French distributor Superights (superights.net) announced a raft of sales for its animated series catalog in Asian territories:
- In Japan, agregator Me Interactive has picked-up a selection of shows distributed by the company, including Bo Bear (52 x 5’) produced by Spark AS, Clay Time (60 x 4’30″) produced by Reaz, Superprod’s Helen’s Little School (52 x 13’) and Pat the Dog season 1 (78 x 7’), Koumi’s Animated Picture Book (52 x 5’) produced by Le Regard Sonore and Zibilla (26’) produced by Nadasdy Film.
- In Hong-Kong, SVOD platform NowTV has selected edutainment series Handico (24 x 3’) produced by Cross River Productions, Croco Doc (26 x 7’) produced by Croco Doc AIE, Buenpaso Films, Nuts Ideas and RTVE, and Helen’s Little School (52 x 5’).
- Indonesia’s MolaTV has bought SVOD rights for preschool series Clay Time, Koumi’s Animated Picture Book (52 x 5’) and Moko, the young explorer (52 x 5’) produced by Le Regard Sonore, Handico (24 x 3’) and Will (52×2’) produced by Cross River Productions, Pat the Dog season 1 (78 x 7’) and Nadasdy production Ralph and the Dinosaurs (26 x 5’).
Kids’ entertainment co. TeamTO (teamto.com) has inked an agreement with Sunwoo to distribute its global hit slapstick series, Mighty Mike (78 x 7′) in South Korea, across all media (linear, SVOD, satellite and cable). “We have been putting our eyes on Mighty Mike since it was first introduced to Korea – it’s just SO FUN to watch!” said Sunwoo SVP of Strategic Affairs, Steve Cho. “The characters are cute and the slapsticks kick laughs, but we can see the magic actually comes from great storytelling combined with high production values, and we were just drawn to the show’s outstanding quality. Mike can work for a wide demographic so this will be our focus throughout our distribution push.”
An original TeamTO production with Canada’s Digital Dimension, the photorealistic animated series follows the relentless travails of a sophisticated pug defending his home from furry intruders, while also trying to impress the neighbor’s charming dog. Key international broadcasters include CITV (U.K.), Universal Kids (U.S.), Cartoon Network & Boomerang (worldwide), France 3, Super RTL (Germany) and Tencent (China), among others. Licensing agents have been appointed to represent Mighty Mike in the U.K. (This is Iris), France (France Télévisions Distribution) and China (Uyoung).
Cartoon Network Africa is ready to dive in with Big Blue (Ages 5+, 52 x 11′), the newest animated comedy-adventure from Guru Studio (gurustudio.com). Created by Gyimah Gariba, a Ghanian Canadian named by Forbes as one of the ‘15 Young African Creatives Rebranding Africa’ in 2015, the series follows sibling underwater adventurers Lettie and Lemo and their quirky submarine crew as they explore and protect a vast, ocean-covered planet from ship-stealing crabs, know-it-all jellyfish, a health inspector shark and the murky mass of pollution known as The Blegh! The show premieres on CN Africa on Monday, March 7, airing M-F at 7:30 CAT.
“I am hoping to inspire kids watching Big Blue to not only see themselves represented on screen but to also plant a seed in their mind that they can be the heroes of their own lives,” said Gariba. “The story is based on my childhood and running around with my siblings. We were all different ages but the lessons we learned together defined what family meant to us, and that was all about taking care of each other no matter what.”
Spacetoon Pictures (spacetoon.com) is taking Peyo’s blue pals to the pictures! In its latest collaboration with rights holder IMPS, the MENA localizing and distributing specialist launched a theatrical release for a collection of episodes from the new 3D CGi The Smurfs series on Feb. 24. Fans can catch The Smurfs: Amazing Adventures in GCC cinemas across the region (runtime: approx. 90 minutes).
“The Smurfs is a multigenerational title that has been watched by kids for 40 years now, educating them about the true values of building a healthy society. We are thrilled to be the first to organize such an event, releasing the new Smurfs series in cinemas across GCC.” said Kamel Weiss, the Director of Business Strategy Development at Spacetoon.
More deals, launches & expansions!
- Winsing Animation launched the new season of its popular spin-off toon, GG Bond: Dino Diary Season 5 on Chinese screen on Feb. 8, with S6 in the works. The studio will launch GOGOBUS S9 in March, GG Bond: Kung Fu Pork Choppers S3&4 in May and GG Bond: Racing S5&6 in October.
- Mondo TV has sold season 2 of its eco adventure-comedy MeteoHeroes to Canal+ for Canal+Kids and Piwi+ (France/French-speaking Pay TV, exc. Canada, April launch), which also took its TV movies, and Turkuvaz Media Group’s Minika Çoçuk (Turkey Free TV). Shortform clips sold to RSI La 1 (Italian-speaking Switzerland Free TV). S1 will soon arrive on TVP ABC (Poland, July), Channel 5 Okto (English-language Singapore, Feb.); the first 19 eps. are now available on Prime Video Italy, with more coming in April and Sept.
- Omens Studios has partnered with VlogBox to create brand-new AVOD and SVOD apps featuring 11′ eps. and curated content from Leo the Wildlife Ranger plus 20 x 2.5′ of nursery rhymes for the Counting with Paula app. Rolling out on Roku, Android TV & Fire TV.
- Award-winning pre-k STEM series Space Racers is now available on Prime Video, Vudu, The Roku Channel and YouTube Kids, thanks to distributor 1091 Pictures. The series from Space Race LLC also has a line of toys and merch available now on Amazon.
- Crunchyroll has launched its app on Nintendo Switch, bringing more than 1,000 series and 30,000 episodes to anime fans around the world. Available to watch in AVOD or with Crunchyroll subscription (ad-free, plus simulcast titles). Titles include smash hits Demon Slayer and One Piece.
- Paramount+ is expanding to France through a strategic partnership between ViacomCBS and Canal+ Group, bringing originals and fan-favorite titles from Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, MTV and CBS like SpongeBob SquarePants and South Park, as well as being the local home of SHOWTIME.
