Mipjunior 2016 preview magazine by MIPMarkets

SEPTEMBER 2016

www.mipjunior.com The official MIPJunior magazine

PREVIEW WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENING

WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENING

MIPJUNIOR KEYNOTE

Splash And Bubbles The Jim Henson Company

Grizzy And The Lemmings Studio Hari

Deirdre Brennan Corus Kids

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Also inside: MIPJunior International Pitch • Cartoon Network • Millimages 25th anniversary • DreamWorks • New content • and more...

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Contents 8

News

Splash And Bubbles and Grizzy And The Lemmings get World Premieres at MIPJunior; Deirdre Brennan gives a MIPJunior Keynote; The MIPJunior International Pitch; and more...

Features Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s show time A look at a bouyant global market for kids content

31 It starts with a great show Licensing and merchandising has always been key for producers

36 Keeping up with the e-kids 18

Product News The MIPJunior Preview highlights some of the programmes available at MIPJunior and onwards at MIPCOM

The digital natives are seeking interactive content

45 Playing together nicely Co-production is a good way to make more with less

51 Also inside : 56 Tips & services preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

27 Conferences

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Come and meet our star talent at MIPCOM Stand PO.A2 Contact us at contentdistribution@turner.com

©, ® and ™ 2016. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. A Time Warner Company.

News

Meet Splash And Bubbles The 2016 Saturday MIPJunior World Premiere TV Screening is Splash And Bubbles from The Jim Henson Company. We met some of the key players involved in the creation of the series SPLASH And Bubbles is a new 80 x 11 mins series for kids of ages four to seven, produced by the The Jim Henson Company and Herschend Enterprises. It is set to debut in the fourth quarter of this year on PBS in the US, and will be premiered to an international audience of industry executives on Saturday, October 15 at 17.45 in the Conference Room of the Martinez hotel. The series follows the adventures of Splash,

a yellow fusilier fish who has migrated across the ocean before settling down in Reeftown, where he befriends a mandarin dragonet, the colourful Bubbles. Until Splash came along, Bubbles and most of the other Reeftown residents had no idea what lived beyond their coral walls. So together, Splash, Bubbles and their friends set out to explore the world’s undersea habitats, make new friends and learn about the the ocean — celebrating the

importance of diversity along the way. A fun show, it also intends to teach young viewers about the oceans of the world and the risks they face — and as such its content is in line with the US national school curriculum. “We are making the show for PBS and the curriculum is very important to PBS because it is a public broadcaster. And many of our public-broadcaster clients around the world have that same interest,” said Richard

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News the ocean, and even if you do look at it, it’s an opaque surface and the world underneath is mysterious and invisible. So by creating these friends in the ocean we’re hopefully cultivating compassion for this world and these creatures that live below the surface. Obviously the main learning topic is marine biology, but we also are touching on empathy and compassion and the inter-connectedness of creatures, because we do want to develop with children a love and caring for the ocean.”

see the quality and you see the look people are absolutely blown away, they are amazed,” Goldsmith said. “They look at me in meetings and ask what it is — is it 3D, or whatever. The comments we get are extraordinary.” “And each time we’re kind of bringing up the level of animation and getting closer and closer to a feature film kind of a look,” Henson added. “We’re so excited about the way the show looks; it’s spectacular and the animation is of such high quality so we really wanted to put on the big screen at MIPJunior.”

Splash And Bubbles has its genesis in a live show called Imaginatia by American puppeteer, actor, singer, dancer, voice artist and comedian John Tartaglia. “Imaginatia was a puppet show about fish in the ocean,” Henson said. “It was really popular wherever it toured around — including on cruise ships. We thought it was wonderful and we were really excited about the idea of doing fish and marine biology with our Digital Puppetry animation system. So we optioned his play and turned it into this very ambitious series.” Henson added: “We have an incredible advisory panel of biologists and oceanographers and marine biology experts for this series.”

Splash, Bubbles and friend Goldsmith, executive vice-president, global distribution at The Jim Henson Company. “The series has what we call an underlining curriculum, but really the main purpose is to get kids to fall in love with the oceans.” “One of the premises of our show is that it’s hard to care about what’s in the ocean if it’s just an opaque surface to you,” Lisa Henson, CEO of The Jim Henson Company, said. “There are many children who don’t live near

“It’s hard to care about what’s in the ocean if its just an opaque surface to you” Lisa Henson

“It was not difficult to find the very best advisors on Splash And Bubbles because of the combination of a super-show concept, The Jim Henson Company, PBS, our co-production partner Herschend Enterprises, and a curriculum that speaks to most of the advisors’ life work,” The Jim Henson Company’s executive vice-president, children’s entertainment, Halle Stanford, said. “Our advisors range from preschool directors and children’s museum educators, to marine biologists, aquarium directors and deep-sea explorers. We are thrilled to have Eric Solomon from the Vancouver Aquarium on board as our dayto-day advisor, as well as famous advocates of the seas like Dr Nancy Knowlton, a coral reef biologist and the Smithsonian Institute’s Sant Chair for Marine Science; and the legendary oceanographer and explorer Dr Sylvia Earle who was named ‘Her Deepness’ by the New Yorker and the New York Times and the first ‘Hero for the Planet’ by Time magazine.” The Henson Digital Puppetry Studio is a technology developed by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop that allows puppeteers to perform digitally-animated characters in real-time — which means the main stage work of each episode takes just one day to shoot. “When you

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Halle Stanford

Richard Goldsmith

Lisa Henson

News

When the ranger’s away… Grizzy And The Lemmings is the second MIPJunior World Premiere Screening on Sunday, October 16 in the Conference Room at 17.30. We met the show’s creators ahead of MIPCOM GRIZZY And The Lemmings is a highquality CGI cartoon series without dialogue, created by Antoine Rodelet and Josselin Charier, co-founders of Studio Hari. The series has been pre-bought by France Televisons and Turner Worldwide for the Boomerang channel. Grizzy, a grizzly bear, is “the boss” of Canada’s wildlife. And since he is the biggest animal in the Canadian wilderness, he feels that he should have access to certain privileges — which is why he presumes it is his right to take over the ranger’s house whenever the ranger is away. The lemmings form a tribe of around forty identical creatures. At first glance they look like inoffensive little balls of fur. In reality, they behave like a gang of stupid, dim-witted teenage pranksters. Motivated by sheer

pleasure, they too move into the forest ranger’s house as soon as the ranger is gone, and treat the place like a playground. Antoine Rodelet and Josselin Charier cofounded Paris-based Studio Hari 10 years ago. “We wrote the bible and set up a writing pool to co-write the episodes with other creatives — including the director of the show, Victor Moulin — story-boarders, and some other scriptwriters,” Charier said. “For such a show, teamwork and brainstorming is definitely the best way to go.” He added: “The worldwide deal we signed with Turner for its Boomerang channel is kind of unique since it’s exceptional for an original creation to get a pre-buy global deal. Hari International, the international distribution division we launched a few months ago, led by Adeline Tormo, is in charge of selling the show worldwide and making Grizzy And The Lemmings as a global brand.” The series is a CGI production, but the backgrounds have a 2D look. “The 2D background gives the show a more traditional feel, like the slapstick cartoons of the golden age — like Roadrunner or Tom & Jerry,” Charier said. “As the show is a non-verbal physical comedy, it’s totally universal. Good storytelling and visual gags speak to everybody, anywhere. There are no cultural issues in such a show — and to make things easy, there is no

need for localisation into any language.” Turner has exclusive pay-TV rights worldwide to the 78 x seven-minute series, while free-TV rights are available everywhere through Hari International. “With Adeline we intend to give the show the best possible exposure absolutely everywhere!”

Antoine Rodelet and Josselin Charier

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It’s not just the medium, it’s the message, Brennan says DE I R DR E Bren na n joi ne d C or u s Entertainment in March 2016 as Corus Kids’ vice-president of content. In this role she oversees all of the content elements of the Corus Kids portfolio in Canada, including YTV, Treehouse, Nickelodeon, Teletoon, Cartoon Network, Disney Channel, Disney Junior and Disney XD. She brought with her experience at ABC TV and BBC Worldwide in Australia. “Fifteen years after my first MIPJunior, I’ve had the opportunity to reflect on how much the world of children’s entertainment has changed,” she told the MIPJunior Preview. “Our industry has embraced the challenges of audience fragmentation and new platforms over that time, so I remain optimistic that content creators and distributors will continue to adapt to the needs of young audiences and their parents. New VOD players are now firmly established in the market and they are pushing traditional kids media to think differently and produce better content. We must remember that it’s still the charming, funny and emotional moments that make

us smile and that will never change.” But in the digital world, audience habits have changed. “The life experience of a 10-yearold today has been so different from our own. But with understanding comes the ability to serve them better,” she said. “Audience insights are vital. How do we reach kids and more importantly, how do they want to be entertained or informed? We focus so much on their media access and usage, but we also need to explore how this impacts the very nature of the content we offer.” Brennan said that creativity is key. “I believe we are still to see a real evolution of kids content with new styles and formats. We’re all looking for projects that are innovative and creatively distinct, but it’s so much more than finding a YouTube star and putting them onto a larger screen or providing bonus content on a secondary platform.” She added: “I hope that commissioners, myself included, will be brave enough to explore this space soon. It’s time to be bold!” In Cannes the MIPJunior audience will hear how her experience at the Australian public

Millimages celebrates 25 years “THE COMPANY has never been in such a good shape, we have never had so many powerful properties, the average age of our workforce is under 30 and it feels like we started only last year.” Millimages founder and CEO Roch Lener is in bullish mood as the Paris-based production company reaches its quarter-century. And Millimages has other things to celebrate. One of its newest properties, Molang, is enjoying considerable success on the international market. “Everything about Molang is like love at first sight,” Lener said. “It went into production quickly, it’s doing fantastic numbers already on Disney Junior. The numbers we got from Cartoonito in the UK are good too and the merchandising is really taking off.” Molang is also one of the company’s truly multi-platform properties: “We have a team that creates content dedicated to all the new media platforms — YouTube, FB, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest — but the most

multi-platform product so far is Molang. Many speak of a tough pre-school market — and a tough kids market generally — but Lener sees positives in the changing marketplace. “There is a lot more competition and that means that the broadcasters and the new platforms are really interested in quality programming — more than they were five or 10

Molang and (inset) Roch Lener

broadcaster has informed her approach to the commercial world. “I’m keen to inspire more debate within our industry, so will share some insights from my experience as a public broadcaster and working within a highly competitive commercial environment,” she said. “Perhaps they have more in common than we realise. It’s also a chance to explore the role of Canada in the kids world and make a call-to-action about our responsibility to future generations.”

