Jam Filled Entertainment, the Boat Rocker-owned Canadian studio behind The Loud House, Final Space, Dino Ranch and more, has launched a new scholarship program focused on attracting students from diverse backgrounds to the animation industry. The Jam Filled Diversity in Animation (JFDIA) scholarship program will provide financial support and mentorship opportunities to promising second year animation program students.
Four individual scholarships will be available to students who identify as diverse and are entering the second year of an animation program at Algonquin College, Sheridan College, Seneca College or Nova Scotia Community College. Each scholarship is valued at $3,000 CAD per academic year and is renewable until the bachelor’s degree or diploma is obtained.
“We’re thrilled to launch the Jam Filled Diversity in Animation scholarship program to help the next generation of animators thrive,” said Kyle MacDougall, Phil Lafrance and Jamie Leclaire, founders of Jam Filled Entertainment. “It’s vital that there is more diversity in the animation industry, and we look forward to supporting these talented animators pursue their studies in the craft we all love.”
Eligible applicants must:
Be enrolled as a full-time student in an Animation Program at one of the four (4) Eligible Institutions.
Have successfully completed the first (1st) year of studies with intention of entering the second (2nd) year.
Be in good academic standing over the last two (2) terms of available marks,
Identify as diverse (special focus on ethno-racial and indigenous identities, gender and sexual identities, place of origin, age and ability).
“Diversity and inclusion are major priorities at Boat Rocker,” said John Young, CEO, Boat Rocker Media. “The Jam Filled Diversity in Animation scholarship program is a positive step towards helping ensure we support students with diverse backgrounds achieve their academic and professional goals.”
Eligible applicants are encouraged to submit an online application by visiting www.jamfilled.com. The application and all supporting documents must be submitted no later than 1 p.m. ET on June 30, 2021. A special focus will be placed on awarding scholarships to a student from each of the four eligible institutions.
The program is open to the first 100 submitted applications.
Founded in 2008, Jam Filled Entertainment is a full-service digital animation studio headquartered in Ottawa, with additional studios in Toronto and Halifax. Acquired by Boat Rocker in 2016, Jam Filled offers industry-leading animation from a team of over 600 skilled artists and animators. The studio has worked on numerous hit shows, including The Casagrandes (Nickelodeon), The Loud House (Nickelodeon), Pinky Malinky (Netflix/Nickelodeon), Final Space (TBS), Thomas & Friends (Mattel Creative), the CBC holiday special The Great Northern Candy Drop, DC Super Hero Girls (Warner Bros. Animation/Cartoon Network) and Dino Ranch (CBC/Disney Junior).
Today, Amazon Web Services announced the general availability of Amazon Nimble Studio, a new service that enables customers to set up a content production studio in hours instead of weeks, with elasticity that gives them near limitless scale and access to rendering on demand.
With Amazon Nimble Studio, customers can rapidly onboard and collaborate with artists from anywhere in the world, and produce content faster and more cost effectively. Artists will have access to accelerated virtual workstations, high-speed storage and scalable rendering across AWS’s global infrastructure so they can create content faster. There are no upfront fees or commitments to use Amazon Nimble Studio, and customers pay only for the underlying AWS services used.
To bring high-quality visual effects, animation, and creative content to life, studios historically have relied on local high-performance workstations connected to shared file storage systems over low-latency, on-premises networks. Increased consumer appetite for premium content and experiences has driven greater demand for compute-intensive rendering of visual effects and animations. This ever-growing demand causes content production studios to over-provision their compute, networking and storage infrastructure for peak capacity, which proves expensive, difficult to manage and hard to scale.
For example, a typical animated feature film now generates 730 terabytes of data and up to half a billion files, requiring more than 150 million core compute hours and coordination from hundreds of artists and engineers. Consumer demand for more content has also required studios to onboard talent from around the world, who then require high-powered workstations, specialized software and high-speed storage and networking. All of these constraints can result in production delays, increased expenses, and lost opportunity for content production studios.
Amazon Nimble Studio
Using Amazon Nimble Studio, customers can create a new content production studio in just a few hours. The creative talent then has immediate access to high performance workstations powered by Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) G4dn instances with NVIDIA Graphical Processing Units (GPUs), shared file storage from Amazon FSx and ultra low-latency streaming via the AWS global network. Amazon Nimble Studio gives content production studios the ability to start with as few resources as needed, scale up those resources when rendering demands peak and spin them back down once projects are completed. Content production studios can onboard remote teams from around the world and provide them access to just the right amount of high performance infrastructure for only as long as needed — all without having to procure, set up and manage local workstations, file systems and low-latency networking.
Amazon Nimble Studio supports both the Windows and Linux operating systems so that artists can work with their preferred third-party creative applications. Additionally, studios can use custom software applications and bring them into Amazon Nimble Studio via Amazon Machine Images (AMIs), ensuring a seamless migration from on-premises to cloud infrastructure.
The latest AWS solution for media and entertainment customers, Amazon Nimble Studio joining the AWS Thinkbox Deadline render management application as a core capability supporting content production. Media and entertainment leaders like Discovery, Disney, EuroSport, Formula 1, FOX, HBO Max, Peacock and Weta Digital use purpose-built AWS solutions that help content creators, rights holders, producers and distributors accelerate reinvention across five key industry business areas: content production, direct-to-consumer and over-the-top (OTT) streaming, broadcast, media supply chain and archive, and data science and analytics.
Amazon Nimble Studio
“Amazon Nimble Studio is going to change the way customers produce content using a cloud-based production pipeline,” said Kyle Roche, Head of Content Production Tech, AWS. “To date, studios struggle to keep up with the ever-increasing demand for creative content, which has driven an exponential increase in the computing power required to produce content — hastening obsolescence of workstations and straining on-premises storage and rendering capacity. We are excited to announce Amazon Nimble Studio, a transformational new service for the creative community built for the cloud to make it much faster, easier and less expensive to produce the content that consumers want to watch.”
Amazon Nimble Studio is available today in six AWS Regions and AWS Local Zones: U.S. East (N. Virginia), U.S. West (Oregon) Region, Canada (Central) Region, Europe (London) Region, Asia Pacific (Sydney) Region and U.S. Local Zone (Los Angeles), with additional region support coming soon.
Working Nimbly: Testimonials
One company already leveraging the new solution is Anjekumi, which connects gamers and enables them to play games from anywhere in the world using next generation devices. “Amazon Nimble Studio allows us to concentrate on the creative result rather than the technical journey as it solves some key issues in our production pipeline,” said Kurt Rauer, CEO, Anjekumi. “Our business is a global one and with Amazon Nimble Studio we are able to engage creative people globally without the associated friction.”
The California State University system of public universities comprises 23 campuses throughout the state. “As the largest public higher education system in the nation, the California State University system pride ourselves on having an innovative mindset in Media & Entertainment education, empowering a majority-minority, diverse student population,” said Dina Ibrahim, Executive Director, San Francisco State University. “AWS is a perfect partner to represent a path forward for our creative programs, as we look to moving more of our education experience to the cloud in the near future, and solutions like Amazon Nimble Studio provide our students with easier, hands-on access to the latest tools in content creation technology, which better positions them for success in their careers.”
Evil Eye Pictures is an Oscar- and Emmy Award-winning animation, visual effects and design studio based in San Francisco. “We like to go beyond the traditional and embrace emerging technologies that support innovative storytelling,” said Dan Rosen, Co-founder and Executive Creative Director, Evil Eye Pictures. “Adding Amazon Nimble Studio to our arsenal will allow us to more easily scale up and down with projects, and collaborate with the best talent, regardless of where they are located.”
Amazon Nimble Studio
Shomen Productions is a virtual animation and VFX studio that taps a global talent pool to create branded content. “We believe the future of production is dispersed teams and agile studios. Geographical access to a ready pool of talent is no longer an obstacle to creativity,” said James Bennett, Founder and Director of VFX & Animation, Shomen Productions. “A production solution like Amazon Nimble Studio allows your team to scale production resources at will and collaborate efficiently across vast distances. There is tremendous power in the ability to collaborate remotely with creatives who are spread across the world as easily as if they were sitting next to you. We believe Amazon Nimble Studio will be as impactful to creative production as iTunes was to the music industry.”
Sinking Ship Entertainment is an Emmy award-winning production and new media company based in Toronto. “We’ve been eagerly following the development of Amazon Nimble Studio and look forward to adding it to our workflow,” said Shervin Shahidi, Director of Digital Transformation, Sinking Ship Entertainment. “It will bring dynamic elasticity to our capabilities and allow us to expand our talent pool to include artists worldwide.”
Spire Animation Studios is a new feature animation studio. “Spire Animation was formed to empower world-class creative and technical talent to develop diverse, high-end animated entertainment for global audiences,” said Brad Lewis, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Spire Animation Studios. “By harnessing next-gen technology, like Amazon Nimble Studio and real-time game engines, we’re reimagining the content production process, even if our artists aren’t based in the same location.”
Amazon Nimble Studio
Today, AWS also announced AWS for Media & Entertainment, an initiative that makes it easier for industry customers to discover, implement, and deploy purpose-built AWS capabilities and partner solutions for their highest priority workloads — enabling them to create compelling content faster, invent new customer experiences, expand direct-to-consumer offerings and improve media supply chain efficiency.
