chandler Warner’s The Boxcar Children book series. Shout! and Legacy are working with publisher Albert Whitman & Company, with the goal to release the first movie timed to the 75th anniversary of the books.
The two companies will jointly develop, producer and market new animated and live-action features. Legacy will leverage its relationships with publishers and authors, and bring hands-on production experience and marketing support to the table. Shout! Factory will co-produce the films and handle sales and distribution across North America through all platforms, including theatrical, digital, broadcast, inflight and home entertainment through Shout! Factory Films and Shout! Factory Kids.
The deal was negotiated by Shout’s SVP of Business Affairs, David McIntosh, and Aaron Meyerson of Qualia Legacy Advisors for Legacy Classics.