Deirdre Brennan • Deirdre Brennan’s MIPJunior Keynote is on Saturday, October 15 at 16.45 in the Conference Room at the Martinez hotel years ago. That is very good for our company because we have very strong properties that we have built throughout the years.” New series from Millimages include Cherry Coco, based on an emoticon on the Line messaging service. “The level of awareness of the character is already very powerful especially in Asia and Spanish-speaking countries.” The company is also working on Pirata & Capitano, from the design team of Pocoyo — “a very ‘toyable’ property,” Lener said. As part of its celebrations Millimages is sponsor of this year’s MIPJunior Opening Party, where Lener wants to focus firmly on the future. “I want to talk about the next 25 years — I want to show the industry that the company is in the best shape ever. We were a public company from 2001 to 2014 and now we have exited the stock market — and we enjoy being private.” • The MIPJunior Opening Party is on Saturday, October 15 from 19:00 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel Martinez Beach

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Research reveals children’s thirst for fresh content

Q IT’S HERO TIME! BEN 10 IS BACK

Ben 10 (Cartoon Network)

CARTOON Network presents a special showcase of the highlyanticipated new Ben 10 series, introduced by Patricia Hidalgo, chief content officer, kids, at Turner EMEA. Held in the Conference Room at the Martinez hotel on Sunday 16 October at 12.30, the showcase will feature exclusive behind-the-scenes insight from series-creator Man of Action Entertainment and Tramm Wigzell, Cartoon Network’s vice-president of multiplatform and the lead development executive on all five Ben 10 series. A never-before-seen episode from the brand new series will conclude the showcase, followed by a buffet lunch.

Q HAVE FUN WITH DREAMWORKS DREAMWORKS is the exclusive sponsor of the invitation-only MIPJunior Closing Party on Sunday 16 October from 18.30 to 20.30 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel Martinez Beach. The company is currently enjoying success on Netflix with its hit prehistoric cartoon comedy series Dawn Of The Croods.

Dawn Of The Croods (DreamWorks)

AT THE first MIPJunior conference session, Sahar Baghery, head of global research and content strategy at Eurodata TV Worldwide – Mediametrie, will reveal fi ndings showing that the kids television channels that renew and refresh their programmes and themes perform better than those that rely on tried-and-tested content. “A third of the youth series most-watched by children and pre-schoolers during the second half of 2015 were new in 2015 for the channels broadcasting them,” Baghery said. “This is a significant amount for a genre often associated with the re-transmission and success of classics and reboots.” She cited the example of the FrancoJapanese-Korean co-production Miraculous Ladybug, which ranked fi rst with audiences aged four to 14 on France’s TF1 at the start of this year. “The adventures of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the Parisian heroine gifted with magical powers, captivated the majority of young girls in France,” she said. “Girls aged four- to 14-years-old make up twothirds of its audience, making it an exception among the hit children’s programmes in Europe, especially considering that TF1 attracts as many boys as girls on average.” The research company has also noted “a growing dialogue between two worlds, TV and toys”, Baghery said. “Beyond computer

Sahar Baghery: “a growing dialogue between TV and toys” and TV screens, licences expand their possibilities through toys that are connected to video-game platforms, such as Disney Infi nity and Lego Dimensions. Toys and TV programmes have many multi-faceted relationships. The animated series Paw Patrol, launched in 2013 produced by the global toy manufacturer Spin Master Entertainment, occupies a strong place in the French, Italian and Spanish top spots and was one of the two most successful ones among audiences throughout Europe this last semester.” • What Kids Love: A Superfast Binge Session is at 10.00 on Saturday, October 15 in the Conference Room at the Martinez hotel

The MIPJunior International Pitch

Media Company, is a multi-platform meSUPPORTED for the second year in a row dia and entertainment organisation creatby Majid Entertainment, The MIPJunior ed to provide both cultural and edutainInternational Pitch is open to all creators and ment content for children. The MIPJunior producers looking for financing their projects International Pitch is part of in development. The competithe company’s ongoing search tion is designed to highlight for new talent and partners new kids TV properties with from around the world, accordthe greatest potential. ing to the company’s managing The call for entries was in July director Mohamad Yehya. and finalists are announced L a s t ye a r ’s M I PJu n i o r two weeks before MIPJunior. International Pitch winner They then make their pitch in was The Boy Who Switched the Conference Room at the Off The Sun presented at Martinez hotel on Saturday, MIPJunior by Joe Moroney, October 15 at 14.30. managing director of the UK’s Majid Entertainment, a sub- Mohamad Yehya (right) with 2015 Fourth Wall Creative. sidiary of the Abu Dhabi MIPJunior Pitch winner Joe Moroney

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Product News Here we highlight some of the programmes for kids available at MIPJunior and onwards at MIPCOM ABOUT PREMIUM CONTENT (APC) THE MEMORIES Of Nanette (52 x 11

mins) is brought to Cannes after a coproduction deal between APC and broadcaster NDR, with a pre-sale to RTS in Switzerland. The animation, set in the 1930s, is about nine-year-old Nanette who leaves the city behind to move to a small village.

APPU SERIES BANGALORE, India-based Appu Series

comes to Cannes with Appu - The Yogic Elephant (52 x 11mins). The story is set in the forest home of a special yogic elephant tribe. Appu is a superhero, but stronger than his powers is the bond he shares with his friends, Neena and Tiger.

TEAMTO FRENCH CGI studio TeamTO has

started production on the fourth season of its series Angelo Rules, a co-production with Cake Entertainment, with the participation of France Television, Teletoon+ and Super RTL. The show stars 11-yearold Angelo, a sweet-talking genius with a knack for getting out of trouble. TeamTO has also launched a second mobile game based on the series, Angelo Skate Away. The company also brings new seasons of Elena Of Avalor, Skylanders Academy and PJ Masks.

CAKE ENTERTAINMENT BOTTERSNIKES & Gumbles (52 x 11 mins),

The Memories Of Nanette (APC)

Appu - The Yogic Elephant (Appu Series)

SPLASH ENTERTAINMENT ANIMATED series Symphony Street (52

BBC WORLDWIDE COAL Hill School – a part of the Doctor

x 11 mins/1 x 82 mins) is brought to MIPJunior by California’s Splash Entertainment. On Symphony Street, in the town of Notehaven, lives a noisy bunch of friends who happen to be musical instruments. Katherine Conductor is there to gently guide them in the right direction. Together they learn about life and the meaning of friendship through the harmony of music. Each adventure is themed around a particular piece of music and introduces kids to different sounds, instruments and phrases.

Who universe since the series began in the Sixties – is the subject of new series Class (8 x 45 mins). As in all schools the students of Coal Hill are worried about teenage life and exams — but also the possible end of existence. Set in contemporary London, Class is brought to Cannes by the UK’s BBC Worldwide. The distributor is also highlighting Andy’s Baby Animals (20 x 10 mins), presented by Andy Day, which draws on the best of the BBC Natural History archive to showcase the world’s cutest animal babies as they learn life skills.

aimed at six- to nine-year-olds, follows the adventures of three young Gumbles who play around in junk valley, while carefully avoiding getting into trouble with their lazy, grumpy neighbours the Bottersnikes. Bottersnikes & Gumbles is produced by Cake, Cheeky Little Media and Mighty Nice.

Bottersnikes & Gumbles (Cake Entertainment)

NOVOVISION FRANCE’s Novovision has secured

Symphony Street (Splash Entertainment)

Class (BBC Worldwide)

the distribution rights for 52 episodes of new animated series, The Quest For The 7 Kingdoms, produced by Nutri Ventures. The project was developed to promote healthy eating in a positive creative environment so that kids associate good feelings with healthy food.

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Product News FREMANTLEMEDIA KIDS & FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT FREMANTLEMEDIA Kids & Family and

CBeebies co-production, Bitz & Bob (44 x 11 mins), is due to air in 2017. Combining funny stories with key principles of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths) the show follows the animated antics of eight-year-old inventor Bitz and her younger brother Bob and is designed to encourage pre-school viewers to get involved in crafting, engineering and exploration. The series is complemented by short-form live-action companion show Bitz & Bob Let’s Make It (44 x 4 mins), which provides children with step-by-step instructions to create things shown in the series.

Bitz & Bob (FremantleMedia Kids & Family Entertainment)

JASON C BRAATZ ANIMATION STUDIOS JASON C Braatz Animation Studios is

looking for worldwide distribution partners for three new series in Cannes: Clumsy Cars (26 x 11 mins), about a family of car characters who travel the world looking for alternative fuel for their family; Carnies (26 x 11 mins), about Stephanie and Patrick who live and work in their family’s traveling carnival, with CG animation alongside traditional backgrounds; and Wombat Stew (52 x 3 mins), a musical series about healthy cooking and eating.

SINKING SHIP ENTERTAINMENT SINKING Ship Entertainment is

TRICON FILMS & TELEVISION COUNTERFEIT Cat (52 x 11 mins/11x2’

showcasing its newest series Dino Dana (26 x 22 mins), a follow-up to the Dino Dan series. The stories feature new prehistoric creatures, a transforming backpack, an adopted baby dinosaur and a new family of two sisters who can see the dinosaurs. The Canadian company is also presenting the second season of Odd Squad (77 x 22 mins/66 mins); Annedroids (52 x 22mins); and a new season of Bookaboo (75 x 11 mins/2 x 28 mins).

shorts) tells the story of an unconventional friendship between Max, a lazy, selfish house cat ,and Gark, an excitable alien with a mysterious destiny and a homemade purple cat suit. The Toronto-based company also brings: Shutterbugs (52 x 11 mins), encouraging pre-schoolers to understand their world through comedy, discovery, exploration and reasoning skills; and My Big Red Head (52 x 11 mins), about children who have to chart the stormy waters of growing up as half-human — as their Dad is a Chaos Monster.

Dino Dana (Sinking Ship Entertainment)

Counterfeit Cat (Tricon Films & Television)

PLANETA JUNIOR BARCELONA -based Planeta Junior brings Pio Rocks! (52 x 11 mins) to MIPJunior,

inspired by online phenomenon Pulcino Pio, which achieved more than 775 million YouTube views. Co-produced by Planeta Junior, Rai Com, DQ Entertainment and Gruppo Alcuni, the series combines comedy with music for six-to-eight-year-olds. The company also brings the second season of the animation Mutant Busters (26 x 11 mins), and DreamWorks Animation’s Noddy, Detective In Toyland, aimed at two- to six-year-olds.

SLAP HAPPY CARTOONS VANCOUVER’s Slap Happy Cartoons has

recently finished production on the second season of Nerds And Monsters (40 x 22 mins.), airing on YTV Canada. The series sees a group of nerdy kids on a fantastic uncharted island where they fight to survive attacks by a tribe of hideous monsters that are mistakenly threatened by their human invaders.

XILAM FRANCE’s Xilam introduces new shows and seasons in Cannes, including: preschool series Paprika (78 x 7 mins/26 x 30 mins), about twins — Stan, a brave daredevil who puts faith in his instinct and his motorised wheelchair and Olivia, who is creative and brainy; Zig & Sharko, season two (78 x 7 mins/26 x 30 mins); and Oggy And The Cockroaches, seasons five, six and seven (234 x 7 mins/78 x 30 mins). Paprika (Xilam)

Clumsy Cars (Jason C Braatz Animation Studios)

Nerds And Monsters (Slap Happy Cartoons) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipcom.com

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Product News ENTERTAINMENT ONE (EONE) WINSTON Steinburger And Sir Dudley

Ding Dong (52 x 11 mins) stars space kid Winston, his feline best friend Sir Dudley, and Hampton, an alien. Together they explore the galaxy and face up to their nemesis, Pam the Destroyer. Canada-headquartered eOne also highlights: PJ Masks (52 x 11 mins), a new pre-school animation following three six-year-old friends with alter egos; Peppa Pig: Around The World , a special featuring Peppa and her family on a holiday adventure; and slapstick comedy Three Little Ninjas Delivery Service (52 x 11 mins).