AWS for Media & Entertainment aligns the broadest and deepest set of industry-specific cloud capabilities, including purpose-built media and creative services, hardware, solutions, tools and partners. AWS for Media & Entertainment also establishes dedicated resources across each industry solution area to help customers accelerate time to value, aligning AWS internal resources, AWS Professional Services and 400+ industry-specific Independent Software Vendor (ISVs) Partners and 100+ System Integrators (SIs). More information available on the AWS blog.
Amazon Web Services, Inc. is an Amazon.com, Inc. company (NASDAQ: AMZN). Learn more at aws.amazon.com.
Lena Headey and Boat Rocker Studios are teaming up for an animated adaptation of Christian McKay Heidicker’s award-winning kids’ horror novel Scary Stories for Young Foxes, to be co-produced by Headey’s Peephole Productions and the Canadian studio’s Kids & Family division under a first-look deal struck last year.
“During our first meeting at Boat Rocker I was asked what I was interested in and we started talking about horror for kids, how there is a space for this, and not to shy away from putting stuff out there that’s dark and smart,” Headey told Deadline. “Kids aren’t daft, they know when we’re holding back the scary bits, so I’m so happy to be part of a great team to bring Christian’s book to life in a way that feels authentic.”
Headey will voice a character in the planned miniseries and serve as exec producer with McKay Heidicker, Boat Rocker and Untitled Entertainment.
Recipient of a 2020 Newbery Honor, the illustrated middle grade novel Scary Stories for Young Foxes takes place during the haunted season in the Antler Woods — when no fox kit is safe. When Mia and Uly are separated from their litters, they discover a dangerous world full of monsters. In order to find a den to call home, they must venture through field and forest, facing unspeakable things that dwell in the darkness: a zombie who hungers for their flesh, a witch who tries to steal their skins, a ghost who hunts them through the snow … and other things too scary to mention.
The 2019 book is published by Holt Books for Young Readers and features illustrations by Junyi Wu.
This past Friday, Hulu audiences were treated to Sasquatch, a three-part series directed by Joshua Rofé (Lorena, Swift Current) bout the mysteries of the Emerald Triangle in Northern Calif, a region which holds the highest missing persons and murder rate in the state. Journalist David Holthouse takes a look at the bizarre triple homicide which was rumored to be the work of the elusive Sasquatch (a.k.a. Bigfoot). We recently caught up with Drew Christie (The Emperor of Time, Nuts!, Song of the Spindle, Drawn & Recorded) the talented Seattle-based artist behind the animation featured in this fascinating doc.
Animation Magazine: Congrats on your work, Drew. Can you give us a bit of background on how you came to work on Sasquatch?
Drew Christie: Thank you! I was in Hawaii on vacation and got an email from Mel Eslyn at Duplass Brothers Productions asking if I was available and interested in talking with the team making a documentary about animated re-enactments for the project. Then when I got home we all had a phone call and really hit it off, and I think they liked my work they had seen and I was very intrigued with the story they told me.
Drew Christie
Where was the animation produced and which animation tools did you use to produce it?
The animation was produced in Washington State on an island outside of Seattle. The tools I used were ink pen on paper for initial drawings and thumbnail storyboards, then some of those ink drawings were scanned in and colored in Photoshop, others were drawn directly in Photoshop and then brought into After Effects for color treatments and animation and camera moves, etc. Additional hand-drawn animation was done in Photoshop using the AnimDessin extension which allows easier frame-by-frame and onion skinning within the Photoshop timeline.
How did you collaborate with director Joshua Rofé on this project?
Very closely, but in a sort of trusting, hands-off way. He would send video clips of David Holthouse telling a story, then give me time to create something to show him. The very first thing I created I did a full animation test in color and did about 90 seconds of David telling the story of the first night he was on the pot farm and going to the cabin in the woods. Josh and the team really loved it and felt that I really captured the mood, so after that there was a lot of trust from them. I would usually do a really sketchy animatic to show them first, of what I was thinking, and then he would say yea or nay and then I would go ahead and do full color. I didn’t do storyboards really at all. Just rough sketch animatic and then final linework and color and fully animate in PS and AE and then send it over. Sometimes there were small tweaks and changes for continuity or accuracy, but not a ton.
Sasquatch
What would you say was the toughest aspect of this assignment?
It was figuring how to show as little of someone’s identity as possible while still getting the point of the shot or scene across. Many of the people in the series, except for David, need to remain anonymous for either their own safety or because of legal reasons implicating them in a crime. So we needed to obscure many people’s faces, and I either didn’t know what they looked like or couldn’t make them recognizable. This was great in many ways, since I love darkness, but it becomes challenging when the character needs to be in silhouette and it’s already night time! So then comes fun stuff like headlights, cigarette glows and street lamps. I love all the atmospheric lighting — so what starts out as a challenge is actually a huge advantage.
What do you love about creating animation for documentaries?
So many things! I will just start with the fact that I get to learn while I’m working on them. Even though, or perhaps in spite of the fact that I hated school, I actually love learning. It just needs to be on my own terms. I get to dig so deep into every aspect of the project I’m working on because I need to portray everything accurately so that it makes sense within the story or the overall project. Like for this one, I needed to know what marijuana farms look like and how trimming works, and I got to study tree bark in depth and what headlights on early ’90s trucks look like, and of course I learn while I watch cuts and benefit from my collaborators’ research. It’s just such an exciting way to learn about disparate subject matter.
Sasquatch
You have worked on many animated docs over the past 10 years. Why do you think more directors are using animation in documentaries than ever before?
I have, and that’s a good question — and I suppose it’s for a number of reasons. One being, documentaries are just far more popular now than they used to be ,so there’s more people making them and more places buying/commissioning/producing/distributing/streaming them. And this then leads to more filmmakers wanting to set their doc apart, probably, and animation is an incredibly versatile medium.
Animation is a visual art form, and just like other visual art forms like painting it can communicate so many different moods and tones and emotions and ideas that, once a filmmaker realizes that, they understand that animation can be one of the most powerful tools to help them tell their story and compliment it and set it apart from other talking head films. Also, economically, it’s generally somewhat cheaper to make some types of animation than it used to be when you needed multiplanes and Oxberry animation stands and what not. Some types of animation are still extremely expensive, though.
Sasquatch
What were your visual influences as you set out to create the animation for the show?
My main influences visually were the films and camera style of David Fincher. That was for a couple of reasons: One, it felt like a similar mood to what Josh was going for, part of it could have been that they had temp music from the Reznor/Ross Gone Girl score, as well as the dark subject matter and the eeriness of the whole scene and story. Two, was that I wanted the camera to have the cold, methodical movement to it that panned over a crime scene but didn’t have any emotion to it or didn’t feel like it was being operated by a human at all. Just cold and sterile and sort of like it’s quietly observing the whole world. And third, the blue monochrome palette also felt like a cold, dark, nighttime sort of vibe for it.
Overall, how much animation did you produce for the show?
I don’t know exactly, but somewhere on the order of about 13 to 18 minutes. Somewhere in that ballpark. Some stuff was taken out, then added back in but changed slightly or re-arranged and re-edited, so it’s difficult to know exactly.
When was the first time you realized you wanted to work in animation?
When I was around three or four, my dad taught me how to use the family VHS camcorder and I got to make movies on my couch with my Ewok fortress and action figures. I think then I realized I could create my own worlds by myself. That was a very powerful feeling I think.
Sasquatch
What are you working on next?
I am the animation director of a TV pilot right now, and I also just directed a short animated documentary called The Great World of Gregory Blackstock about an autistic savant artist that will be premiering on PBS Voices in the next month or so. I am also at work on a few other documentary projects right now along with my team at Kalakala Animation.
Do you have any tips for animation pros who want to get into creating animation for documentaries?
Yes, I would say to create your own animated documentary. I think that’s how a lot of people saw my work and how I got asked by filmmakers to create animations for their documentaries. I love researching things and, when I have time, making my own animated documentaries. I used to make animated Op-Docs a lot for The New York Times and that was how Penny Lane saw my work and asked me to animate sequences in her feature documentary Nuts! So, I would say always, make your own work and never wait for anyone to ask you to work for them.
Sasquatch is available to stream now on Hulu. Learn more about Drew’s work at www.drewchristie.com.
Legends of Tomorrow’ Gets Disney Animation Style
The “bonkers” Season 6 trailer for The CW series set in the DC Comics universe will feature an animated episode inspired by the Disney Renaissance era — with co-showrunner Phil Klemmer revealing in an interview with EW that he went so far as to hire animators from the time to make the ep (directed by Caity Lotz, who plays Waverider leader Sara Lance) as authentic as possible:
“There are some beautiful songs and Astra, played by Olivia Swann, gets to be our version of a Disney princess,” Klemmer explained. “The reason we did that originally is that we broke it as live action, and then there’s a point in the story where it becomes so outlandish that I was really having a difficult time seeing it in my head as live-action. I was like, ‘Guys, this feels like a ’90s Disney movie.’ It was sort of a joke. ‘What if we hired a bunch of Disney animators from the ’90s who have all retired and did a ’90s feature thing?’”
