Notes from the recent MIPCOM content confab in France by Ramin Zahed
Who wants to buy and sell animated TV shows when the global economy is in the gutter and our retirement accounts will afford us a couple of Starbucks lattes, if we’re lucky? As it turns out, a lot of people do! Judging from the impeccably dressed Euro executives running around the Croisette and the optimistic talk from the sellers and buyers, the entertainment industry may be “recession-proof” after all.
According to ReedMidem, the organizing company behind MIPCOM, the 24th edition of the mart registered over 13,545 participants, up almost 2% from last year. There were 2,739 program registered buyers at the event, which was an increase of 8% over last year’s numbers. “We had record attendance and have some very important emerging markets [Russia and the Middle East],” noted ReedMidem TV director Paul Johnson. The two-day children’s market MIPCOM Junior did even better. There was a 23% increase in the number of unique viewings of programs and a 20% increase in participants.
Sure, the punishing U.S. dollar to euro exchange rate didn’t make life any easier for the American attendees (“What? I just paid $10 for a cup of coffee? Quelle horreur!”). But at least, we didn’t lose any of our bags and got to watch that awful M. Night Shyamalan movie on the plane back. Oh, and our hardworking advertising exec Sheri Shelton caught a glimpse of Adrian Grenier (Vinnie Chase on Entourage) at the Nice airport!
The best part of the trip was that we were able to talk to a lot of animation TV professionals who showed us their latest projects and teased us about their globe-shattering news (“Yeah, a major TV broadcaster is VERY interested, but we can’t talk about it right now But we’ll ping you about it later, dude!”). Here are some of the highlights of these jam-packed show-and-tell sessions:
 |
It’s always a great deal of excitement in the air when two heavyweight players in the TV and feature entertainment world join forces. That was certainly the case with Trooper Tom, a fantastic-looking CG-animated kids’ series led by Richard Taylor and Martin Baynton of New Zealand’s famous Weta Workshop (Lord of the Rings trilogy, Jane and the Dragon) and Keith Chapman (Bob the Builder, Fifi the Flowertots). Targeting six to nine-year-olds, the 26 x 22 series centers on the adventures of a half-human, half-robot boy who fights the bad guys in a futuristic world.
“It’s nice to go after an older TV viewing audience [than Jane and the Dragon],” says the five-time Oscar-winning Taylor. “We’re aiming for a very cinematic look, with high production values and beautiful lighting. You can see the influence of sci-fi classics such as Blade Runner and Lost in Space, as well as family favorites like Pinocchio and even Shakespearean tales in the series. Tom and his crew also use numerous space vehicles that should appeal to our target audience.”
Chapman, who also brought Flot and Jet, a new animated comedy for six to nine-year-olds to the market, says he’s excited to work on a show with such epic qualities. “Tom is a deeply flawed character—an android who is infused with human DNA—he’s got the hopes and dreams of a boy, with a thirst for adventure. But he also has an Achilles’ heel—his fiber-optic hair changes color when he experiences different emotions, so he’s constantly trying to control his emotions.”
Both Chapman and Taylor promise not to water down their vision to fit the small screen’s status quo. “We’ve seen that young boys are used to seeing more gritty fare such as Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk on the big screen, so that’s why they’re turning away from TV,” notes Chapman. “We want them to watch our show with their dads—we’re not going to shy away from giving them truly gripping, dramatic content.”
 |
We were happy to meet up with Ricardo Duprat, CEO of Mexico City’s Santa Domingo Animation, who was introducing his hot new project Brijes. Presented first as an animated feature and, then, a TV series, Duprat’s creation is a time-travel adventure story which centers on a brave 13-year-old boy names Freddy who visits different historic periods and mythical placesk guided by magical spirit animals—the Brijes (pronounced Bree-hes). Duprat tells us that his feature will be ready for theaerical release in the first quarter of 2010 and the TV show will be available in the fall of that same year. From what we saw, the project has the potential to hit the same commercial heights as Pokemon and Yi-Gi-Oh! Look for a more in-depth look at the project in the February issue of Animag.