WIN SING ANIMATION TWO PROGRAMMES are prioritised by China’s Win Sing Animation. Doby & Disy:

Sing With Us is set in Sunshine Forest where kids acquire knowledge of English every day, learning simple English words, sentences and songs. Crazy Candies features Marshyo an employee of Dumpling House, who works hard and enjoys his life with his friends in a Candy Jar until the owner of Dumpling House’s rival starts to cause trouble.

JAM MEDIA DUBLIN -based Jam Media is launching its live action/animated series Little Roy (52 x 14 mins) in Cannes. Commissioned by CBeebies and CBBC Little Roy airs on both UK channels in early 2017. To solve real-life problems five-year-old Roy escapes into his imagination and becomes Wonder Roy in a cartoon world. The show is supported by the Irish Film Board and Northern Ireland Screen.

Little Roy (Jam Media)

Winston Steinburger And Sir Dudley Ding Dong (eOne)

UYOUNG CULTURE & MEDIA FINGER-painted characters Red, Yellow and Blue feature in Colored Dots, a pre-school

learning project brought to Cannes by China’s Uyong Culture & Media. In its new Colored Dots app children explore diamonds in a secret cave, colour the rainbow and play in the virtual laboratory to see the magic process of colours changing.

ZDF ENTERPRISES (ZDFE) SCREAM Street (52 x 11 mins/HD) is a top-motion animation based on books featuring

teen werewolf Luke. Other priorities from the ZDFE youth slate include: the third season of HD live-action series Mako Mermaids (16 x 26 mins/1 x 90 mins); and animation H2O Mermaid Adventures (52 x 26 mins/HD).

Scream Street (ZDFE)

M4E-TELESCREEN GERMANY’s m4e is highlighting its new

pre-school production Wissper (52 x 7 mins), about a little girl who can talk to animals. The company also presents the first episodes of the third season of Mia And Me (52 x 23 mins); Tip The Mouse (52 x 7 mins); Miffys Adventures, Big And Small (52 x 7 mins); and Conni (52 x 11 mins).

Wissper (m4e) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

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Product News BOMANBRIDGE MEDIA TOPPING the slate for Singapore’s

COSMOS-MAYA INDIA’s Cosmos-Maya has joined

Bomanbridge Media is WooRooRoo (52 x 5 mins/16 x mins) which follows eight animal characters and is based on Carl Jung’s Typological Theory. WooRooRoo aims to enhance children’s physical, intellectual, and emotional development, enabling growth in imagination, courage and friendship.

forces with a team of European animators to produce slapstick chase comedy 3D series, Captain Cactus, which launches in Cannes. The main character is a likeable cactus living in the Galapagoo islands, a harmonious existence until the balance is disturbed by two obnoxious mosquitoes.

Captain Cactus (Cosmos-Maya)

ABC COMMERCIAL AUSTRALIA’s ABC Commercial launches three new programmes from children’s

WooRooRoo (Bomanbridge Media)

NEWEN DISTRIBUTION TAHITI Quest is a weekly 90-minute

adventure competition featuring five families in the idyllic setting of Tahiti, brought to the international market by Newen Distribution. The Parisian company also highlights the third season of adventure series The Mysterious Cities Of Gold (26 x 26 mins), with episodes in Japan, India and the Middle East; pre-school series Polo (104 x 6 mins); and the fifth season of Loopdidoo (260 x 7 mins).

entertainers The Wiggles: Wiggle Town (52 x 4 mins), where Emma, Lachy, Simon and Anthony live with their friends; Lachy! (26 x 3-4 mins), with purple Wiggle Lachy; and Dial E For Emma (26 x 4 mins). The distributor also highlights the in-production second season of SplashDance (series 1, 26 x 4 mins), a liveaction pre-school series that encourages imagination through movement.

COTTONWOOD MEDIA COTTONWOOD Media returns to the

PLATINUM FILMS THE UK’s Platinum Films has reimagined

market in Cannes with its pre-school show The Ollie & Moon Show (52 x 11 mins). A mix of 2D animation and live action, the series features a pair of globe-trotting cats who introduce the young audience to new food, language, cities, customs and friends. The Ollie & Moon Show is distributed by Federation Kids & Family.

STEAMWORKS STUDIO CHINA’s Steamworks Studio — a

Dream Street (Platinum Films)

The Ollie & Moon Show (Cottonwood Media)

Fearless Dinosaurs (Steamworks Studio)

its pre-school series Dream Street (26 x 10 mins) using roto-morphing techniques and CG enhancement, while keeping the characters of the original stop-motion animation as they embrace everyday challenges and learn enriching life lessons. The company is also in production on a Matt Hatter Chronicles TV movie for an early 2017 release, based on its series (52 x 22 mins).

specialist in stop-motion animation — brings a raft of shows to MIPCOM, including: Fearless Dinosaurs (52 x 3 mins), an office comedy featuring a group of dinosaurs and a lizard running a delivery company; Alien 0902 (30 x 1 min), in which the population of Bubble Star is searching the universe for new energy; Mini Town (52 x 5 mins), focusing on three baby bears and their family; and Little Devils (30 x 5 mins), about three naughty but kind little devils living in a rural Chinese town.

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Product News TECHNICOLOR CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT A TEAM of superhero problem-solving

GLOBAL SCREEN SHERAZADE - The Untold Stories (26 x 24 mins)

features the brave teen Sherazade on her challenging quest to help her friend Karim get back to his rightful place on the throne, thus saving the kingdom from powerful forces of evil. Included in the CG-animated series, brought to Cannes by Germany’s Global Screen, are legendary characters including Aladdin, Sinbad and Ali Baba.

dinosaurs star in Supersaurus 7, a new early-school comedy adventure series from the US’ Technicolor Creative Development, set on the prehistoric continent of Pangea. The series is in development and aimed at four- to seven-year-olds.

Supersaurus 7 (Technicolor Creative Development) Sherazade - The Untold Stories (Global Screen)

MILLIMAGES MOLANG, the 104 x 3.30-minute non-dialogue 2D animated shorts series, based

on the instant messaging sticker, is co-produced by Canal+ France and TVC and has already been sold in over 140 countries, and is brought to MIPCOM by France’s Millimages. A second season is in production.

DHX MEDIA DHX MEDIA heads its Cannes roster with Space Ranger Roger (13 x 30 mins), a new 3D pre-school series commissioned by Family Jr and produced at DHX’s Halifax Studios in Canada. Space Ranger Roger is a brave little alien sent to explore Earth and help Earthlings with their problems.

Space Ranger Roger (DHX Media)

NPO SALES YOUTH programming from Netherlands

public broadcaster NPO includes: Just Kids (21 x 15-20 mins), a documentary series based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; Skatekeet (1 x 15 mins), about a 10-year-old girl with skateboard skills; The Girl Of 672k (1 x 18 mins), about a talented young photographer and Instagram star; Full Proof (26 x 15 mins), a science series aimed seven- to 12-year-olds; and three series of youth mystery drama series Caps Club, featuring a team of friends that includes disabled actors.

Caps Club (NPO Sales)

ZODIAK KIDS THE UK’s Zodiak Kids has secured a

re-commission for two youth drama series. CBBC (UK) and ABC (Australia) have ordered a second series of interactive comedy Secret Life Of Boys (10 x 30 mins). CBBC has commissioned a third series of Millie Inbetween (12 x 60 mins). Both series are produced by Zodiak Kids Studios and available for worldwide distribution.

RIVE GAUCHE TELEVISION KID DINERS (13 x 30 mins) follows two

kids who travel from city to city exploring the best food on offer. One youngster dines at upscale restaurants while the other goes downmarket to find the most delicious simple cooking. They go into the kitchens to learn where the food comes from, how it’s made and why it tastes so good. The series is brought to Cannes by California-based Rive Gauche Television.

Kid Diners (Rive Gauche Television)

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2016 CONFERENCE & EVENTS PROGRAMME MIPJUNIOR WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENINGS

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Saturday 15 October 17.45-18.30

Sunday 16 October 17.30-18.15

Saturday 15 October 14.30-15.45

Saturday 15 October 16.45-17.15

‘SPLASH AND BUBBLES’

‘GRIZZY AND THE LEMMINGS’

MIPJUNIOR INTERNATIONAL PITCH

KEYNOTE: DEIRDRE BRENNAN

By The Jim Henson Company

By Hari International

SATURDAY 15 OCTOBER

SUNDAY 16 OCTOBER

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX

SCREENING

MIPJUNIOR LAB, 8.45-9.15

MIPJUNIOR LAB, 8.45-9.30

HOW TO MIP IT: NEW VISITORS WORKSHOP

Breakfast served from 8.45

HOT NORWEGIAN TV FOR KIDS

MIPJUNIOR LAB, 9.30-10.00

By Virke & NFI

FINANCING WORKSHOP: MAKING IT RAIN FOR YOUR PROJECT Followed by Meet the Speakers

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS

CONFERENCE ROOM, 9.30-10.00

MEET GEN Z: THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN’S MEDIA

CONFERENCE ROOM, 10.00-10.30

WHAT KIDS LOVE: A SUPERFAST BINGE SESSION By Eurodata TV Worldwide

CONFERENCE ROOM, 10.15-11.00

FROM VIRTUALITY TO IMMERSIVE REALITY: WHEN NARRATIVE MEETS EXPERIENCE

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX MIPJUNIOR LAB, 10.30-11.00

THE BOOK AS A BRAND PLATFORM: HOW PUBLISHERS WANT TO WORK WITH PRODUCERS

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX

MATCHMAKING LOUNGE 9.30-10.30

BUYERS & COMMISSIONERS MATCHMAKING

One-on-one pre-registered meetings.

GETTING TO KNOW THE CHINESE MARKET

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS

Followed by Meet the Speakers

CONFERENCE ROOM, 10.45-11.30

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS

WHAT DO CHANNELS AND PLATFORMS WANT?

Including The World Screen Kids’ Trendsetter Award

CONFERENCE ROOM, 11.15-11.45

ON THE RISE: HIGH-PROFILE TEEN DRAMA

In association with World Screen

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX MIPJUNIOR LAB, 11.30-12.15

MATCHMAKING & MEET-UPS

Followed by Meet the Speakers

MATCHMAKING LOUNGE 11.45-12.45

LICENSING HITS, FROM BRANDS TO TV SERIES GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS

MENTORING WITH…

CONFERENCE ROOM, 12.00-12.30

One-on-one pre-registered meetings. Priority given to new comers.

IT’S ALL ABOUT IMAGINATION!

By Canada Media Fund and Telefilm Canada Followed by Meet the Speakers GRAND HYATT CANNES HOTEL MARTINEZ BEACH, 13.00-14.30

MIPJUNIOR NETWORKING LUNCH

MATCHMAKING LOUNGE 15.45-16.45

BUYERS & COMMISSIONERS MATCHMAKING

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS CONFERENCE ROOM, 14.30-15.45

MIPJUNIOR INTERNATIONAL PITCH

Sponsored by Majid Entertainment, Subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Media Company

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS HOW DEVICES CAN HELP (RE)CONNECT PARENTS & KIDS

MATCHMAKING & MEET-UPS

MIPJUNIOR LAB, 10.45-11.15

In partnership with The London Book Fair

CONFERENCE ROOM, 16.00-16.30

VP of Content, Corus Kids

One-on-one pre-registered meetings.