Aska Animation Studio Named Pixelatl Fest Creative Partner
The 10th edition of the festival (taking place online September 7-11) will feature a signal film by the Guadalajara-based 2D specialists, as well as a poster just unveiled which was designed by couple/collaborators Sandra Equihua and Jorge Gutiérrez, the multi-award-winning talents from Tijuana behind Maya and the Three (2021), Book of Life, Son of Jaguar and El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera. This year’s festival theme is We Need Each Other (www.elfestival.mx).
“Jorge and Sandra explained that the poster was based on diversity and collaboration. You need characters with all colors, shapes, sizes and personalities to be able to play ‘Loteria,’ a local popular game kind of like Bingo, and they made the analogy to animation. We need each other!” — José Inesta, CEO, Pixelatl
Aska Animation Studio was founded three years ago, and its team of 40+ animators is currently developing several pilots for series and features for creators and studios around the world. (askanimation.com).
Pixelatl
Momentum Pictures Takes North America on 3D Animation ‘Two by Two: Overboard’
The deal with Munich-based sales co. Global Screen will bring the sequel (also known as Ooops! The Adventure Continues) to the U.S. and Canada. The pic is directed by Toby Genkel and follows Finny the Nestrian and Leah the Grymp, who are set adrift on a raft after accidentally falling off the famous Ark. Produced by Ulysses FIlmproduktion (German), Moetion Films (Ireland) and Fabrique d’Images (Luxembourg), Overboard has also been sold by Global Screen to Australia and New Zealand (Rialto), Middle East (Selim Ramio & Co), Scandinavia (Selmer Media), Belgium/The Netherlands (Just4Kids) and Taiwan (Benchmark).
Spire Animation Studios Kicks Off Epic Games’ New Unreal Shorts Animated Film Program
The studio founded by animation producer Brad Lewis (Ratatouille, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World) and P.J. Gunsagar last year is one of 45 grant recipients so far. Spire is looking to integrate Unreal’s real-time capabilities into a more intuitive pipeline. The studio is currently working on a feature film, Century Goddess, with several other projects in development.
Century Goddess
BAFTA TV Awards 2021 Nominees Announced
The Virgin Media British Academy Television Awards & British Academy Television Craft Awards will be held June 6 and May 34, respectively. This year’s Special, Visual & Graphic Effects nominees are The Crown, War of the Worlds, Curse and His Dark Materials. Up for the Titles & Graphic Identity prize are Devs, Fear City: New York vs. The Mafia, Dracula and Roald & Beatrix: The Tail of the Curious Mouse.
Christopher Ho Named Senior Director of Kids Networks, WarnerMedia APAC
The new lead is in charge of programming and multi-platform operations, content direction for Cartoon Network and Boomerang channels in Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Korea, plus digital and interactive initiatives. Based in Singapore, Ho will work closely with Abhishek Dutta in South Asia — with whom he reports to Leslie Lee, Head of Kids APAC — as well as Shinji Suetsugu in Japan, and with the HBO GO team working to grow the regional streaming service’s Kids & Family section.
Christopher Ho
Omens Studio Appoints Adam Redfern as Consultant Exec Producer
The award-winning writer and showrunner will work across the animation company’s preschool slate, including new CG-animated series 123 Number Squad. The diverse, 11-minute series for kids 4-6 (in production) follows Paula, Tim and Billy – three best friends with a shared love of numbers, fun and games, hanging out together in their playroom HQ. If a Numberville citizen ever has a problem they call on Paula and friends for emergency help and they become… 123 Number Squad! Redfern’s credits include Go Jetters, The Adventures of Paddington, Oddbods and Deer Squad. He will continue his work with existing clients.
Nate is Late
TV & Streaming Deals:
PBS Kids has launched on Samsung TV Plus, available for free on tens of millions of sets across the U.S. alongside six other free 24/7 kids’ channels (including The Lego Channel, Moonbug Kids and Kidoodle.tv)
ViacomCBS Networks International has inked a broad, long-term agreement with Rakuten that will see the launch of Nickelodeon’s streamer Nick+ on Japanese VOD platform Rakuten TV.
Kids First has inked a raft of VOD deals across its catalog. Tencent (China) picked up Nate Is Late and Best Bugs Forever. Puxin (China IPTV) also picked up Nate. Ameba (NorAm) snagged Nate Is Late, Rocky Kwaterner, Max & Maestro and Marblegen. AVODs Kidoodle and Kidstream both picked up Nate, with the latter adding Rocky, Best Bugs Forever and I, Elvis Ribaldi. In Europe, French SVOD OCS took Nate, Rocky and Marblegen, while Netflix picked up Nate Is Late for France, U.K., Ireland and Benelux and Marblegen for France & Benelux.
Bo & To’s Family, the non-dialog kids’ stop-frame slapstick series from Comma Studios (Korea) for KBS, has been snagged by Sky Kids (U.K.), Amazon Kids Plus (Germany), NHK (Japan) and Tencent (China). The deal was secured by Serious Lunch, worldwide distributor (excl. Asia).
Jetpack Distribution fired up more deals for Coolabi Group‘s BAFTA-winning Clangers. ZDF acquired all three seasons for KiKa (Germany) and its online platforms; Mediacorp (Singapore) took exclusive free TV rights for S3; RTVS (Slovenia) renewed free TV rights to S1; and HRT (Croatia) bought free TV & VOD rights for S1.
SMF Studio (Soyuzmultfilm) signed several deals with international partners for animated features and episodes from its Golden Collection. Gaumont (France) renewed again in their 30-year partnership theatrical & VOD rights for 441 films. VOD LaCinetek licensed French and German-language rights in France, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Austria and Germany for Once Upon a Time There Lived a Dog, The Poodle, The Heron and the Crane, Grey Wolf and Little Red Riding Hood. Israel’s DBS licensed vOD rights to 100 films for two years. And nine films including Hedgehog in the Fog, Class Harmonicaand The Snow Queen are now available on recently launched U.K. VOD Klassiki.
One Animation inked a number of deals as well: In the U.S., Oddbods, Insectibles, Antiks and Rob the Robot will debut on kids’ streamers Ameba TV, BatteryPop and Common Sense Network’s Sensical. Global streamers Kidoodle.TV, Roku and Happy Kids are also adding Oddbods S3 and Antiks short-form S2. In EMEA, Oddbods is a hit with TFOUMax (France), with long-form S2 and specials Party Monsters, The Festive Menace and Zee Force Five; TV Nova & Voyo (Czech Rep. & Slovakia) – long-form S1; and Vodafone (Greece) – long-form S1 & S2 and Party Monsters, The Festive Menace, Zee Force Five and Oddbeard’s Curse specials. MENA Mobile picked up the Arabic version of Insectibles. Netflix renewed Oddbods long-form S2 (Southeast Asia & Japan); FPT (Vietnam) – Oddbods short-form S1-3; Mola TV (Indonesia) – Insectibles S1, Rob the Robot S1-2; KinoPoisk (Russia) – Oddbods long-form/short-form S1-3, trio of special and Antiks S1.
Clan, RTVE’s (Spain) top kids’ channel, picked up the third season of Gormitifrom Planeta Junior, following the success of S1&2. S3 will launch in June.
Moonbug Entertainment has partnered with Super RTL (GSA) to establish digital-first properties on the leading free-to-air linear kids’ TV network. The deal covers 170 episodes of CoComelonas well as Little Baby Bum, Go Buster and Playtime with Twinkle in German.
The Ottawa International Animation Festival, one of the world’s biggest and best-known animation events, will be held online for an extended run from September 22 to October 3. Organizers were hoping that an in-person event might be possible in 2021, but the current forecast for the pandemic indicates that a safe and enjoyable event would be difficult to stage.
“Online OIAF 2020 was a huge success for showcasing films, and the artist and industry talks were a hit with the animation community including students and fans from across North America and around the world. This year will be even better,” said Managing Director Kelly Neall.
Online OIAF will feature all the favorite events of the live Festival, including the Official Competition and Panorama screenings showcasing the best new animated films from around the world. Participants will once again be able to take part in a wide-range of artist and industry talks, meet with animation schools and recruiters, and just hang-out with some of the world’s best animators. InGenius Jr Day for Families will return, along with free events for high school students. The event will extend its dates, giving participants two full weeks to take in all the content at home.
The Animation Conference, OIAF’s industry event, will move online again as well, offering up some enhanced networking opportunities that will give delegates unprecedented access to development executives from around the world.
Passes will be going on sale this summer. Animation students will once again have access to a heavily discounted pass that will provide access to all screenings and talks.
“Having to run online again is not what we had envisioned this year,” said Artistic Director Chris Robinson. “But so be it. We’re up for the challenge again and we will still give audiences the usual OIAF mix of entertaining, hilarious, inspiring, infuriating and pleasantly bizarre as we all eagerly await a return to being in person again in 2022.”
More information about the Festival will be rolling out over the course of the summer, including pass and ticket prices along with programming details. Currently, OIAF is still accepting entries for this year’s online edition. As always there is no entry fee and the deadline is May 31.
Aardman, the multi-award-winning independent animation studio, has announced that its training facility the Aardman Academy has appointed Mark Simon Hewis as Head of Department, following the success of its Industry Training, Stop Motion 1 course led by him. The Aardman Academy’s 12-week online course, launched in November 2020, teaches excellence in animation for individuals looking for a career in the animation industry.