 |
CBeebies acquired a new CG-animated preschool series from the folks at U.k.-based VGI Entertainment (Orsum Island, Blanche). The 26 x 11-minute Everything’s Rosie centers on the world of a 21st century rag doll who lives in a colorful playhouse with her friends and learns about the meaning of friendship. The show will be produced by VGI Entertainment’s managing directors Chris Blackburn and Vickie Corner and will join CBeebies’ Discover and Do block in 2010. Once you see a clip of the bright, High-Def world of Rosie, you’ll have a hard time forgetting about “this new girl in town!” (Thank you, Natalie Llewellyn for introducing us to this cool new character.)
 |
If you associate Christmas with beautifully animated 2D TV specials such as The Snowman, you’ll be happy to know that the folks at Welsh broadcaster S4C and Parthenon have joined forces to offer a new project based on Dylan Thomas’ beloved A Child’s Christmas in Wales. A co-production between Brave New World and Cwmni Da, the hand-drawn special is directed by Dave Unwin (Father Christmas, The Wind in the Willows) and produced by Catrin Unwin (Dreams and Desires). Co-producer Michael Jeffrey also composed the film’s musical score.
 |
It’s always fun to meet up with Mary Bradin (development & acquisition) and Frank Falcone (creative director) of Toronto’s Guru Studio. They showed us some of the cool projects they have in development. The first one is The Buds, a 40 X 5-minute package aimed at preschoolers, which centers on five very original-looking taste buds. Yes, they get to explore the amazing world of tastes around us, while teaching kids about the values of friendship and teamwork—we can’t wait for the episode the gang finds about the addictive powers of chocolate. The team at Guru are also pitching a great-looking cut-out animation series called Justin Time, about a young boy who has fantastic adventures in new places and cultures, accompanied by a little puzzle piece called Wiki. Keep up the awesome work, guys!
 |
Cedric Petitpas of French studio Gaumont-Alphanim (Galactik Football, Hairy Scary, RobotBoy) took the time to walk us through his company’s vast catalog of new toons. Among the numerous shows in various stage of development is Gawayn, a project that stands out for its unique visual style and the fact that it’s developed and distributed with the support of the European Broadcasting Union. The 52 x 13-minute series chronicles the adventures of an eager ten-year-old knight-in-training, who along with his mentor, the slightly inept knight Sir Roderick, sets out to find the magic crystal of Gawayn in order to save the lovely Princess Gwendolyn from an evil spell. We see the potential for lots of goofy, Crusader Rabbit-type misadventures for the medieval team.
 |
We were fortunate enough to meet with Richard Chou, managing director of Taiwan-based Vision Digital Group and Jason Lee, CEO of Coolframes Digiworks. They were happy to share some of the great new animated projects the creative team Coolframes has been working on in recent months. One of the CG-animated preschool shows they were presenting at MIPCOM was a show called Choobies, a 52 x 5-minute preschool toon slated for 2010. The project has already won an impressive slate of licensing awards, and it’s clear to see why. The six major characters (MiMi, Dake, Ida, Lucky, Patty and Bae) are easy-to-love fuzzy creatures who have a heck of a time living the vida loca in a place called Choobie Land. Give these guys a few years, and they’ll be taking over the world.
 |
While Chorion Silver Lining was making a big splash with its long-anticipated CG-animated series Olivia at MIPCOM (see the article in our November print issue), the company’s exec VP Amory Millard and exec producer Kurt Mueller gave us a special sneak peek at the new incarnation of Noddy in Toyland. The 52 X 11-minute series is a co-production with Ireland’s Brown Bag Films (Wobblyland, Give Up Yer Aul Sins). Enid Blyton’s Noddy was first introduced to children back in 1949, and the property has enjoyed a lasting popularity in over 40 languages—over three million books are sold globally every year. The new CG-animated production looks really fantastic. “The world of Noddy has been expanded, and kids will get to see new characters such as pirates and mermaids,” says Mueller. “The famous Enchanged Woods has also been brightly rendered in the series. A lot of the team at Brown Bag grew up with Noddy, so for them, it’s been a special labor of love to bring the character to life again.” The show is slated to debut on Channel Five in the U.K. this spring.