SCREENING MIPJUNIOR LAB, 15.45-16.15

COOLEST NEW ANIMATION FROM FINLAND By Finnanimation and YLE

MIPJUNIOR KEYNOTE CONFERENCE ROOM, 16.45-17.15

DEIRDRE BRENNAN, VP OF CONTENT, CORUS KIDS PRODUCERS TOOLBOX MIPJUNIOR LAB, 17.15-17.45

PASSAGE TO INDIA: WORKING IN THIS DYNAMIC SPACE Followed by Meet the Speakers

WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENING CONFERENCE ROOM, 17.45-18.30

‘SPLASH AND BUBBLES’

By The Jim Henson Company GRAND HYATT CANNES HOTEL MARTINEZ BEACH, FROM 19.00

MIPJUNIOR OPENING PARTY: MILLIMAGES 25TH ANNIVERSARY

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX MIPJUNIOR LAB, 11.45-12.30

MATCHMAKING LOUNGE 11.30-13.00

CO-PRODUCTION MEET-UP

Priority given to pre-registered participants.

CREATING CONTAGIOUS CONTENT FOR STREAMING PLATFORMS Followed by Meet the Speakers

SNACK & SCREEN CONFERENCE ROOM, 12.30-14.00

Snack lunch served from 13.00

IT’S HERO TIME! SNACK & SEE THE ALL NEW BEN 10 By Cartoon Network

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX MIPJUNIOR LAB, 14.15-14.45

JAPAN: PRODUCING IN THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN Followed by Meet the Speakers

MATCHMAKING LOUNGE 14.00-15.00

LICENSING EXPERTS MATCHMAKING

One-on-one pre-registered meetings.

GLOBAL CONTENT TRENDS CONFERENCE ROOM, 14.45-15.15

DISRUPTING FAMILY PROGRAMMING CONFERENCE ROOM, 15.30-16.15

LICENSING & MERCHANDISING: IT STILL STARTS WITH GREAT CONTENT MIPJUNIOR KEYNOTE CONFERENCE ROOM, 16.30-17.00

CATHERINE BALSAM-SCHWABER, CCO, MATTEL WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENING CONFERENCE ROOM, 17.30-18.15

‘GRIZZY AND THE LEMMINGS’ By Hari International

GRAND HYATT CANNES HOTEL MARTINEZ BEACH, 18.30-20.30

DREAMWORKS PARTY - Access by invitation only

MIPJUNIOR THANKS ITS SPONSORS & PARTNERS:

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Product News HUACE MEDIA INTERNATIONAL HONG Kong-based Huace

The Taoism Grandmaster (Huace Media International)

BETA FILM GERMANY’s Beta Film is highlighting a

second series of Shame, a web drama running daily online and weekly as a webcast, from Norway’s NRK. The series — about a group of high-school girls — is the follow-up to web project Young Girls. Other priorities include: Nelly’s Adventure (1 x 90 mins), following a vacation in Romania; The Pasta Detectives And The Broken Hearted (1 x 90 mins); Christmas series Snowfall (24 x 24 mins); and Songfoni (22 x 10 mins), about discovering rhythm and song through play.

Media brings a new series The Taoism Grandmaster (50 x 47 mins) to Cannes. The story is about Zhang who, with his friend, is recruited to The Taoist Alliance where he falls in love with the daughter of his master. Later he discovers that his friend is the leader of the wolf demons. The series is produced and distributed worldwide by Huace Media Group.

Shame (Beta Film)

CHANNEL 4 CHANNEL 4’s We’re Going On A Bear Hunt (1 x 30 mins), is an animated special

based on the book written by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. Produced by the makers of The Snowman And The Snowdog, the story follows a five children and a dog as they set out on an adventure.

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Product News FOOTHILL ENTERTAINMENT MOTHER Goose Club is a series of fun

and educational programmes for preschoolers. With a mission to promote literacy, the series is anchored by traditional songs and nursery rhymes with original tunes. With 13 half-hours already produced by Sockeye Media, the new animation series of 52 x 11-minute episodes is scheduled for 2017.

IMIRA ENTERTAINMENT ON THE slate from Spanish producer

and distributor Imira are: The MiniForce (52 x 13 mins), about a commando force that protects small and helpless animals; Vroomiz (52 x 13 mins), featuring talking animals shaped like vehicles; Hogie The Globe-hopper (52 x 11 mins), about a tree frog; season three of slapstick series Larva In New York (104 x 2 mins); live-action series Jamillah & Aladdin (52 x 11 mins); sci-fi comedy Alisa (24 x 26 mins); and Mika’s Diary (52 x 7 mins), following four-year old Mika.

THE JIM HENSON COMPANY NEW TO the international market in

Cannes from The Jim Henson Company is Julie’s Greenroom (13 x 30 mins), starring actress and singer Julie Andrews. The series features puppet kids learning about the performing arts, with guests stars including Idina Menzel — the voice of Elsa in Frozen, singer/songwriters Sara Bareilles and Josh Groban, and actors Alec Baldwin and Carol Burnett. Andrews mentors the youngsters in the theatre and its Greenroom, the backstage space where artists meet and discuss how to make the show the best it can be. Julie’s Greenroom (The Jim Henson Company)

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The MiniForce (Imira Entertainment)

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Product News GENIUS BRANDS INTERNATIONAL PRE-SCHOOL series Llama Llama (15 x

22 mins/30 x 11 mins), currently in development, is brought to Cannes by Genius Brands International. Actress and early childhood development advocate Jennifer Garner has recently signed on to voice the character of Mama Llama in the recently announced Netﬂix original animated series for preschoolers. Based on the books by author and illustrator Anna Dewdney, the show is set to premiere in 2017 to Netﬂix members worldwide.

YI ANIMATION AMONG the titles from YI Animation are:

More More Monsters (54 x 11 mins/3D), aimed to children aged six to12, featuring a fantasy world of demons who try to sabotage the world; Kungfood (six seasons of 54 x 11 mins/3D), set in a magical food land in which a steamer ship travels to find delicious food; and Gods’ Office, set in an old grocery store in which three aliens have to complete missions to get back to their own planet.

TF1 THE FLYING Squirrels (26 x 13 mins/3D)

— brought to Cannes by France’s TF1 — features five teenagers who are best friends and street-ball fans. When an old pirate map falls into their hands, they discover there is ancient treasure hidden in the desert — a sacred chest that gives all the power in the universe to the one who opens it. But the mafia boss who controls the city, a huge corporation that seeks for world domination and an ambitious journalist are also after the treasure.

Llama Llama (Genius Brands International)

KOMIXX MEDIA GROUP IN ANIMATION series Dog Loves

The Flying Squirrels (TF1)

Books (52 x 7 mins), aimed at fourto six-year-olds, when bookshop owner Dog and his best friend Pug have a problem or a question, they look for the answer in one of their beloved books. The project is brought to Cannes by producer Komixx, the distributor is Cake.

ORI ANIMATION THE MIPCOM slate from Chinese

animation producer and distributor Ori Animation includes Buffet Classroom (52 x 12 mins), in which each episode is developed around a specific aspect of parenting, friendship or education. Aimed at six- to 10 year-olds, the series explores the importance of a positive attitude. The company also brings Tom & Jack, a five-minute episode nondialogue comic series.

Buffet Classroom (Ori Animation)

ALL3MEDIA INTERNATIONAL STUDIO Lambert’s format Gogglesprogs

More More Monsters (YI Animation)

POL-KA PRODUCCIONES IN CO-OPERATION with Televisa and

Federation Kids & Family, Pol-ka Productions presents Love, Divina, a 60-hour daily teen series with pop star Laura Esquivel. Divina dreams of becoming a singer and also takes a group of homeless kids under her wing. They all live together in her grandmother’s mansion. Pol-ka’s previous productions include Disney’s Violetta and Soy Luna, which together generated six platinum albums.

is brought to Cannes by the UK’s all3media International. The new spinoff of adult format Gogglebox features children who give their uninhibited opinions about TV. The distributor also brings the second series of Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch (15 x 15 mins) starring chef Gordon Ramsay’s daughter Matilda as the family spends Summer in Los Angeles.

Gogglesprogs (all3media International)

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already sold in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Canada, France, Poland, Australia. . . where to next?

Feature NEW CONTENT

It’s

show time!

A host of new kids’ properties will be on show at MIPJunior this year. Rachel Murrell takes a sneak peek at the 2016 line-up

ULIE’s Greenroom (13 x 30 mins), co-written by and starring the legendary Julie Andrews, takes children’s natural love of ‘putting on a show’ and turns it into a pre-school series set in a performing-arts theatre. “Julie is an incredible advocate of the performing arts and so are we,” says Halle Stanford, The Jim Henson Company’s executive vice-president of children’s entertainment. “She’s 1,000 per cent involved. Not just as a star. She’s writing, she’s reading every word, and she’s giving notes on every frame.” Set backstage in a performing-arts theatre, Julie’s Greenroom features original songs, celebrity performers and a whole lot of

SpacePop (Genius Brands)

preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Feature “Netflix is so respectful of creative talent and vision. They will support you to get to the creative heart of the show” Halle Stanford puppets. The show — a Netflix Original — premieres globally in early 2017. This is Henson’s second show for Netflix — Word Party launched this July — and Stanford says the relationship is great on both. “Netflix is so respectful of creative talent and vision,” she says. “Most networks are different and we know why: they need to deliver on their brand. But for Netflix, the brand is the creativity. So they will support you to get to the creative heart of the show. It’s been an incredible experience.” If kids love putting on a show, they love baby animals just as much. And so does BBC presenter Andy Day. On that basis, Andy’s Baby Animals (20 x 10 mins), a new pre-school series from BBC Worldwide, should be a shooin. The series uses BBC Natural History archive to show young animals as they learn to crawl, walk, climb, swim and make friends. Each episode is topped and tailed by a ‘baby animal of the day’ segment, showing three different creatures learning a new skill. And the show has been created for flexibility, so that local presenters can be substituted if needed. Henrietta Hurford-Jones, director of children’s at BBC Worldwide (BBCWW), co-exec produced Andy’s Baby Animals for CBeebies.

Karim And Noor (Blink Studios)

Andy’s Baby Animals (BBCWW) “The series allows children to encounter both familiar and new wild animals, from polar bears, elephants and penguins to octopus, mantis and wandering albatross,” she says. Animals are showcased in a different way in NHK’s Mimicries (13 x 10 mins), available internationally for the first time at MIPJunior. Made for children aged three to seven, it sets out to find and analyse the similarities between different animals in the natural world. Why do pandas and penguins both have black limbs, for example? And which animals have the same black and yellow markings as the bumblebee — and why? “By searching out similarities of shape,

pattern, size or colour in nature, Mimicries provokes amazement at natural wonders,” says Hitoshi Furukawa, senior producer at NHK. “It also promotes a desire for knowledge, stimulating the powers of observation and imagination that are so essential to fostering the scientific spirit.” Kids’ content made by and for the Middle East is hard to find — and harder still to fund, according to Nathalie Habib, general manager and executive producer of Blink Studios in Dubai. That’s why her team created Karim And Noor (15 x 2 mins), a 3D animated series about an inquisitive young boy and his lantern robot, which is currently airing on Spacetoon and YouTube.