The newly created role cements Aardman’s commitment to building sustainable careers within animation. This follows two fully subscribed iterations of the Aardman Academy’s flagship course – the first in a sequence of online stop-motion courses from the studio, providing a world-class industry education for aspiring animation professionals around the world. Aardman Academy, Industry Training: Stop Motion 1 is due for its third iteration in September 2021.
Hewis’ work includes international award-winning films for the Arts Council, Channel 4 and BBC. His first feature film, 8 Minutes Idle, was released in 2014 for BFI, BBC Films, Matador and Arthur Cox. The film gained a theatrical release and was shown on streaming services around the world.
His short film, The Life Sized Zoetrope (2008) made for Channel 4, Arts Council U.K. and Animate, was nominated for eight awards at the British Animation Awards and won the Grand Prix at the London International Animation Festival and the Tampere Film Festival. It subsequently gained distribution deals across the world and is included in four DVD compilations about the history of alternation short animation and filmmaking.
“The Aardman Academy is so important to the creative future of the industry and it’s a real honor to be trusted with the role of supporting, developing and nurturing its talent,” said Hewis. “Our ambition is to create a community that offers real support and genuine opportunity. The Aardman Academy has already played a vital role in building the skills of so many, and we look forward to offering even more ways to train, learn and open doors to the animation industry in the future.”
Aardman has committed to continue fully funding two bursary places on each iteration of the Stop Motion 1 course, working in partnership with U.K.-based Creative Access — a social enterprise that facilitates access to the creative industries for those from under-represented communities. The collaboration is targeted at building a more diverse and inclusive workforce within the animation industry, nurturing talent from the ground up, inherent to the development and production of world class entertainment for a diverse and intergenerational global audience.
Always evolving, the Aardman Academy recently adapted all of its courses to be delivered online, seeing students participate globally from Australia, Qatar, Mexico, India, Saudi Arabia, Belgium, France, Cyprus, Germany, Italy and U.S.A.
The Aardman Academy’s Industry Training: Stop Motion 1 is open for applications. Prospective course participants will be asked to submit a portfolio for assessment by course leaders.
Following its successful launch on Disney Junior U.S., Pikwik Pack is set to launch on streaming service Hulu starting May 4. Produced by animation powerhouse Guru Studio, the series follows four adorable animal friends as they work together to deliver magical surprises to the kind citizens of their bustling town.
The show debuted on Disney Junior U.S. late last year and is a top rated property on the channel. In Canada, Pikwik Pack is #1 on Treehouse in its time slot with more linear networks set to launch later this year such as Super RTL in Germany, Canal Panda in Portugal, HOP in Israel and Minimini+ in Poland.
“Pikwik Pack’s message of working together and sharing joy with those in our community is really resonating with families right now,” said Frank Falcone, President and Executive Creative Director at Guru Studio. “Launching to Hulu subscribers is one more way for kids to enjoy these loveable characters.”
The first half of Season 1 will be available to stream on May 4, with more episodes launching later in 2021.
A full line of figures, vehicles, plush and collectibles is currently being developed by Playmates Toys, and a range of books by Scholastic is set to debut next year.
Pikwik Pack follows Suki the brave hedgehog, along with Axel the go-getter raccoon, Tibor the reliable hippo and Hazel the silly cat, as they travel together by land, sea and air to bring packages of joy to their neighbors. Whether it’s a telescope, birthday gift or even a snow-cone – young viewers will learn gentle life lessons about the importance of community, responsibility and working as a team to accomplish a common goal.
A brand new batch of Looney Tunes Cartoons premieres on HBO Max on Thursday, April 29. The toons will find Bug’s relaxing afternoon interrupted by a hungry Puma looking for a “hare-y” snack. Daffy meets his match with an office photocopier, helps Porky find his keys and offers legal advice to Elmer Fudd. Taz, Tweety, Sylvester, Foghorn Leghorn, Yosemite Sam, Marvin the Martian, Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner also star in these 10 all-new animated episodes.
Ahead of the streaming launch, WarnerMedia unveiled two sneak-peek clips of shorts featuring Petunia Pig and a troublemaking Gremlin.
In “Pigture Perfect”, Petunia Pig wants a new picture for her fireplace mantle, but her photoshoot goes a little nutty. The short marks the character’s (voiced by Lara Jill Miller) first full-length Looney Tunes Cartoons short.
“High Speed Hare” sees Bugs go car shopping for a self-driving vehicle — but his test drive is detoured by The Gremlin. The pesky creature (voiced by Bob Bergen) makes his full-length Looney Tunes Cartoons debut.
Channel 4 has commissioned Terry Pratchett’s The Abominable Snow Baby for a new animated Christmas special, debuting December 2021. Produced by Eagle Eye Drama, the production company recently launched by the team behind global drama brand Walter Presents, in association with Narrativia, Sir Terry’s independent production company, the special is based on a short story from his bestselling book of Christmas tales (Father Christmas’ Fake Beard).
“Terry Pratchett’s The Abominable Snow Baby is a magnificent, heart-warming, riotously funny story about love, courage and compassion. Witty, entertaining and deeply moving in equal measure, it captures the spirit of Christmas with Sir Terry’s unique charm,” said Channel 4 Head of Drama, Caroline Hollick.
The magic of Pratchett, the legendary national treasure and maverick British author who sold over 100 million books worldwide, comes to life in this half-hour program. The Abominable Snow Baby tells the story of a quintessentially English town which is thrown into disarray by a huge snowfall and the dramatic appearance of a 14-foot tall Abominable Snow Baby.
Shunned and feared by the local townsfolk, Snow Baby is rescued by the indomitable Granny who along with grandson Albert, welcomes him into her home, showering her new pet with love and affection, changing the town’s perception and helping the community overcome their initial prejudices.
“Sir Terry Pratchett rightly remains one of the world’s most read and passionately loved authors for readers of all ages and we are honoured to be working with Narrativia to bring this abominably brilliant story to life on screen for Channel 4 at Christmas,” said Eagle Eye Drama’s Chief Creative Officer, Jo McGrath. “True to form, The Abominable Snow Baby is quirky, original and very, very funny and it’s a real coup for Eagle Eye to add this brilliant gem to its sparkling and expanding roster of animated tales.”
The Abominable Snow Baby
Commissioned by Hollick and Commissioning Editor Gwawr Lloyd, the program is supported by a grant from the BFI’s Young Audiences Content Fund, and will be directed by Massimo Fenati and executive produced by Tess Cuming, with Eagle Eye Drama’s Jo McGrath and Walter Iuzzolino overseeing the project as joint creative directors and with Rob Wilkins as executive producer for Narrativia.
Created with traditional hand-drawn animation techniques to capture the timeless nature of Pratchett’s story, The Abominable Snow Baby is part of a long and established tradition of Channel 4’s animated Christmas specials such as The Snowman, The Tiger Who Came to Tea, and last year’s Quentin Blake’s Clown.
Wilkins, Managing Director of Narrativia and Manager of Sir Terry Pratchett’s Estate, said, “In his lifetime, Terry wrote over seventy books, which have been translated into 41 languages. He started his career as a writer of short stories for young people, who remained his favorite audience. The Abominable Snow Baby showcases Terry’s firmly held belief in not judging people on appearances, his reverence for the elderly, and his very genuine love of Christmas. Narrativia is delighted to see Terry’s work brought to life by the talented team at Eagle Eye Drama, in the 50th year of Terry Pratchett being a published author.”
Jackie Edwards, Head of Fund from the BFI’s Young Audiences Content Fund, commented: “We are absolutely thrilled to be supporting another Christmas special with Eagle Eye Drama, following the huge success of Quentin Blake’s Clown last year. The Abominable Snow Baby will beautifully bring to life the adored British story, diving into the fantastically funny world of the late Sir Terry Pratchett for a festive treat, sharing magic to young audiences this Christmas.”
Pixar Animation Studios has reeled in a fresh, official trailer and a new poster for Luca — Enrico Casarosa’s (La Luna) feature directorial debut! The original film, which streams exclusively on Disney+ for all subscribers beginning June 18, showcases one incredible summer in the Italian seaside town of Portorosso — seen through the eyes of a sea monster named Luca.
(You can read all about the creation of this charming CGI postcard from Italy in the June issue of Animation Magazine, coming soon.)
Luca is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: they are sea monsters from another world just below the water’s surface.
The voice cast features Jacob Tremblay as Luca Paguro, Jack Dylan Grazer as Alberto Scorfano, Emma Berman as Giulia Marcovaldo, Saverio Raimondo as town bully Ercole Visconti, Maya Rudolph as Luca’s mom Daniela, Marco Barricelli as Giulia’s dad Massimo, Jim Gaffigan as Luca’s dad Lorenzo, Sandy Martin as Luca’s grandma, and Giacomo Gianniotti as a local fisherman.
Pixar Animation Studios’ 24th feature film is directed by Academy Award nominee Enrico Casarosa (La Luna) and produced by Andrea Warren (Lava, Cars 3). Award-winning composer Dan Romer (Beasts of the Southern Wild, Maniac) created the score.
