Canada-based animation studio Cuppa Coffee has started a new division called Lemon Squeezy Interactive that will focus only on mobile and online content.
The new division’s debut product is an app for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch based on the Cuppa Coffee property Bruno and the Banana Bunch, debuting this spring.
“It’s an exciting time for content producers, with distribution systems such as the App Store offering direct access to the end user,” says Adam Shaheen, Cuppa Coffee president and executive producer. “While our business model is still grounded in television animation, we are keen to apply our creative expertise towards new ways of reaching the consumer. With twenty years producing series content, commercials and broadcast design, we’re in a good position to develop unique properties for the digital space.”
Creative Producer Brendan Russell, who has been developing original series’ and specials at Cuppa Coffee Studios for more than ten years, will be the driving force behind the newly hatched department, working with top programmers to exploit current Cuppa Coffee IP and develop new properties for the digital space.
“While the digital space is becoming increasingly competitive, we’re seeing a lot of great content that looks beautiful but doesn’t engage in any meaningful way,” said Russell. “We’re looking to expand the Cuppa Coffee brand with compelling interactive content that champions great design and intuitive functionality.”
While the team is tight-lipped about future offerings, Shaheen let slip that they are currently developing an app with a stop-motion aesthetic, a style that the studio is well known for. “We have yet to see anything available that utilizes stop-motion animation in a meaningful way,” he explains, “there’s nobody better qualified to meet that challenge, than us!”