Mimicries (NHK) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

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Feature “The lantern is very much part of Arab and Middle Eastern culture,” Habib says. “We’ve made Noor part lantern, part robot, so he’s very relatable. And Kareem has the dark skin, eyes and hair typical of the region. We’re not putting him in Arab dress, though. We want to avoid Arab stereotypes.” Local channels airing children’s content include Al Jazeera, JeemTV, Cartoon Network, NBC3 and Spacetoon. YouTube and Netflix are also popular, and kids as young as two now watch content on mobile phones. “Parents are desperate for regional content that’s not all Western,” Habib says. “They like local stories, but they want animation of international quality. So we created this show to meet that need.” Habib acknowledges that there has not been a tradition of co-producing in the region to date, but says that is starting to change. “We want animation to be part of the mix. In the West, there are tax credits and subsidies for edutainment but, in our part of the world, there’s no such thing. So there’s not much original content coming out of the region. For 10 years we’ve been working in partnership with others on shows such as the new version of Iftah Ya Simsim, the Arab Sesame Street, which we launched in 2015. We feel the time is right to create our own content, and we’ll be at MIPJunior to seek partners in Europe, Australia and Asia.” JAM Media in Dublin has been creating its own content for a while now, specialising in mixed media in shows including Roy, Funky

Snoozeville (JAM Media)

Little Roy (JAM Media) Fables, Picme and Baby Jake. Roy spin-off Little Roy (52 x 14 mins) is new this year. It is about the adventures of five-year-old Roy as he takes on the mantle of WonderRoy in his cartoon imagination as a way of solving his dilemmas in the real world. A joint commission from CBeebies and CBBC, Little Roy is designed to appeal to the young fans of Roy and bring them to CBBC, where they can enjoy both Roy and Little Roy. “The BBC was the driving force behind Roy,” says John Reynolds, JAM Media’s chief commercial officer/distribution. “We shot in Northern Ireland and did the animation in Belfast. We’ve done pre-sales throughout

Europe and, of course, we have the Irish Film Board and RTE on board.” Also from JAM is Snoozeville, a show about Kip, a goofy 10-year-old and his friends Pillow and Digi as they chase the dream in the surreal world of Snoozeville. “It’s a new show we’re launching at Cartoon Forum as a pilot,” Reynolds says. “We’ll have the trailer at MIPJunior, so we can take the all-important follow-up meetings there.” A modern take on family is at the core of Mom Hurries Home (26 x 5 mins) from Film. UA in the Ukraine. “It’s about the realities of living in a big city, where your mum is at work all day and comes home to you in the evening,” says Film.UA’s head of development

Mom Hurries Home (Film.UA Group) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Feature “I liked the idea of a non-contemporary show. I often notice that kids are intrigued by life in ‘the olden days” Lionel Marty and co-productions, Kateryna Vyshnevska. “The series is based on books and interactive apps that are very popular locally.” Memories Of Nanette (52 x 11 mins) is new because it feels old. Set in 1930s France, it is about the adventures of a little girl who moves to the countryside and experiences rural life for the first time. It is in retro style, but offers plenty of laughs. “The producers, 2 Minutes, are a top 2D studio in France,” says Lionel Marty, president of APC Kids, which distributes Memories Of Nanette. “They pitched me the show, which was based on some comic books by Nob. I liked the idea of a non-contemporary show. I often notice that kids are intrigued by life in ‘the olden days’. A world with no cellphones, no computers — it’s exotic to them.” Memories Of Nanette has been pre-bought by NDR in Germany and RTS in Switzerland. It debuts on France’s M6 at the end of 2017. Also from France is Simon (52 x 5 mins), a pre-school comedy series about a little rabbit based on the books by Stephanie Blake. “The books are iconic in France — cute, but with an edgy graphic design,” says producer Eric Garnet of Go -N Productions. “My colleague A nne [de Galard] was reading them to her kids, and she found them much more true and realistic than the average pre-school propert y. Parents love them because they see Simon’s naughtiness in their own kids. And

they’re relatable to the kids too, because Simon dares to say what they would not. He’s naughty, but he’s not a brat. He learns something in each episode, but not in a cheesy way. And he tries to end each story with a win, even though he can’t.” The show is being produced entirely in France. “We wanted to be very close to the graphic design of the books,” Garnet says. “They have a deceptively simple look, but the looks, the glances have to be spot on. It takes a lot of development time to make five-minute episodes that keep the cuteness and the kindness, but are still genuinely funny.” Comedy is central to Technicolor’s new show Supersaurus 7 (52 x 11mins or 26 x 30 mins) too. “It’s a superhero dinosaur show,” says Alison Warner, the company’s vice-president of IP sales, acquisitions and co-production. “It has facts for the dinogeeks and fictional elements, such as the new world of Pangea, kids with superpowers and some baddies. But what makes it really fresh is the comedy.” The show was co-created and written by comedy writer Chris Hayward (Misery Bear; FIT; Smack The Pony) and designer and illustrator Henry Coate. “Henr y and Chris had identified a gap in the market for a comedy-based adventure show for four- to seven-year-olds, and they c a me up with Supersaurus 7,” Warner says. Simon (Go-N Productions) “We’re positioning this as a show for kids who are growing out of PAW Patrol and want something funnier.”

“It takes a lot of development time to make five-minute episodes that keep the cuteness and the kindness, but are genuinely funny” Eric Garnet

Memories Of Nanette (APC Kids) Music is the key to SpacePOP, the new tween animated series from Genius Brands International. “It’s about five teenage princesses who form a band as a cover while they battle an evil empress who is seeking to enslave the galaxy,” says Stone Newman, the company’s president of global consumer products and marketing. The target demographic is girls aged seven to 12. The show consists of 100-plus serialised episodes, with original music by Ron Fair and on-screen lyrics so viewers can sing along. “We launched on YouTube with six episodes, and we upload two more each week,” Newman says. “Within a month, we had 2.5 million views on our channel and approaching 10,000 subscribers.” He notes that Mattel launched Monster High in a similar way: “It’s become a much more competitive space since then, but we’re seeing consistent growth, a growing community and fan engagement. We’re very pleased with where we are.” The music is being launched on Musical.ly, a popular channel with teenage girls, as well as on iTunes and Spotify. And the show is also rolling out on other digital platforms, including Toon Goggles, PopJam, BatteryPOP and the Kid Genius channel on Comcast’s Xfinity on-demand platform. Set to follow are a feature-length film, as well as books, emoticons, apparel, craft kits and beauty products. “We’re proving you can launch a new brand on YouTube and hit the ground running with L&M,” Newman adds.

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Feature

Sesame Street, heading for a 50th anniversary

LICENSING AND MERCHANDISING

It starts with a great show From Hollywood majors to boutique indies, licensing and merchandising revenue has always been a key consideration for children’s content-owners. But it’s an unpredictable business, writes Andy Fry — the only certainty being that you need to start with a great show

preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Feature

Peppa Pig (Entertainment One)

HILE licensing and merchandising (L&M) revenues lack the predictability of production and distribution income and can be extremely tough to generate, a big retail hit such as Peppa Pig, Teletubbies or Thomas The Tank Engine can transform a company’s fortunes. DHX Media president and chief operating officer Steve DeNure says: “Ten years ago, when DHX launched, our revenues were almost entirely from production and distribution, but building up our L&M business was always a key target. Today, it plays a big part in our revenue mix, which is how it should be for an integrated kids’ content company.” DHX’s presence in L&M was boosted in 2012 when it took control of licensing agency CPLG as part of the $87.6m acquisition of Cookie Jar Entertainment. “But we have also made a number of other advances that have positioned us well in the consumerproducts business,” DeNure says. “The acquisition of producer Ragdoll gave us In The

Night Garden, Twirlywoos and Teletubbies, a classic pre-school property that we have successfully relaunched. We have also formed a wide-ranging partnership with Mattel around some of our properties, as well as with Iconix Brand Group on their classic property Strawberry Shortcake.” The Iconix deal is a great example of how DHX is using its existing skillsets to build its presence in the L&M business. Under the terms of the deal, DHX will produce an updated version of the property and distribute both the new series and Strawberry Shortcake back catalogue. Iconix will handle the L&M, but DHX will participate in the revenues generated. “We’ve shown in recent years that we know how to refresh classic properties. So this partnership is perfect for us,” DeNure adds. In terms of the way the business has changed, DeNure cites two big differences since DHX came into being: “The most significant change is that toy companies like Hasbro, Mattel, Lego and Spin Master have

understood that building a narrative world is critical to the ongoing success of their toy lines. They’ve done some fabulous work by focusing more of their energies on the relationship between consumption and viewing.”

“If you want to be in this business for the long term, the right partners are key” Andrew Carley

The other change, which is still taking place, is a re-assessment of the classic broadcast-retailer dynamic that has traditionally driven L&M. “We’re seeing significant viewership on YouTube for some of our shows — for example, Caillou,” DeNure says. “The toycos are very aware of what’s going on, but the traditional retailers are taking a bit longer to understand the power of the new distribution

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Feature platforms. However, I think we’ll see a shift because companies like Amazon and Alibaba in China play by different rules.” DH X’s emphasis on Teletubbies and Strawberry Shortcake is a reminder that classic brands still tend to dominate the L&M market. Maura Regan, senior vice-president and general manager, international media business, at Sesame Workshop, says: “Sesame Street remains one of the strongest pre-school properties globally and, as we are developing our 50th anniversary celebration [in 2019], we will have more licensees than ever. Furchester Hotel, which stars Elmo and Cookie along with a family of monsters, continues to do extremely well, with a comprehensive licensing programme in the US and key international markets rolling out.” Getting to 50 is no mean feat, especially given the range of pro-social activities that Sesame Street supports. Explaining the secret to the show’s success, Regan says: “The key to our longevity is to be as original today as when we first started. Our programmes and products

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are richer, and more thoroughly researched and tested to ensure they engage children in a way that maximises learning and has a measurable impact on their lives. Each new season is experimental. We work with childdevelopment experts and educators to find out what issues are impacting children and how we can best address those needs.” For Sesame Workshop, the non-commercial elements of its brand extension programme are as significant as the revenue generators, since they are part of the DNA of the property. Regan offers an example: “We announced a major autism initiative to help destigmatise autism, which provides resources to families, teachers and care-givers in the US. Our digital content includes Julia, a preschool girl with autism who does things a little differently when playing with Elmo, Abby Cadabby and Grover.” Like DeNure, Regan says 360-degree strategies need to be played out against the backdrop of an ever-changing media landscape: “In the last few years, the length and number of episodes needed to go to market has

changed. I remember the days when we produced well over 100 hour-long episodes of Sesame Street per season, and that was the norm for kids’ programming. Additionally these days shows are launching on YouTube, Netflix and Amazon, creating a direct-toconsumer experience.” A key part of Sesame Workshop’s response has been to sign a five-year deal with HBO that promises to future-proof the Sesame Street brand. It is a significant move for the show, which has traditionally aired on PBS in the US. Under the terms of the new deal, the show will have a new set and a lot more content. The current plans are for the number of episodes to double and new series to be spun off the flagship property. PBS has not been completely forgotten, however, with episodes coming to the channel nine months after they have debuted on HBO. Entertainment One’s (eOne) head of global licensing, Andrew Carley, agrees with his peers that the evolution of the media landscape has had an impact on the way

it’s a

BRAND NEW DAY on Sesame Street!

preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Feature “There is no formula any more. These days you have to be so much more flexible, innovative, insightful and experimental in your thinking” Charlotte Castillo companies build and sustain kids’ L&M properties. “There are two big differences,” he says. “The first is the speed channels burn through episodes of a show these days. There was a time when 52 episodes was regarded as sufficient. But, with channels airing 20 or 30 episodes of Peppa Pig in a single day, we’ve recognised the need for more content to keep kids interested. So we currently have more than 200 episodes.” The second difference is the need for content touchpoints across all forms of media platforms. “It’s not just about new TV content now,” Carley adds. “Social-media platforms like Facebook and mobile apps are great ways to communicate with the end user. But you have to keep changing and evolving your content to keep it fresh.” Peppa Pig is expected to be worth $2bn at retail by 2020 — a figure that will be achieved

through growth in existing markets and entry into new markets. But figures like that do not just happen, Carley says: “It’s a constant process of making sure you’re on the right platforms around the world and maintaining a close dialogue with licensing partners. If you want to be in this business for the long term, the right partners are key.” It is widely recognised that breaking new properties into the kids’ L&M business is tough, which is why so much money is spent on supporting existing brands. But it can happen, Carley insists: “Things are moving fast for us with PJ Masks, a pre-school series based on a French book series. The show is a co-pro with Disney that has been getting such strong ratings on their US channel that we brought our licensing plans forward.” Having Disney involved — and an experienced toy partner in the shape of Just Play — has helped with the planning on PJ Masks,

which centres on three young children who have a double life as superheroes. “But the fact that we have been through so many L&M scenarios with Peppa Pig is also a big advantage,” Carley adds. Many leading international L&M properties have originated in the Anglo-American market or Japan (think Pokemon, Power Rangers and Hello Kitty). But PJ Masks is a good illustration of mainland Europe’s growing influence. Other European brands to have built up momentum are Rovio’s Angry Birds, Rainbow Media’s Winx Club and m4e’s Mia And Me. In the case of the last property, created by Gerhard Hahn, m4e CEO Hans Stoef reports that his company is in production on season three, with season four and a movie in development. “Our view is that we need at least 100 episodes to support our plans for the brand,” he adds.

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Feature

Mia And Me (m4e) Like Carley, Stoef says it is not easy to break into an L&M market that is dominated by Hollywood majors and well-established toycos like Hasbro, Mattel and Lego. “If you want to stand any chance, you need to focus on the quality of your show, which is what we did with Mia, and you have to work with adaptable partners,” he says. “The competitive situation and broadcast scheduling in individual markets changes constantly, so you need to have plans in place for that. You also need to be ready to support your property when it reaches retail, because the retailer might put it on their shelves but not drive enough consumers to it.” Again echoing the eOne experience, Stoef says it gets a little easier when you take a second property to market, “because people know what you are capable of. We have another show called Wissper, created by Dan Good [Waybuloo]. That is now on TV in 65 territories via broadcasters including Channel 5 in the UK, ZDF/KiKA in Germany and Nick Jr in the US. Off the back of this, we have launched a big toy line developed by Simba Dickie.” Aside from production quality and the right partnerships, it is important to have

a 360-degree strategy for your brand from the start, advises Patrick Elmendorff, CEO of Studio 100 Media, which controls classic brands including Maya The Bee and Heidi, along with emerging properties such as Arthur And The Minimoys, Nils Holgersson, The Wild Adventures Of Blinky Bill and Night Watch. “The holistic exploitation of brands is at the core of all our business objectives,” Elmendorff adds. “Content is the heart of all our brands, but we plan a licensing and merchandising life for all of our brands. Content leads to publishing, toys, games, audio and DVDs.” Echoing his peers, Elmendorff says the 360-degree exploitation of a brand is not just about hitting commercial targets, but also about satisfying consumer expectations. For this reason, there is growing emphasis among IP-owners on experiences as well as products — anything from theme-park rides to live shows. “Maya is celebrating her 40th TV anniversary with events across the year,” he says. “In Slovakia, Lidl plans to open 10 Maya playgrounds in 2016 and more in 2017, after 1.5 million Slovaks voted for one in their community.”

Elmendorff says creating new content is critical to brand health: “We continuously invest in content. This is achieved by rejuvenating the brand with new stories, characters and designs. With Maya, season two of the TV series will air in early 2017 and a second movie, Maya The Bee – The Honey Games, is due for release in 2018. This fits alongside our new pan-European licensing agreements with partners including Varta and Schleich.”

“If you want to stand any chance, you need to focus on the quality of your show” Hans Stoef

The challenge for everyone, of course, is how to keep pace with the Hollywood majors. At Viacom, for example, Charlotte Castillo, senior vice-president of brand management and creative for Nickelodeon and Viacom Consumer Products (NVCP), work s on a por tfolio that i ncludes

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Feature megabrands Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, SpongeBob SquarePants, Paw Patrol and MTV. And coming up behind are highpotential pre-school properties such as Shimmer And Shine and Blaze And The Monster Machines.

“It takes effort to make a blip on retailers’ radars. You need patience” Jean-Philippe Randisi Despite the strength of this portfolio, which covers a wide range of children’s (and adult) demographics, Castillo says that the L&M business is more challenging than it has ever been. “I think two key things have changed,” she adds. “The first is that there is no formula any more. It used to be easier to plan a strategy well in advance. But these days you have to be so much more flexible, innovative, insightful and experimental in your thinking. A few years ago, for example, it would have been much harder to pull off The Lego Movie,

with all of its reliance on characters that belonged to third parties. Consumers are out there stretching your properties so much that you have to be open to that.” The second thing, Castillo says, is that content is coming from everywhere — TV, YouTube, toy companies — which means you also have to be competing in those areas. “It’s a lot more complex, but you’ve got to be excited by that,” she adds. On the subject of risk aversion among retailers, Castillo is optimistic that change is coming: “We spend a lot of time with retailers, educating them with our insights. As a result, I believe they are more open to change and more willing to take risks. They understand that content and audiences are everywhere now.” As a final piece of advice for anyone with L&M ambitions, Zodiak Kids CEO JeanPhilippe Randisi says: “It always takes far longer than you expect to break through. We are having some success with pre-school property Floogals, as well as Mr Maker, which does well in the arts and crafts niche. But it takes so much effort to make a blip on retailers’ radars. You need patience.”

Floogals (Zodiak Kids)

Shimmer And Shine (VIMN) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

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The Cartoon Network Anything app

DIGITAL

Keeping

up with the e-kids

Everyone agrees that great storytelling wins children’s loyalty. But while the same could be said of great books and linear TV, it’s the ability to interact with content that’s the killer application for digitally nurtured pre-school and pre-teen children. Juliana Koranteng reports

ELEVISION content and characters remain at the centre of kids’ attention in multi-screen homes in the world’s developed

markets. Today, children’s consumption of TV entertainment is growing fastest via interactivescreen devices. With parents’ supervision, they touch screens, swipe, click, download on-demand, send instant messages, share and access live streaming on smartphones and tablets. “Before, young audiences used to expect shows only on TV. Now they expect a more active engagement with what you offer,” says Rick Glankler, president and general

manager of FremantleMedia Kids & Family (FMK). In its K ids’ TV And The Future Of Entertainment white paper for MIPCOM, UK media research firm Ampere Analysis publishes a survey in 10 developed countries, including the US, the UK and Germany, that shows children younger than 10 are growing up in homes stocked with a host of interactive devices. These include smartphones, tablets, games consoles, smart-TV sets, streaming video set-top boxes and the fast emerging virtual-reality (VR) headsets. Thunderbirds Are Go demonstrates how the UK’s ITV Studios Global Entertainment (ITVS GE) has taken a 50-year-old kids’

puppetry sci-fi series — the 1960s show Thunderbirds — and used digital media to turn it into a contemporary multi-format entertainment brand. Steve Green, ITV SGE’s executive vice-president, kids’ content and distribution, emphasises the need for uncompromising quality. “As an action-adventure show for five- to 11-year-olds, you need to make sure that the content stands out visually and emotionally,” he says. “To engage with kids, it has to be very cinematic and have a wow factor. In the area of adventure, you’re up against blockbuster movies, so you’ve got to invest in something that does not come across as cheap.” To that end, ITVS GE worked with Pukeko

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Feature

Feature CURATED CONTENT FOR KIDS

Curious World

US EDUCATIONAL Publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) is at MIPCOM with its subscription app Curious World. Targeted at pre-schoolers aged two-toseven, it includes more than 800 educational videos, games and eBooks. The videos are a mix of original productions and acquired content from all

over the world. New content is added weekly and the app is free to download on iOS devices. With Curious World, parents create a profile on their child’s behalf and the app curates recommendations for kids to play, read, and watch. Content is selected by HMH early-learning experts based on the child’s age and development stage. The videos, games and eBooks are aligned to eight key learning areas defined by HMH early learning experts. “We developed the Curious World playful learning platform with the goal of

HMH’s CJ Kettler Pictures, part of New Zealand-based Weta Workshop, which was responsible for the spectacular scenes in movie franchise The Lord Of The Rings. Interactivity is also a must. In addition to the pending third series of Thunderbirds Are Go, there is an online game (Thunderbirds Are Go: Team Rush), an interactive storybook and a massive presence on social media. Based on demand, US-based public broadcaster PBS realised its PBS Kids slot, aimed at two- to eight-year-olds and traditionally scheduled for only the mornings and daytime, needs to be accessible round-the-clock. Interactive media is making that possible. PBS has launched live streaming on the pbskids.org website. Its dedicated 24-hour PBS Kids digital cable networks ensure fans can access content any time via the PBS Kids

Video mobile app and over-the-top set-top boxes, such as Google’s Chromecast, Roku and Microsoft’s Xbox One games console. PBS Kids shows like Daniel Tiger and Wild Kratts are educational as well, so additional related content is featured on social media so that parents and children can exchange ideas. The PBS Kids ScratchJr app teaches children to code, while its Kart Kingdom is a games-centric online virtual world in which kids are encouraged to explore their environment and complete tasks. Lesli Rotenberg, PBS’ senior vice-president and general manager, children’s media and education, says these strategic digital moves have yielded positive results. “The PBS Kids Video app has been downloaded 13.6 million times and has had over 12 billion streams to date,” she says. “On pbskids.org, games get more than two times as many page views as

licensing outstanding short-form content from producers worldwide, as well as partner on original production for a few select series,” says CJ Kettler, executive vice-president, consumer brands and strategy at HMH. “We look forward to MIPJunior where we can connect with our current international production partners, forge new relationships, and engage with potential local providers that can help us bring the Curious World subscription service to key international markets.” videos, and 1.1 million more unique users. Since launching in April 2015, Kart Kingdom has built up a base of over 1.2 million active users, who spend an average of 23 minutes in the game world. Additionally, the Kart Kingdom blog has had over 600,000 page views, with each post averaging 1,142 comments.” Like PBS, German public-service TV

“It has to be very cinematic and have a wow factor. In the area of adventure, you’re up against blockbuster movies” Steve Green