Cartoon Network viewers can embark on an interstellar adventure this month as Teen Titans Go! and DC Super Hero Girls team up in their first-ever crossover special. Plus, the season finale of Victor and Valentino and a spring bloom of new episodes from more animated favorites.
Gear up for Memorial Day weekend with an out-of-this-world adventure starring not just one of your favorite superhero teams, but TWO! Watch as the Teen Titans and DC Super Hero Girls head deep into the galaxy and team up in Space House, a one-hour Teen Titans Go! X DC Super Hero Girlscrossover special premiering Monday, May 31 at 6 p.m. ET/PT.
The four-part episode follows the teen superheroes as they accept a mysterious invitation to enjoy a vacation getaway among the stars. The Space House is equipped with enough state-of-the-art technology that even Batgirl takes notice, complete with a massive TV fit for binging every episode of Muffin Wars – a superhero favorite – plus a 3-D printer snack machine that can supply Cyborg and Beast Boy with enough burgers, burritos and burgerritos to last an infinity. But where is the Space House headed and who invited them on this vacation in the first place? Robin, Wonder Woman, Raven, Supergirl and the rest of the crime-fighting heroes from the two toons join forces to solve this ultimate intergalactic mystery.
Back on Earth, Teen Titans Go! will have several exciting new episodes premiering in May including an episode featuring iconic New Teen Titans creators Marv Wolfman and George Perez as guest stars. And after the Space House crossover, DC Super Hero Girls returns with an all-new season of world-saving adventures beginning Sunday, June 6 at 8 a.m. ET/PT.
Need more excitement to jump start summer? Don’t miss Vic and Val as they venture on an epic journey through the nine levels of Mictlan in the season two finale of Victor and Valentino, premiering Saturday, May 29 at 10:30 a.m. ET/PT. Plus, stay tuned all month long for all-new curiosity-filled episodes of Total Dramarama, and more.
As previously announced, this month will also see the premiere of Adventure Time: Distant Lands – Together Again on CN’s sibling streamer HBO Max; Thursday, May 20. Fans on Apple & Onion can also stream new episodes starting May 19 which will see the edible besties dancing, Christmas shopping and coming to Falafel’s aid during several times of need. The duo also play trivia games, outsmart Burger’s roommate, save their favorite booth at Pizza’s Diner and so much more!
The Gumball Chronicles
Cartoon Network May highlights:
Saturday, May 1
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “Zimdings” – When Robin selects the last font on the list for his presentation, it sets off the typocalypse.
9:30 a.m. ET/PT Total Dramarama“Weekend at Buddy’s” – After Cody’s best friend doll breaks on their watch, Owen and Beth put themselves in grave danger while trying to do the right thing.
10:30 a.m. ET/PT Victor and Valentino“Cenote Seekers” – When Victor and Valentino miss their chance to beat the heat and enjoy a fun day of swimming with friends at a cool cenote, they soon find themselves lost in the desert, thirsty, exhausted, and confused. Will they find the cenote or will their constant bickering be their undoing?
Saturday, May 8
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “Pig in a Poke” – The Titans are worried when Starfire says she has sent all of her money to a prince online, especially when it could be the clown prince himself.
9:15 a.m. ET/PT The Amazing World of Gumball“The Gumball Chronicles: Mother’s Day” – Gumball, Darwin and Anais need to find the perfect Mother’s Day gift. Will it be a cute card, a thoughtful painting or something entirely different? Featuring hilarious clips from the first six seasons of The Amazing World of Gumball.
9:30 a.m. ET/PT Total Dramarama“MacArthur Park” – After losing countless jobs because of the kids, MacArthur shows up at the school seeking revenge.
10:30 a.m. ET/PT Victor and Valentino “My Thirsty Little Monster” – Valentino discovers that Victor has been keeping a secret baby pet. Now Vic has to prove to his brother that he can care for it and train it so it won’t grow up to eat everyone in the house!
“La Planchada” – When Victor carelessly gives the kids of Monte Macabre chicken pox in a game of tag, he is visited by an urban legend ghost-nurse to teach him a lesson!
Total DramaRama
Saturday, May 15
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “P.P.” – While stopping a museum theft, the Titans encounter the P.P. Goblin, who uses the Titan’s pet peeves against them.
9:30 a.m. ET/PT Total Dramarama“Last Mom Standing” – When Chef’s Mom and Leshawna’s Grandmother drop their loved ones off at the same time, it kicks off a dangerous competition for who is the most caring mother-figure.
10:30 a.m. ET/PT Victor and Valentino“Tez Breaks Bread” – Tez invites Victor and Valentino to a dinner party under the pretense of reconciling their rivalry, however it soon becomes apparent that Tez has more sinister intentions for the boys!
Saturday, May 22
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “A Little Help Please” – When they receive a distress call from the TTG animators and artists, the Titans must tone down their actions and avoid big adventures.
9:30 a.m. ET/PT Total Dramarama“Carmageddon” – Duncan is rattled when Chef, tired of having his car destroyed, buys a new one that is completely indestructible.
Victor and Valentino
Saturday, May 29
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “Marv Wolfman and George Perez” – Marv Wolfman and George Pérez must pitch an idea for the new Teen Titans in 24 hours, so they brainstorm different concepts for the team.
9:30 a.m. ET/PT Total Dramarama“Sugar & Spice & Lightning & Frights” – When two new kids show up at the daycare Duncan and Leshawna take issue with, not what makes them different, but what makes them similar to the newbies.
10:30 a.m. ET/PT Victor and Valentino “Through the Realms of Mictlan” – When their ghost friend, Cristina misses her train to the afterlife, Victor and Valentino must help her travel through eight perilous realms of the Underworld to reunite her with her family on the ninth level.
Monday, May 31
9 a.m. ET/PT Teen Titans Go! “Space House” – The Titans set off on an adventure in space, only to find out they’ll be sharing their Space House with the DC Super Hero Girls.
Cinedigm announced today that the linear streaming channel Fantawild has launched in partnership with Fantawild Animation, the top producer of children’s animation in Asia. The channel, set to refresh monthly with additional content, will feature popular movies and series from the Boonie Bears franchise, currently China’s top animated media property, as well as other celebrated animation brands like Kung Fu Masters of the Zodiac.
Boonie Bears, which centers on the trials and tribulations of two bears, is a sensation in China and around the globe. The property accounts for more than $435 million in annual toy and merchandise sales in China. Fantawild is one of the top drivers of China’s tourism industry, with 29 theme parks in operation and 10 more under development, attracting more than 50 million visitors annually. The company is ranked fifth on the list of top 10 theme park groups worldwide, placing ahead of major U.S.-based park operators such as Six Flags Group, Cedar Rapids Group and Sea World Attractions, among others.
The Boonie Bears films have grossed over $500 million in box office; the television series are the most watched animation on over 200 channels and all three are the highest-rated programs in the history of CCTV (China’s national TV network) Children’s Channel. Internationally, the titles have been distributed to more than 120 countries airing on Netflix, Disney, Nickelodeon and Hulu, just to name a few.
Cinedigm looks to capitalize on the brand’s popularity by distributing Fantawild’s programming across the broader OTT landscape and into the hearts of viewers across North America. Fantawild is available on TCL, the number two manufacturer of Smart TVs in North America, FreeCast (SelecTV) and KlowdTV. Consumers will be able to access the ad-supported content on TVs, digital set-top boxes, media-streaming devices as well as online.
With several family friendly channels already, Cinedigm looks to introduce the Fantawild animation brands to a whole new streaming audience by including such popular films as the worldwide box office sensation Boonie Bears: Blast into the Past, Boonie Bears: The Big Top Secret and Boonie Bears: A Mystical Winter. In addition, fans will be able to view beloved series like Boonie Bears: Sunsational Summer and Kung Fu Masters of the Zodiac: Origins of the Twelve.
Boonie Bears: The Wild Life
“Fantawild’s dedication to innovation has led the studio to become one of the world’s premiere animation companies,” said Erick Opeka, Chief Strategy Officer and President of Digital Networks for Cinedigm. “Through this partnership, Cinedigm is thrilled to launch a streaming channel dedicated to the studio’s most popular movies and TV series. As more consumers transition to streaming, the need for high-quality, branded family programming continues to grow. This demand has allowed us to bring this global phenomenon into homes across North America.”
“North America is one of the most important markets for us, and we have always been careful entering local platforms with our programs – the right strategy is crucial when we are talking about building our brands in one of the biggest media markets,” said Daisy Shang, President of Fantawild Animation Inc. “Launching a Fantawild branded channel is a very significant moment for us, and we are happy to have such a great partner on our side to help us with it.”
Cinedigm plans to release new content every month, giving viewers fresh and exciting titles to watch. One of their most highly anticipated releases will be Boonie Bears: The Wild Life, which released theatrically in mainland China this past Lunar New Year and quickly grossed over $90 million in box office, despite theaters being at limited capacity. Cinedigm will first release The Wild Life On Demand & Digital this summer for purchase and rental. The blockbuster film will then find a home on the linear channel.