 |
Raquel Benitez and Carmen Llanos, the always-charming principles of Toronto-based Comet Entertainment were also having a grand old time on the Riviera. In recent weeks, we reported on how they’re working hard to deliver their 2009 movie Around the World in 80 Days Free!, which is a joint venture with Spanish company SOMUGA. Global TV titan Freemantle Entertainment also signed a deal with them to distribute their funny, adult Flash-animated series Limo Guy. They told us over coffee one morning that their Fantastic Tales anthology animated series is also taking off in a big way. “These are 2D/3D 75-minute featurettes that blend together all kinds of classic characters from popular novels by H.G. Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Jules Vernes, etc.,” says Benitez. “So you have Leonardo Da Vinci, Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde and Dr. Watson interact in one, and then, Blackbeard the pirate and Peter Pan in another. It’s going to be lots of fun!” Judging by the big smile on her face, we don’t doubt it at all!
 |
We always kind of knew that William Shatner (a.k.a. Captain Kirk) would be a great Santa Claus! Now, thanks to the team at Cookie Jar, we’re able to hear the famous actor voice St. Nick in the new CG-animated holiday special Gotta Catch Santa Claus. Targetting “kids one to 93,” the toon finds12-year-old Trevor who is challenged by his best friend to catch Santa Claus and finds himself battling one of Santa’s enemies, an ice monster called LeFreeze! A Cookie Jar and Enemes co-production, the holiday toon will premiere on Teletoon (Canada) this holiday season. Ann Austen, Cookie Jar’s senior VP of development and TV and video sales, kindly walked us through the studio’s MIPCOM slate, which also included Metajets, Noonbory & the Super 7 and new episodes of former DIC titles Horseland, Sushi Pack and Dino Squad. With nearly 6,000 half-hour animated episodes, Cookie Jar is now one of the biggest indie toon shops and home to a large collection of recognizable brands.
 |
Toronto’s 9 Story Entertainment was also on hand, showing off a cool slate of new shows. We recently reported on the studio’s new animated series based on Mark Inkpen’s delightful Wibbly Pig series. According to studio chief Vince Commisso, they completed broadcast deals with TVO and Knowledge Network. The preschool series is commissioned by Cbeebies and is a joint project with U.K.’s Wish Films and will be distributed by both 9Story and BBC Worldwide. Vince was also happy about Fugget About It, a 22-minute Teletoon/Detour pilot about a quick-tempered New York mobster adjusting to life in suburban Ontario! He assured us that the conservative changes and possible cutbacks outlined by the Canadian government will not affect the region’s thriving animation scene. Keep your eyes peeled for the shop’s innovative slate, which also includes the hilarious Almost Naked Animals, a toon about a bunch of “bottom-covered misfits,” co-produced by YTV.
 |
We’ve come to expect great toons from the bright and bushy-tailed team at TV-Loonland, and this market was no different. They came on strong with Leon, their new CG-animated series about a sweet-tempered lion who is constantly outsmarted by his prey. The always stunning Justine Bannister, head of distribution and acquisition at the studio, said she was thrilled by the reception the show had been getting at the market. She was also quite thrilled with My Life Me, a new 52 x 11-minute series that seems very different from many of the studio’s previous productions. A joint venture with Carpe Diem, Teletoon, France 2 and Canal J, the 2D show has a strong manga influence and follows the daily life and adventures of a 13-year-old girl called Birch as she navigates the confusing social terrain of high school life and relationships. The show kind of feels like a lighter, animated version of that popular Claire Danes series My So-Called Life. Its tagline reads “How can you be yourself when you’re still finding out who you are?” Hmmm … we’re still trying to answer that one!
 |
The team at Canada’s Breakthrough Entertainment had a lot to celebrate after the market. Not only was their upcoming Jetix co-production Jimmy Two Shoes was the number one most viewed program at MIPCOM Junior, they were also doing quite well with their grown-up toon Producing Parker (featuring the voice of Kim Cattrall) and the third season of the hit show Atomic Betty (which was licensed to Cartoon Network Latin America and CiTV in the U.K). Managing partner and exec producer Kevin Gillis showed us a great clip from the studio’s upcoming new preschool toon My Big Big Friend. Produced in association with Brazil’s 2D Lab (in development with Treehouse, Canada), the charming series follows a shy boy named Yuri who has wild adventures with his make-believe blue elephant buddy, Golias. Animated with Toon Boom Harmony, the show has a soothing color palette and a genuine, sweet spirit which are the pre-requisites for quality preschool entertainment.