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Feature network KiKA aims to provide a safe, entertaining and educational environment for its young audience of three- to 13-year-olds. Its linear channel and VOD platform are complemented by a host of interactive ventures. Mein!KiKA is a social-media community devoted to an age group that is restricted as to what it can do on Facebook or Twitter. There is also Webtalk, a live-streaming platform that allows fans to engage directly with KiKA presenters and celebrities. Fans of Tim Gailus, the presenter of kids’ magazine show Timster, can collaborate on projects, such as developing a digital game with Gailus online when he is off air. “Kids primarily want to play games or watch videos online,” says Matthias Montag, head of KiKA Online. “That is why we intensely work on adapting TV programmes in a playful way and providing additional online video content — for example, tutorials, backstage footage or 360-degree videos. Our aim is to consider content and productions in an integrated way for all distribution channels.” FMK’s Glankler notes that competition for kids’ eyeballs is fierce. TV companies are competing against the 4,000-odd hours of children’s content spread over just the top-50 kids’ channels on YouTube alone, according to Ampere Analysis. That excludes the children’s content among the 400-plus hours of video uploaded on to YouTube every minute. “You break through that clutter by sticking to what’s true to your brand,” Glankler says. Among FMK’s major titles are Danger Mouse, the modern-day version of the 1980s animation hit, and the newly launched Bitz & Bob. FMK tries to reach existing and future fans on all social-media fronts with photos on Twitter and Instagram, pictures and video clips on Facebook, and longer videos on YouTube. Such expectations mean content creators also need to embrace technology more than ever. This gave Zodiak Kids Studios, part of Banijay Group’s Zodiak Kids company, a challenge when asked by the UK’s CBBC and ABC Australia to produce an interactive comedy for kids. “One of the questions we asked ourselves was whether we could make the interactive experience better than the linear one,” says Steven Andrew, UK creative director of Zodiak Kids Studios. Andrew, the series creator Anthony Farrell and interactive producer Trevor Klein came up with The Secret Life Of Boys. Aimed

at six- to 10-year-olds, it follows the secrets that emerge after an 11-year-old girl called Ginger, an only child from Australia, goes to live with her all-boy cousins in the UK. In addition to the 5 x 30 mins series, the show is available in 25 x 5 mins segments for children to interact with online and on mobile. For the interactive version, Klein stresses the need to understand how to apply digital technology to the production: “First, it’s not an app, because you watch it in the web’s browser. It’s a hybrid of linear storytelling and gaming, and developing games involves a lot of testing with players. Once every three to four weeks, we went to schools to test the footage. We didn’t want that horrible experience where you click [on the interactive version] and you get nothing.” Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, two long-established global brands in children’s TV, have also adopted interactive technology to remain engaged with digitally demanding viewers.

“One of the questions we asked ourselves was whether we could make the interactive experience better than the linear one” Steven Andrew

In Asia, Turner Broadcasting System’s Cartoon Network recently formed a partnership with leading Philippines mobile network Globe Telecom to offer enhanced versions of two apps: Cartoon Network Watch And Play and Cartoon Network Anything. They offer a variety of interactive content that is accessible any time and anywhere. Nickelodeon, a Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) subsidiary, has always stayed ahead of the curve when it comes to melding linear and non-linear video entertainment. “Our goal is to identify the ones hitting home with kids and reach them on as many platforms as we can,” says Kate Sils, vice-president, multiplatform and brand engagement for Nick International. The recently launched The Loud House, a “rich animation” series about a young boy with 10 sisters and the resulting sibling mayhem, is scheduled for the same treatment.

“You break through the clutter by sticking to what’s true to your brand” Rick Glankler In addition to posting content on websites and YouTube, Nickelodeon creates original content around its shows to feature on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. “For The Loud House, for example, we did a whole Instagram campaign where we introduced our fans to each sister,” Sils says. Original content related to Nickelodeon’s School Of Rock series, based on the Paramount Pictures movie of the same name, includes music videos and even guitar lessons by its stars on YouTube. When a move works in one Nickelodeon market, it is localised in others. A Spanishlanguage online pre-teen and teen magazine called Trendy By Nick for Latin America has proven to be so popular that a UKand-Ireland version called The Scoop was launched in June. The spate of digital-first entertainment and education networks seeking a share of the kids’ market includes Mumbai-based YoBoHo New Media. Acquired in 2015 by Canadian multichannel network (MCN) Broadband TV (BBTV) for a reported $10mplus, it operates the YouTube-originated HooplaKidz Network, a multiplatform service with more than 11,000 original videos on 30-plus channels. Examples of its repertoire include the Derrick And Debbie series, the All Babies Channel and The Adventures Of Annie And Ben. “There is huge growth in the online kids’ and family entertainment industry,” says YoBoHo founder and CEO Hitendra Merchant. “Prior to the launch of the YouTube Kids app [in 2015], YouTube had seen an overall increase in viewership of 50% on its platform, with the kids’ and family vertical experiencing 200% growth.” Meanwhile, the founders of the new UKbased online channel Kidspiration.TV want to inspire eight- to 12-year-old children — tomorrow’s adults — to appreciate factual content based on serious issues. Each episode of its first 10 interviews centres on a young person interrogating a high-profile personality, including renowned primatologist Jane Goodall and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales.

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Feature “Research shows there is a dearth of serious content created for kids in that age group. We need to show kids there nothing wrong with being smart,” says Laura Galloway, media strategist and the channel’s co-executive producer. Her joint executive producer is Jani Guest, managing director of UK commercials production firm Independent Films. “These are topics outside football and celebrities,” Guest adds. “So one of our primary purposes is to give children something to aspire to, to show that making serious content can be fun and entertaining.” UK edutainment content specialist Enabling Genius produces Phonics School, a 26 x 11 mins series that teaches the English language to preschool children and is currently distributed internationally by BBC Worldwide Learning. On discovering the huge demand for

“We’ve observed children walking up to television sets, touching the screen and wondering why nothing happens” Hana Rolles English literacy for kids by parents in China, Enabling Genius hooked up with Wisdom Edition, a Norwegian interactive book publisher with offices in Beijing and Shanghai. Wisdom Edition has agreed to create interactive books based on Phonics School to distribute via its e-reading platform Pickatale to some 20,000 schools across China. “We have learnt much more about Chinese

parents and their much higher appetite for edutainment,” says Enabling Genius cofounder Hana Rolles. “We’ve observed children walking up to television sets, touching the screen and wondering why nothing happens. So we’ve taken note of children’s expectation for uniformity of experience across devices and channels.” FremantleMedia’s Glankler expects the market for interactive kids content to get even more cutthroat. He refers to the phenomenally popular Pokemon GO, the freeto-play augmented reality (AR) game. The app broke all records after it was downloaded 50 million times in only 19 days. It has since been downloaded more than 75 million times. “When was the last time something of that magnitude happened instantaneously? It won’t be the last one to do so,” he predicts.

The Secret Life Of Boys’ interactive producer Trevor Klein

The Secret Life Of Boys creator Anthony Farrell

YoBoHo’s Hitendra Merchant

Enabling Genius’ Hana Rolles

Zodiak Kids Studios’ Steven Andrew

ITVS GE’s Steve Green

Kidspiration’s Jani Guest

Kidspiration’s Laura Galloway

KiKA Online’s Matthias Montag

FremantleMedia Kids & Family’s Rick Glankler PBS’ Lesli Rotenberg

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Feature

Arthur and the Minimoys (Studio 100)

INTERNATIONAL CO-PRODUCTION

Playing

together nicely

As with grown-up content, co-producing children’s shows is a good way to make more with less — as long as everybody’s playing the same game. Rachel Murrell hears from old hands and new in the business of kids’ co-production

FOR SOME, co-production is a necessary evil caused by the requirements of financing. But for NHK, co-producing three series of Discover Science (26 x 14 mins) — with different coproduction partners each time — made for a stronger, more international show.

The USP of Discover Science is large-scale and visually arresting stunts performed by scores — sometimes hundreds — of people in pink, blue and yellow coats. And the occasional giraffe. “It’s science entertainment for eight- to 12-year-olds,” says Miki Mori, the originator and former producer of the show. “We explain scientific theory by staging

experiments on a large scale. No presenters, no CGI — just ridiculously huge experiments shot with the latest filming techniques and presented in a humorous way.” NHK has form in educational content, but the idea of making science entertaining came from Al Jazeera Children’s Channel (JCC), its co-production partner on season one. “We

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Feature really thought about it and came up with the idea of scale and humour,” Mori says. “And by doing it without presenters or CGI, we try to convey the fun of learning through ‘superreal’ experience.” In 2012, the second season of Discover Science was co-produced with SWR / WDR in association with EBS. In 2015, the third season was made with South Africa’s SABC, Sweden’s UR and Taiwan’s PTS. And the show sells everywhere, from Vietnam to Brazil. “The series evolved each time we worked with a new partner,” Mori says. “In season two, SWR/WDR helped make the experiments more solid, and helped launch a digital component of the show. And in season three, working with SABC in South Africa, we did experiments overseas for the first time. In one episode, we asked a bushman to help us do an experiment and in another we featured a giraffe. In spite of our very different ways of working, we were rewarded with the success of experiments that we never would have imagined, and it helped us push our content into the African continent.” In animation, cross-cultural partnerships are proving productive for Cloth Cat Animation. The Cardiff-based company is involved in its first Anglo-Chinese co-production based on Chinese IP with China’s Magic Mall. “Luo Bao Bei (52 x 11 mins) is a pre-school series about a little girl’s adventures in the big wide world,” says Cloth Cat’s managing director, Jon Rennie. The character of Luo Bao Bei was created by Magic Mall’s Grace

Discover Science (NHK) Tian about 10 years ago. Luo Bao Bei is well known in China as the face of a public-safety campaign, and she has also had her own animated series there. But in making her relatable for a global audience, the co-pro partners are re-designing her visually, and surrounding her with a world of family, friends and fun. In short, Rennie says, “we’re making her an ‘every-kid’ — who just happens to be Chinese”. He adds: “The Chinese have a deep respect for world-class animation and are keen to learn. We’re working closely together on design, but script development is taking place in the UK, under the leadership of award-winning British animation writer Dave Ingham, and the writing will be done in the UK.”

Magic Mall will handle distribution in Asia, and Rennie is coming to MIPJunior to look for international distributors to handle the rest of the world. “It will be too early to show completed episodes,” he says. “But we’ll be able to share sample scripts, pitch documents and designs.” Another Chinese co-production is Kiddets. A spin-off of The WotWots, it is a collaboration between New Zealand’s Pukeko Pictures and Guangdong Huawen Century Animation Company. “Our Chinese partners are fabulous,” says Pukeko CEO Clive Spink. “We met when they were distributing Waybaloo in China and we went to the launch. They had a thousand product lines, all beautiful quality, and were very strong on protecting the IP and the brand.” Shared values really help, Spink adds: “They knew The WotWots and loved Martin [Baynton] and Richard [Taylor]’s work. Martin has written over 30 children’s books and has strong educational and pre-school values. They really value that.”

“When we collaborate, we want a true collaboration. When we hit a problem, it’s usually about things getting lost in translation” WotWots (Pukeko Pictures)

Clive Spink

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Feature BRANDATORY APPROACH

My Knight And Me (TeamTO) And they have a large domestic market. “They want to appeal to China’s burgeoning middle-class with strong moral and educational values,” Spink says. “They take a different approach to launching the IP from us. They’ll introduce it through toys and indoor theme parks first. Spink describes co-production as part of Pukeko’s DNA. “We’re at the bottom of the world and small, so we’re naturally outwardlooking and very accepting of difference,” he says. “And when we collaborate, we want a true collaboration. Richard, our principal, has been doing business in China for 20 years. We think about how we work, and we build trust. When we hit a problem, it’s usually about things getting lost in translation. So the process takes longer than you would normally expect, but we’ve built up a level of trust where we can be very direct and open.” He adds that Pukeko and Guangdong Huawen Century Animation Company are working very collaboratively on the design. “But the scripts are being written in New Zealand,” he says. “We have to have outlines of 52 episodes because the regulator SAPPRFT [State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television] needs to sign off on the storylines. And we have 13 scripts.” Henrietta Hurford-Jones, director of children’s at BBC Worldwide, is heading for MIPJunior with The Bagel And Becky Show, a fast-paced animated comedy for six- to 11-year-olds about a brother and sister who fight like cat and dog — which is in fact what they are.