The latest installment in the hugely successful Sailor Moon franchise, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal The Movie Part 1 & Part 2 will be premiering globally on Netflix on June 3. Produced by Toei Animation and Studio DEEN and directed by Chiaki Kon (The Way of the Househusband, Nodame Cantabile: Paris Edition & Finale), the latest crystal-powered adventure of Usagi and her crew of planetary defenders will be available on the streamer worldwide outside Japan.
The announcement was made via Netflix newsroom Tuesday afternoon.
Created by Naoko Takeuchi and first serialized in Kodansha’s manga magazine Nakayosi in December 1991, the stories of Sailor Moon and the Sailor Guardians fighting for love and justice have captivated audiences all over the world. From a hit TV series in the ’90s that was broadcast in more than 40 countries to more than 30 million sold copies worldwide of the original manga, the “Pretty Guardian” has established herself as an iconic character like no other, standing the test of time with a loyal fanbase across the globe.
“Like so many others around the world, I trace my love for anime back to watching Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon when I was a toddler — pictures of me in Usagi’s Bun Head have become a family treasure. It’s no surprise that these characters and tales about love and justice still touch the hearts of so many fans around the world,” said Ema Hirayama, Manager, Content Acquisition, Netflix. “It’s a dream come true for all of us at Netflix to have Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal The Movie join our expansive anime slate and to share this incredible story with fans around the world.”
The theme of the upcoming movies is ‘Dreams’. Based on the ‘Dream Arc’ of the original hit manga series, the story is about the Sailor Guardians’ growth, both as teenage girls and as Sailor Guardians, as well as the faint first love of Chibi-Usa and Helios.
Fumio Osano, Takeuchi’s longtime editor on the project and Editor-in-Chief of Comic IP Development at Kodansha, commented on the deal: “We have long been hoping to bring Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal The Movie to people around the world since the initial release in Japan in January and February, 2021. Today, we are excited to bring these movies to our fans through Netflix. Amidst these challenging times, it is our greatest pleasure for viewers to feel courage and hope by watching this story about love and justice.”
Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal The Movie is set in April, when the cherry blossoms are in bloom and Tokyo is in a festive mood as it celebrates the largest Total Solar Eclipse of the century. As the new moon obscures the sun and gradually dims its light, Usagi and Chibi-Usa encounter Pegasus, who is in search of the chosen Maiden who can break the seal of the Golden Crystal. Meanwhile, a mysterious troupe called the Dead Moon Circus appears in town, whose nefarious plan is to scatter the nightmare incarnations known as Lemures, seize the Legendary Silver Crystal, rule over the Moon and the Earth, and eventually dominate the entire universe…
Alongside director Kon, the production team boasts the talents of character designer Kazuko Tadano (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Yu-Gi-Oh! Sevens) and composer Yasuharu Takanshi (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal).
Presented in development at the 2018 Annecy International Animation Film Market (MIFA), The Smurfs, a new animated series produced by Dupuis Edition et Audiovisuel with Peyo Productions, for TF1 in France, heralds the revival of the famous little blue creatures on television. The series has been licensed globally by Nickelodeon, with a U.S. premiere slated for this year followed by international rollout.
Peyo’s beloved characters, created 1958, first made the transition from comics to the screen in 1959. The Smurfs began their animated adventures on TV, with Dupuis and then American studio Hanna-Barbera (Tom & Jerry, Scooby-Doo, The Flintstones, Wacky Races) and then the big screen, always with the same success. However, they have not been adapted for television since the late 1980s.
With Peyo Productions and Dupuis Edition et Audiovisuel, these small but scrappy stars will be back on the small screen starting May 9 in France on TFOU, in a brand new, totally updated 3D animated series: 52 original 11-minute stories directed by William Renaud (Calimero, A Kind of Magic…), featuring colorful characters (and not just because they’re nearly all blue) — including a whole team of daring and inventive girl Smurfs alongside Smurfette — and punchy dialogue. A joyful mixture for both girls and boys from six to 10 years old, which will also allow older children to enjoy rediscovering the essence of the comics.
“For Dupuis Édition et Audiovisuel, which was involved in the first animated adventures of the Smurfs back in the 1960s, it is extremely exciting to revisit this universe in this ambitious new series, alongside Peyo Productions and in collaboration with TF1,” said Caroline Duvochel, producer of the series. “This is a key project for our studio, in which all the teams have been particularly involved. We are very proud to be able to contribute to bringing today’s children these new 3D images showing the marvellous adventures of these characters, full of kindness, mischief and sparkle, things we need so much of in this day and age.”
“We are delighted to welcome the Smurfs to TFOU for new adventures, each one funnier than the last. This comedy/adventure series has its rightful place in our schedule as the world of these friendly little blue creatures and their very special language fits perfectly with TFOU’s mischievous yet caring tone,” said Yann Labasque, director of youth programming at TF1. “By giving the series consistent and powerful exposure on all its platforms, the TF1 group acts as a unique and strong sounding board for the franchise, whose licence is already managed by TF1 Licences.”
Véronique Culliford, founder and president of Peyo Productions and IMPS (distribution) and Peyo’s daughter, added that she was “very happy to be able to continue my father’s work once again by co-producing a new Smurfs TV series.” She added, “And this, almost 40 years after the world-famous original series. You will discover Smurfs in ‘3D’ effect, like in the last film Smurfs: The Lost Village [Sony Pictures Animation], with a lot of humor and lots of adventures full of twists and turns. This co-production has the best actors on the market and will enchant both young and old for decades to come!”
Distributed internationally by IMPS, the series made its world premiere on RTS in Switzerland and RTBF and VRT in Belgium in mid-April, and is now preparing to move into France and Germany before meeting the rest of the world.
The long-awaited Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway is finally hopping its li’l cottontail to a wider theatrical rollout — including the U.K. (May 17) and U.S. (June 18). The pic is currently playing in theaters in Australia and New Zealand, taking in $16.2 million in box office gross so far. Columbia Pictures has released a final trailer today, full of high-energy animal antics, hare-raising escapes and jellybean-fueled action — expertly animated by the wizards at Australian studio Animal Logic.
In Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, the lovable rogue is back. Bea (Rose Byrne), Thomas (Domhnall Gleeson), and the rabbits have created a makeshift family, but despite his best efforts, Peter (voiced by James Corden) can’t seem to shake his mischievous reputation. Adventuring out of the garden, Peter finds himself in a world where his mischief is appreciated, but when his family risks everything to come looking for him, Peter must figure out what kind of bunny he wants to be.
Directed by returning helmer Will Gluck, who wrote the pic with Patrick Burleigh, the cast also features David Oyelowo as Nigel, and the voices of Margot Robbie (Flopsy), Elizabeth Debicki (Mopsy), Aimee Horne (Cottontail), Colin Moody (Benjamin Bunny), Lennie James (Barnabas), Sia (Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle), Sam Neill (Tommy Brock), Rupert Degas (Samuel Whiskers), Ewen Leslie (Pigling Bland), Christian Gazal (Felix D’eer), Damon Herriman (Tom Kitten) and Hayley Atwell (Mittens). Byrne and Gleeson also lend their voices to Jemima Puddle-Duck and Mr. Jeremy Fisher, respectively.
Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway
Producers are Gluck, Zareh Nalbandian, Catherine Bishop and Jodi Hildebrand. Exec producers are Doug Belgrad, Jonathan Hludzinski, Jason Lust, Emma Topping and Thomas Merrington.
The first live-action/CGI hybrid Peter Rabbit adventure opened in 2018, and went on to take in $351 million worldwide.
FOX Entertainment, Warner Bros. Animation and multi-hyphenate Elizabeth Banks have joined forces to develop Bedrock, a primetime animated adult comedy series continuing the story of everyone’s favorite modern Stone Age family, the Flintstones. The pilot script will be written by Lindsay Kerns (Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, DC Super Hero Girls, Trolls: The Beat Goes On!), with Banks voicing the character of “Pebbles Flintstone,” in addition to her role as a producer.
Bedrock catches up with the Flintstone family two decades after the original, with Fred on the brink of retirement and 20-something Pebbles embarking on her own career. As the Stone Age gives way to a shiny and enlightened new Bronze Age, the residents of Bedrock will find this evolution harder than a swing from Bamm-Bamm’s club.
“Long before the Simpsons and Springfield, the Griffins and Quahog or even when the Belchers started serving burgers on Ocean Avenue, there were the Flintstones and Bedrock,” said Michael Thorn, President, Entertainment, FOX Entertainment. “Their imprint on the animation universe is undeniable and the idea of adapting it for today’s audience is a challenge we here at FOX are very much looking forward to taking on with Warner Bros., Elizabeth and Lindsay. No pressure whatsoever, really.”
“The Flintstones are the first family of primetime animation,” said Peter Girardi, Executive Vice President, Alternative Programming at Warner Bros. Animation. “Elizabeth and Lindsay have a brilliant take on these characters, and FOX and Brownstone are the perfect partners to bring them back to primetime. This is going to rock (sorry).”
In addition, FOX Entertainment’s free streaming platform Tubi has acquired the AVOD rights to all six seasons of the iconic series The Flintstones, including all 166 episodes, which will begin streaming on Tubi on May 1.
Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was television’s first primetime animated series — airing for six seasons, spanning 166 episodes – and was also the first animated program nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. This past fall, the franchise celebrated its 60th anniversary.