 |
With High School Musical 3 doing gangbusters in U.S. theaters this weekend, it’s not surprising to see animation producers venturing into the hugely profitable Miley Cyrus/HSM/teen and music combo. Greg Payne, chairman and director at Santa Barbara, Calif-based Foothill Entertainment chatted with us about one of his hot, new upcoming projects called My Momtourage and Me. “It’s a very L.A. story … as it focuses on a tween daughter of the most famous female pop star the world has ever known,” says Payne. “But the truth is that she wants to be just a normal girl with a normal mom!” This timely toon is created by famous Australian author and illustrator Kyla May, who is overseeing the series as well. We think Madonna’s agent will be calling Greg real soon!
 |
The team at Los Angeles-based BabyFirst TV were experiencing the market as a big content creators this year. CEO Guy Oranim and senior VP of programming Arik Kerman showed us two of their great new projects. The Greenies (26 X 5), is an easy-to-like show about three characters that teach the kids ways to help appreciate and protect our planet. The Flash-animated toon is aimed at four to nine-year-olds and was one of the finalists of the MIPCOM Junior Licensing Challenge. They also introduced Say Hello Around the World, a clever 39 X 3-minute toon which helps kids learn languages thanks to the efforts of its star, an adventurous mole named Max. “Since we started BabyFirst TV two years ago, we have specialized in creating programs that are safe for the youngest viewers,” says Oranim. “We have an internal team of educational experts, so parents can truly trust our content. We truly believe that in certain areas, kids can be much better agents of change.”
 |
Buyers looking for something entirely different would be wise to contact the team at London’s Mighty ToonHeadz Entertainment. Founder Zak Vracevic grabbed us at the Carlton lobby and showed us a glimpse of his studio’s new project, titled Mighty Lil’ Spinnerz. It’s about a group of kids who find a magical gramaphone with special powers. Yes, they have to fight evil forces, but they also dig cool tunes and each episode will have guest voices and music from the world of rock/pop music. Oh, and the 52 x 22 show looks like something out of a great Gorillaz music video (with a blend of CG animation and custom shaders). Vracevic has a background in music, so you can see why his toon has such a big music-video feel to it.
 |
Here is the list of the top 20 most-screened programs at MIPCOM Junior:
1. Jimmy Two Shoes (Disney/Breakthrough Entertainment); U.K./Canada
2. Timmy Time (Aardman Animations); U.K.
3. Leon (TV-Loonland); Germany
4. Amazing Spiez! (Marathon); France
5. Olivia (Chorion/Silver Lining); U.K.
6. Amber's Animals (Inspire GLG, Ltd.); U.K.
7. Beast in the Box (Awol); France
8. Alien Zoo (Carrere Group); France
9. Angelina Ballerina (HIT Entertainment); U.K.
10. Betty Banner (Decode/House of Cool); Canada
11. Myo & Ga (Vooz Co., Ltd./Imira Entertainment); S. Korea/Spain
12. Dinosaur Train (The Jim Henson Company); U.S.A.
13. Action Dad (Toonzone Studios Inc.); U.S.A.
14. Gormiti (Marathon Group); France
15. 90210 (CBS Paramount Int'l Television); U.S.A.
16. Aesop's Theater (Cake Distribution Ltd.); U.K.
17. The Garfield Show (Mediatoon); France
18. Frog & Friends (Telescreen BV); Netherlands
19. Kid Vs. Kat (Disney Television); U.K.
20. Batman: The Brave and the Bold (Warner Bros. Int'l TV Distribution); U.S.A.
For Animation Magazine Online’s complete MIPCOM coverage visit:
http://www.animationmagazine.net/showcase/
©
2008 Animation Magazine Inc. | The News, Business, Technology & Art
of Animation | www.animationmagazine.net