“We’ve had our greatest success with creatordriven shows” Henrietta Hurford Jones “Although they fight, they are fiercely loyal and protective of one another,” HurfordJones says. “It’s laugh-out-loud funny and we’re screening episodes at MIPJunior, so don’t just take my word for it.” Hurford-Jones sees a lot of pitches and what impresses her most, she says, is passion. “We’ve had our greatest success with creator-driven shows,” she adds. “The Bagel And Becky Show has been a team effort with co-producers Radical Sheep in Toronto and commissioning broadcasters Teletoon Canada, but the creative vision of Dave Cooper [author-illustrator of the original book, Bagel’s Lucky Hat] has guided everyone during the production.” Corinne Kouper and Guillaume Hellouin of TeamTO are co-producing My Knight And Me with Belgian studio Thuristar. Created by Joeri Christiaen (Plankton Invasion), it is an animated comedy about an inept but chivalrous knight, his smart son Jimmy the Squire, and Jimmy’s best friend, Cat the Princess. The series is backed by Canal+ Family in France, and VRT-Ketnet and RTBF-Ouftivi in Belgium, with pre-sales to Teletoon+ in Canada, Super RTL in Germany and TSR in Switzerland, and distribution by Cake Entertainment.

STUDIO 100 Media, with its German/ French/Australian bases, brings three new co-pros to MIPJunior: Arthur And The Minimoys (26 x 26 mins), Nils Holgersson (52 x 13 mins) made with AA Studio, and The Wild Adventures Of Blinky Bill, produced by Flying Bark in association with Telegael Teoranta (Ireland) and Giant Wheel (India). “We take a brand perspective on our shows,” says Patrick Elmendorff, CEO of Studio 100 Media. “Whether the property is owned by us, or by our co-production partner, our approach is to work on the brand rather than just the project. We invest continuously in our brands, aiming to produce more than one season and expanding brands by producing feature films. With one production studio in France — the second largest animation market after the US — and one in Australia with the possibility to produce in English with regards to the Englishspeaking territories and international distribution, we are able to provide consistency and great planning reliability for our partners. And we always work closely with at least one co-producing TV channel in a key territory.” “It’s always a challenge to synchronise financing, because both sides have different calendars and partners involved,” Kouper says. “But ever yone’s keen to make it work, so it will.” Hellouin welcomes the introduction of the French Tax Rebate for International Productions (TRIP). “It’s a fantastic decision from the government to go from 20% to 30% of French spend,” he says. “It brings us to the same level as Canada and gives us the opportunity to work with the big players like Disney.” Access to talent, however, can be an issue. “There’s a boom in the French feature-film industry right now and we do high-end work, so we compete with the best feature-film studios in France,” Hellouin says. “The situation is a bit tense this year and next, but the schools produce 600 new artists each year, so we think within a year or two we will reach equilibrium.”

preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Feature TeamTO’s next co-production is with Canadian studio Digital Dimension, slated for delivery in 2018. Take It Easy Mike (78 x 7 mins) is a slapstick comedy about a stayat-home dog who wants to read his paper in peace, while the animals around him have different ideas. Inspired by silly pet videos, it’s family entertainment with a sweet spot of six- to 11-year-olds. David Michel, president and founder of Cottonwood Media and head of Federation Kids & Family, is a veteran of 18 co-productions. He says that, when relations break down, things can get very difficult: “The reason may be financial — a partner pulls out — or creative, when the partners don’t see eye to eye. And some producers sell different projects to different partners. But often, it’s your network that changes target demographic, and suddenly everything has to change. One side feels they aren’t getting what they wanted. The other partners see the show changing and don’t know why.”

The solution is simple, he says: “Have a strong showrunner and producer who are in the driving seat. The co-productions that don’t work are the ones where everyone’s on an equal footing and everyone wants the final call.” Michel cites his current series, Paris Opera, a co-production with ZDF and ZDF Enterprises, as one of his best experiences to date. “It’s a half-hour teen drama about Lena Grisky, a time-travelling ballet dancer from 1905 Russia who is trying to navigate her way through the perils of adolescence in the Paris of 2015,” he says. “It shoots on location in English with a US and British cast in the first quarter of 2017.” He adds: “ZDF had very specific requirements and we developed the show with that in mind. The showrunners, Jill Girling and Lori Matter Welch [creator of Nickelodeon series Ride] worked for us and ZDF, and new partners coming on knew that they had to sign up to that strong creative direction. We are happy to listen to them but, ultimately, it’s ZDF’s show.”

“The co-productions that don’t work are the ones where everyone’s on an equal footing and everyone wants the final call.” David Michel

And Michel’s next show will have similarly strong editorial direction. Love, Divina (60 x 45 mins) is a majority co-production between Televisa and Pol-ka of Argentina, with Federation Kids as a minority partner. “We’re producing it and distributing across Europe and Asia, but Pol-ka and Televisa are financing and have set a strong creative direction,” Michel says. “We had a say on major issues, but we signed up to their vision, and that’s why it’s so good.”

Paris Opera (Cottonwood Media) preview magazine I September 2016 I www.mipjunior.com

Tips & Services

Welcome to MIPJunior! Thank you for attending the show this year. There is much to think about to be fully prepared, so we’ve designed this section to help you make the most out of MIPJunior

Inside

1• USEFUL TIPS GETTING TO THE FRENCH RIVIERA

To ensure you start off with a bang, please refer to our Quick Checklist Things to do before the Show Have you prepared your transportation? Have you arranged your transfer to Cannes? n Have you booked your accommodation? If not, book now at www.mipcom.b-network.com and choose from a wide selection of hotels and apartments at special rates n Remember to print out your e-ticket before the show to save time on your badge collection at Registration n Have you connected the Online Database n

1• USEFUL TIPS

on my-mip.com to find out in advance who else is attending the show, to set up meetings and discover projects? n Have you checked the full show programme of MIPJunior conferences, screenings and events not to be missed? n As a buyer, have you created your playlist ahead of the show for the screenings library ?

GETTING TO MIPJUNIOR UPON YOUR ARRIVAL

2• SERVICES SCREENINGS LIBRARY CLUBS & CONFERENCE ROOMS

Find answers to all these questions on the following tips & services section. For more details please refer to my-mip.com

NEW APP FACILITIES

4 Where to get tickets: Desk at Terminal 1: outside arrivals, Gate A0. Opening hours: 8.00 - 23.00 Desk at Terminal 2: outside arrivals, between gates A1 and A2. Opening hours: 8.00 - 24.00

TRAIN FROM THE AIRPORT

The nearest airport is Nice Côte d’Azur International (NCE), which provides direct flights to many cities around the world. Promotion code (Air France and KLM): 27055AF www.airfranceklm-globalmeetings.com

• The Nice AirportXpress line to Cannes (bus N°210) goes to and from Nice Côte d’Azur International Airport and the Cannes bus station via Le Cannet everyday from 8.00 to 20.00 every 30 minutes. Journey takes 50 minutes. A one-way ticket costs €22 and a return ticket costs €33. uk.niceairportxpress.com

- Or take the 99 bus to the Nice Ville train station (buses depart every 30 minutes and cost €6). Trains from Nice Ville to Cannes depart every 30 minutes, a one-way ticket costs from €7. Book your train tickets at www.tgv-europe.com or by calling +33 (0)8 92 35 35 35

BY TRAIN

4Where to catch it:

GETTING TO THE FRENCH RIVIERA BY AIR

The Cannes train station is a short walk away from the Martinez. T: +33 (0)8 92 35 35 35 www.tgv-europe.com

GETTING TO MIPJUNIOR TAXI T: +33 (0)4 93 99 27 27 or book online: www.taxi-cannes.net/en/reservation BUS FROM AIRPORT You have several options for bus travel. Tickets must be bought beforehand.

Terminal 1: gate A0, platform 3 Terminal 2: between gates A1 and A2, platform 3 • Bus N°200 also goes to Cannes from Monday to Saturday at 20.45 and 21.55.

4Where to catch it: Terminal 1: platform 3

• Noctam’Bus N°200 will get you to Cannes in the evenings. It is available Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights and travels from 23.30 to 04.10 every hour and a half.

4Where to catch it: Terminal 1: platform 3

To get to Cannes from the Nice Airport you can: - Walk 15 minutes to Nice Saint Augustin train station. Trains from Nice Saint Augustin to Cannes depart every 30 minutes, a one-way ticket costs from €5,90.

CAR RENTAL If you wish to rent a car, our official partner Sixt can provide you with preferential rates. Promotion Code (up to 10% discount): 9963828* T: +33 (0)1 44 38 55 55 www.sixt.com *Please note that this reduction is subject to availability

HELICOPTER Azur Helicoptère operates regular 7-min flights between Nice Côte d’Azur International Airport and Cannes. A shuttle takes you from the Cannes heliport to your destination in Cannes. Show participants benefit from a negotiated rate of €160 per person. T: +33 (0)4 93 90 40 70 www.azurhelico.com / info@azurhelico.com

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Tips & Services PRIVATE TRANSFERS Chabé Limousines For short or long trips, from 1 to 8 people, rent a private car with driver and save over 20% with our official partner Chabé. Airport shuttles from Nice to Cannes: €120 (Sedan) or €140 (Van-8 pax) Evening offer* (4 hours): €340 *For quotes and bookings, visit: www.chabe-limousines.com/en/events/miptv

For more information: riviera@chabe-grandsud.com T: +33 (0)4 93 43 90 91 SHUTTLES TO OUR PARTNER HOTELS In partnership with KOCCA

MIPJunior offers you free shuttle service to and from our partner hotels if you are staying outside Cannes during the market. Timetable available on my-mip.com

UPON YOUR ARRIVAL USEFUL INFORMATION ABOUT CANNES Address: Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez 73 La Croisette – 06400 Cannes T: +33 (0)4 93 90 12 34 or visit cannesmartinez.grand.hyatt.com Country dialling code: +33 Time zone: GMT +1 Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50 Hz. Round two-pin plugs are standard. Measurement system: Metric Currency: Euro SECURITY MEASURES FOR MIPJUNIOR Please be informed that bag checks will be undertaken at the entrance to the hotel. Thank you for your assistance. These measures are installed in accordance with French Government’s Plan Vigipirate security regulations. YOUR BADGE Your Badge is your primary means of identification during the market. It provides access to the conference sessions, networking events and the screenings library (buyers only) during opening hours. Please carry it at all times, and be ready to show it at entry and security checks. Do not exchange your badge with anyone. Even if your photo does not appear on the badge, it will appear on security guards’ monitors when they scan it. Shared badges will be confiscated and not returned.

Important E-ticket: E-tickets will be sent to you via email a few days before the show. They include a barcode for ID recognition. Print it out to collect your badge at a self-service delivery point or scan the QR Code on your smartphone and save time at the Registration area.