If picked up to series, Bedrock will be co-produced by Warner Bros. Animation and FOX Entertainment. Banks and Max Handelman will executive produce through Brownstone Productions (Pitch Perfect franchise, Charlie’s Angels, Shrill). Brownstone’s Dannah Shinder, and writer Kerns will serve as co-executive producers.
Pixar’s latest animated short 22 vs. Earth takes viewers back to the world of the Oscar-winning feature Soul. Directed by veteran Pixar editor Kevin Nolting, the short centers on new soul 22 (voiced by Tina Fey) and reveals how she came to hate Earth long before she met Joe Gardner. Nolting, who has worked on live-action movies such as The Insider and Shanghai Noon as well as animated features such as The Rugrats Movie, Finding Nemo, Cars, WALL·E, Monsters University and Toy Story 4 answered a few of our questions during a Zoom interview:
Animation Magazine: Congrats on your charming new short, which gives us another glimpse into the mystical Great Before world of Soul. Can you tell us a little about how you found yourself directing 22 vs. Earth?
Kevin Nolting: Well, I was still editing Soul when this opportunity came up. You know these shorts used to be part of the DVD bonus package, and that carried over to Disney+, which is great. We were initially going to release Soul in June of 2020, so the conversation about the short came about around January 2020 before the release. I wasn’t actually part of the story pitches for the short because I was busy editing the movie. Traditionally, the head of story would direct the short, but in our case Kristen Lester was head of story and she had just directed her own great short Purl, and she was developing ideas at Pixar. I just happened to be in the room when the conversation happened, and I fell into it and it fell into me!
Kevin Nolting
How long did it take from talking about the short and actually delivering it?
It was very fast. Once we settled on this idea, Josh Cooley wrote the script, and he’s very fast and it’s a very short film. We were boarding within a couple of weeks and then COVID hit and that’s a whole ‘nother story. We finished mixing in September of 2020. We had about 30 to 40 people working on the short, and probably a lot more behind the scenes.
Were there other ideas to focus on some of the other characters in the movie other than 22?
There were three solid pitches for a short. One was about the cat lady and the cat, which I also loved. There was a Terry idea that we developed a little bit. But 22 was the logical choice. She is such an endearing character and people love her. As we were making Soul, we were constantly talking about her backstory and trying to fill it in for ourselves, just for background. So, there were a lot of unanswered questions to explore with this character.
What do you particularly love about the short and the direction you decided to go with?
You know, I really relate to 22 and her cynicism, and I love the contrast you see with the innocent little souls. Coincidentally, at the time we were making the short, I was around my then two-year-old grandson a lot. So, just witnessing the contrast between this innocent thing and us, I just found that really fascinating.
22 vs. Earth
How does it get decided who gets to work on a short, as a feature is wrapping at the studio?
The shorts at Pixar provide people the opportunity to work on the next job, in this case to supervise. In the case of the short, the production schedule worked in a way that as departments wrapped on the feature, we would pick up leads or people in those areas to be the supervisor within their department. They’re familiar with the world and the sets are there. So, we basically as the feature wrapped, we embarked on the short.
How does editing live-action movies compare to editing animated features? How did it feel to transition to directing?
As I look back at it, it feels like a natural progression. I studied writing in college and I also studied art, so going from live action to animation, the fundamentals of editing are always the same. You find the rhythm of the movie and where you want to be and how long you want to be there. To edit animation, you need to have more patience and the process is slower, but you’re deeply involved in the writing process. That really appealed to me. So that exercised that part of my brain, while I still got the editing part as well. The editor in animation is so involved in every department, heavily involved in story and layout. I’d go to animation daily, so I got this great education watching Pete Docter directing animators all the way through the end of the process, so directing the short wasn’t as big a transition as it would have been otherwise.
Which animated shorts have left a big impression on you through the years?
I grew up with Warner Bros. shorts and Looney Tunes, so there were many that inspired me. At Pixar, I just love Ralph Eggleston’s Oscar-winning short For the Birds, which tells such a beautiful little story with no words.
22 vs. Earth
Without giving away any spoilers, 22 vs. Earth has a wonderful punchline right towards the very end of it. Can you tell us how that joke came about?
That punchline came in stages, and I can’t even remember whether it was in the original script or not. Then, we added a punchline to the punchline, and I believe it was our producer Dana Murray who said, what if you did this and what if you came back!
What would you say was the most difficult part of the project?
For me, as the editor, I am used to working through trial and error, and I don’t really have to articulate my ideas verbally. I can take the material, play around with it, try things — and if they fail, they don’t matter. Now suddenly, I am working with an editor and I have to communicate what I want in a way that will get me what I want. On a personal level, that was my challenge.
What is the one thing that people don’t know about the job of an editor?
I think people probably don’t know how much work is done. We record tons of dialog and just carving a performance out of that is a lot of work. People also don’t realize that despite all the talent at Pixar and all those movies we have made, each one of them goes through a long, painful process of failing and trying out new ideas. It’s not like we say, “Oh, we’ve made 10 movies, and now we know how to do this.” We do version after version after version until we get it right.
The trajectory of your career has been very interesting since you moved from live-action editing to animation to directing. What kind of advice would you give someone who is finishing school and want to jump into an animation career?
What I tell people is that you have to be open to the experience. You don’t know what’s going to come up and when it’s going to happen. The things that you expect are going to work out don’t and the things that weren’t even on your mind suddenly appear. Just working at Pixar was a random phone call for me out of the blue. I hadn’t really thought about it. I was brought in as the first assistant editor on Finding Nemo. An old friend from my live-action days was working at Pixar, and Pixar used to make one movie with the same crew so it took a long time between movies. Right around 1999 they decided to make a movie per year, so they needed more crew to do two or three movies at one time, so I just stepped right in.
Sony Pictures Animation’s debut musical project Vivohas been picked up by Netflix, with the streamer licensing all global rights (excluding China). The film had previously been slated for a theatrical release on June 4; a streaming premiere date is yet to be announced. The Vivo deal was reported by Deadline ahead of this morning’s summer slate preview reveal from Netflix. New debut dates and first-looks were revealed for several additional animated features — read on to learn more!
Directed by Oscar nominee Kirk DeMicco (The Croods), co-directed by Brandon Jeffords (head of story, Smurfs: The Lost Village, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2) and featuring original songs by Hamilton and In the Heights creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, Vivo follows a one-of-kind kinkajou (a rainforest “honey bear”) voiced by Miranda, who spends his days playing music to the crowds in a lively Havana square with his beloved owner Andrés (Juan de Marcos González). When tragedy strikes, Vivo must set out from Havana to Miami to deliver a song to his owner’s long-lost love (Gloria Estefan), with the help of an offbeat tween (Ynairaly Simo). The film is written by DeMicco and Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes (In the Heights).
The voice cast also features Zoe Saldana as Gabi’s mother Rosa, Brian Tyree Henry and Nicole Byer as two star-crossed spoonbills, Michael Rooker as a villainous python, Leslie David Baker as a Florida bus driver, and Katie Lowes, Olivia Trujillo and Lidya Jewett as three overzealous state troopers. Producers are Lisa Stewart, Michelle Wong and Rich Moor.
Netflix Animated Films Summer Preview 2021:
Wish Dragon
Wish Dragon | June 11
In Sony Pictures Animation’s Wish Dragon, Din (voiced by Jimmy Wong), a working-class college student with big dreams but small means, and Long (John Cho), a cynical but all-powerful dragon capable of granting wishes, set off on a hilarious adventure through modern day Shanghai in pursuit of Din’s long-lost childhood friend, Lina (Natasha Liu Bordizzo). Their journey forces them to answer some of life’s biggest questions – because when you can wish for anything, you have to decide what really matters.
Written and directed by Chris Appelhans (upcoming K-Pop: Demon Hunters; story artist, Wonder Park), Wish Dragon also features the voices of Constance Wu, Will Yun Lee, Jimmy O. Yang, Aaron Yoo, Bobby Lee and Ronnie Chieng. Producers are Aron Warner, Chris Bremble and Jackie Chan.
America: The Motion Picture
America: The Motion Picture | June 30
In this wildly tongue-in-cheek animated revisionist history, a chainsaw-wielding George Washington (voiced by Channing Tatum) assembles a team of rabble rousers — including beer-loving bro Sam Adams, famed scientist Thomas Edison, acclaimed horseman Paul Revere (Bobby Moynihan) and a very pissed off Geronimo (Raoul Max Trujillo) — to defeat Benedict Arnold and King James (Simon Pegg) in the American Revolution. Who will win? No one knows, but you can be sure of one thing: these are not your father’s Founding… uh, Fathers.
America also stars Jason Mantzoukas, Olivia Munn, Judy Greer, Will Forte, Killer Mike and Andy Samberg. The adult animated comedy is directed by Emmy winner Matt Thompson (Archer, Sealab 2021) and written by Dave Callaham (Mortal Kombat, upcoming Spider-Verse sequel), who also serve as producers with Tatum, Reid Carolin, Peter Kiernan, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Will Allegra.
Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans
Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans | July 2021
In DreamWorks’ Trollhhunters: Rise of the Titans, Arcadia may look like an ordinary town but it lies at the center of magical and mystical lines that makes it a nexus for many battles among otherworldly creatures including trolls, aliens and wizards. Now the heroes from the hit series Trollhunters, 3Below and Wizards, team-up in their most epic adventure yet where they must fight the Arcane Order for control over the magic that binds them all.
Voice cast features Emile Hirsch, Lexi Medrano, Charlie Saxton, Kelsey Grammer, Alfred Molina, Steven Yeun, Nick Frost, Colin O’Donoghue, Diego Luna, Tatiana Maslany, Cole Sand, Nick Offerman, Fred Tatasciore, Brian Blessed, Kay Bess, Piotr Michael, James Hong, Tom Kenny, Angel Lin, Amy Landecker, Jonathan Hyde, Bebe Wood, Laraine Newman, Grey Griffin and Cheryl Hines.
Rise of the Titans is directed by Johane Matte, Francisco Ruiz Velasco and Andrew L. Schmidt, written by Marc Guggenheim, Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman. Producers are Guillermo del Toro, Marc Guggenheim, Chad Hammes, Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman.
The Loud House Movie
The Loud House Movie | Summer 2021
In Nickelodeon’s much-anticipated The Loud House Movie, the biggest family on television goes on the biggest Loud family vacation ever! The adventure follows the Loud family to Scotland where they discover that they are descendants of Scottish royalty. The family quickly indulges in the most wish-fulfilling high-life ever when they discover their ancestral home is a castle.
Director Dave Needham (head of story, Smallfoot) and writers Kevin Sullivan and Chris Viscardi planned this hilarious family trip, which features the voices of Asher Bishop, Michelle Gomez, David Tennant, Grey Griffin, Jill Talley, Brian Stepanek, Jessica DiCicco, Liliana Mumy, Cristina Pucelli, Nika Futterman, Lara Jill Miller, Andre Robinson, Cat Taber, Katy Townsend, Carlos PenaVega and Izabella Alvarez. Produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines
… And of course, Sony Pictures Animation’s The Mitchells vs. the Machines premieres this Friday, April 30. Directed by Mike Rianda from a screenplay he wrote with fellow Gravity Falls veteran Jeff Rowe, the pic has already picked up favorable reviews from critics ahead of its long-awaited debut.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines is an animated action-comedy about an ordinary family who find themselves in the middle of their biggest family challenge yet…saving the world from the robot apocalypse. No big deal, right? It all starts when creative outsider Katie Mitchell (voiced by Abbi Jacobson) is accepted into the film school of her dreams and is eager to leave home and find “her people,” when her nature-loving dad (Danny McBride) insists on having the whole family drive her to school and bond during one last totally-not-awkward-or-forced road trip. But just when the trip can’t get any worse, the family suddenly finds itself in the middle of the robot uprising! Everything from smart phones, to roombas, to evil Furbys are employed to capture every human on the planet. Now it’s up to the Mitchells, including upbeat mom Linda (Maya Rudolph), quirky little brother Aaron (Rianda), their squishy pug, Monchi (Doug the Pug), and two friendly, but simple-minded robots (Fred Armisen and Beck Bennett) to save humanity.
Produced by Oscar winners Phil Lord and Chris Miller (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The LEGO Movie) and Kurt Albrecht, the movie also features the voices of Eric André as tech boss Mark Bowman and Oscar winner Olivia Colman as virtual assistant PAL, as well as Blake Griffin, Chrissy Teigen, John Legend, Charlyne Yi, Conan O’Brien, Sasheer Zamata, Elle Mills, Jay Pharoah, Alex Hirsch and Griffin McElroy.
The streamer’s robust upcoming original animated feature slate also includes Clare Knight and Harry Cripps’ Back to the Outback (Fall 2021), Richard Linklater’s Apollo 10 ½: A Space Age Adventure, Chris Williams’ The Sea Beast, Henry Selick’s Wendell & Wild, Nora Twomey’s My Father’s Dragon, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, Wendy Rogers’ The Magician’s Elephant, Minkyu Lee’s The Witch Boy, a Chicken Run sequel (Aardman), Redwall film & event series, a musical adaptation of Lupita Nyong’o’s Sulwe, and Steps, a Cinderella-inspired musical comedy produced by Amy Poehler and directed by Alyce Tzue.
In October of 2017, the trailblazing British animated series Pablodebuted on CBeebies. Created by Gráinne McGuinness, the show centers on a five year old autistic boy and his imaginary friends who go on adventures in Pablo’s “Art World.” The show, which incorporates live-action sequences and 2D animation, was lauded for featuring a voice cast and writing team who are all on the autistic spectrum. In honor of Autism Acceptance Month, we had a chance to speak with McGuinness, who is also the creative director at Paper Owl Films:
Animation Magazine: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us. Can you tell us a little about the development history of Pablo?
Gráinne McGuinness: Once CBeebies and RTÉJr. came on board with Pablo, we needed 52 separate stories to get the show off the ground. With the core concept of the show set, it was time to bring on storytellers. Our head writer, Andrew Brenner – the head writer of Thomas & Friends – began the process of reaching out to autistic collaborators to help curate these stories. Working with these collaborators was enriching. Not only are we representing stories embedded in real life experiences, but we are working with truly fascinating writers. Each has a rich, untapped creativity allowing us to create highly imaginative storylines that highlight both the joys and the challenges of autism.
Gráinne McGuinness
What was the inspiration behind the series?
I have an autistic nephew who is close friends with my children. When they were young, they had their differences. I remember wishing that there was a resource available that would help my children learn about autism. After looking into this, I was shocked to learn that children on the spectrum are up to three times as likely as their neurotypical peers to be targets of bullying and physical abuse – particularly at school.
I wondered if creating a preschool show with autistic characters could generate understanding of the autistic perspective, and in doing so, encourage engagement and friendship between little ones with all kinds of minds. Pablo is a loveable, fun, funny character and his stories, by generating exposure to the autistic perspective, promote understanding, empathy and acceptance.
Would you talk a little bit about the importance of raising autism acceptance through children’s animation?
A member of the Pablo team once said to me, “No child is born intolerant, intolerance is taught.” In the same vein, tolerance can be taught, too. All children are born accepting, and through the resources available to children – such as TV and animation – we have a real opportunity to educate and encourage understanding.
Can you please discuss the difference between autism awareness and acceptance?
Everyone can be aware of something. It is much more powerful to promote acceptance. Acceptance is not just acknowledging autism, but it’s having an understanding of how autistic individuals approach everyday challenges and what joys they might find. We are all different. The world would be a better place if we were all more accepting of the things that make us unique – not just aware of them.
Pablo
What are some of the most memorable/moving responses you have received to Pablo?
There are so many! I have parents saying their children have grown out of Pablo, but they still watch the show themselves. A key highlight that sticks out for me was with one of our lead actors: Michael had two passions – trains and animation. He is a huge fan of Thomas the Tank Engine. Since being cast in Pablo, Michael has graduated university with a First Class Honors in Animation, and he now writes scripts for Thomas the Tank Engine, too! I’m so honored that Pablo was the first career step for him.
Where is the animation for Pablo produced and which animation tools are used to create it?
Pablo is co-produced with Paper Owl Films (Belfast) and Kavaleer Productions (Dublin). With our offices in Belfast, it’s useful to be only two hours apart. This allowed us to meet (pre-COVID) regularly and enjoy the process of creating the final product. In terms of animation tools, we use CelAction.
Are we going to see more seasons of the show?
Pablo is only just getting started! The team at Paper Owl Films has big dreams for him and the positive impact he can have on the world. We dream of seeing his experiences in school and maybe in the teenage years, too. There is so much work to be done in terms of understanding and acceptance in schools — and with that acceptance, perhaps those bullying figures will reduce and real friendships can open up more.
Pablo
What are the challenges and rewards of having a show that is written and performed by those on the autistic spectrum?
Every new show has its challenges as you figure out what works and what doesn’t. Pablo as a project has always been an absolute joy to work on. By creating a new way of doing things, and enlisting autistic talent, we opened up a portal of untapped creativity and stories. More importantly, we created opportunities for people where standard recruitment practices aren’t always as inclusive.
Working with autistic talent was a clear process. All of our actors showed up on time, well prepared and they consistently over-delivered. Each as thankful for the opportunity as we were for their hard work. The stories are unique and funny and open up different ways of seeing the world – which is joyous.
What are you working on next?
We’ve just completed production on Bóin agus Béach / Ladybird and Bee, which was released on RTÉjr in March in Irish language, with the English language version launching in September. As a celebration of biodiversity, the series praises diversity in all things – conveying the key message to preschoolers that as we grow up, we all have a part to play in creating a healthy, happy, balanced world.
Alongside, we have an exciting and packed development slate – each show with a lot of heart and humor. We are definitely looking forward to some very creative and productive years ahead.
Can you leave us with some timely advice about creating/producing animation that features diverse/autistic characters?
My advice would be to do it, but definitely seek out the right way to do it that works for your own unique team. Every production, character and set of stories is different, and you need to figure out the best way to represent these voices.
For me, the beauty of Pablo is that the stories are grounded in real-life autistic experiences. It’s a show with self-advocacy at the very heart of it. The world always needs new stories and voices – and representation of diverse voices is key to more inclusive and positive experiences for all children.
