Toronto-based independent entertainment co. Boat Rocker (boatrocker.com) is sending its preschool hit Dino Ranch across the pond, having been lassoed by U.K. free-to-air broadcaster Tiny Pop. Season 1 (52 x 11′), which premiered on Disney Junior/Disney+ in the U.S., will air every day at 8 a.m. & 5 p.m. starting April 2, with support from a robust digital and social campaign.
Celebrating teamwork and friendship, the action-packed series follows the “pre-westoric” adventures of the tight-knit Cassidy family and their lively herd of racing, roaring dinosaurs. Dino Ranch continues to be ratings hit amongst Kids 2-5 on Disney Junior and CBC Canada ,where it premiered in January 2021. Now sold to over 160 countries and in 15+ languages the show continues to delight fans all over the world, and the official YouTube channel has accrued over 100 million views. S2 is currently in production to premiere in the U.S. this summer, including a tentpole special.
In parallel to the broadcast rollout, Boat Rocker has developed a robust consumer products program for the property. Following a successful launch of the toy range in the U.S., Canada and Australia last year, master toy partner Jazwares is bringing its dynamic Dino Ranch range to retail in the U.K. this summer, complemented by publishing from Scholastic and to be followed with a selection of soft lines including apparel, dress up and bedding.
Another top kids’ entertainment shingle based in Toronto, Guru Studio (gurustudio.com) has just celebrated the launch of its own preschool series success Pikwik Pack in China. The colorful show is available on leading streamers including Tencent, Youku and Mango, together with agreements with national OTT providers such as Xiaomi, Haixin, Kukai and TCL and national IPTVs, covering over 60 platforms in over 30 provinces.
The property is represented by Reesee Entertainment in China, which is handling all licensing & merchandising categories including toys, apparel, publishing, accessories, and games, as well as broadcast television and digital media. In the U.S. and Canada, a range of toys by master toy partner Playmates Toys and books by Scholastic have already launched on Walmart.com, Target.com and on Amazon.
Pikwik Pack debuted on Disney Junior U.S. and is currently streaming on Hulu. The series also airs internationally on Treehouse Canada, Tiny Pop in the U.K., Super RTL in Germany, Rai Yoyo in Italy, YLE in Finland, Canal Panda in Portugal and Spain, HOP in Israel, Minimini+ in Poland, Channel 5 in Singapore, Disney Channel in Korea and India, and on Disney+ in Australia and New Zealand.
N.Y. & L.A.-based 41 Entertainment LLC (41e.tv) has secured additional partners for its upcoming animated series S.M.A.S.H! (52 x 11′), slated to premiere globally in 2022 and 2023. Created by Allen Bohbot based on an original idea by Kaaren Lee Brown and illustrated by Mel Bontrager and Will Sweeney, S.M.A.S.H! is set in a one-of-a-kind sleepaway camp located on Lake Sebastian in Bavaria, where four amazing kids with superpowers – Streak (Nice, France), Rocket (Cape Town, South Africa), Flare (Glasgow, Scotland) and Vitória (São Paulo, Brazil) – train as the next generation of superheroes, and their dogs – Felicity, Lightning, Blaze and Rio – train to become super sidekicks. At the center of this team is Mei Lien, a mechanical genius from Guangzhou, China who is constantly inventing customized vehicles and accessories for her teammates with the help of her mechanical pet, Ping.
Discovery Kids Latin America, Discovery TV Frisbee in Italy and Mango TV in China have taken exclusive rights in their respective territories joining previously announced HBO Max in the U.S., partner Super RTL in Germany and Discovery Family Channel and Discovery Familia in the U.S. Additional new partners include Knowledge Network in Canada, HOP! in Israel, Sanoma Media/Nelonen Media in Finland, TV2 in Hungary, MBC in the Middle East, HKTVE in Hong Kong and many more in discussion or negotiation.
Award-winning Singapore studio One Animation (oneanimation.com) has secured a new wave of VOD and linear international sales across its portfolio of hit series. “The continued interest we have in our world class kids’ animated comedies from leading broadcast platforms and new VOD partners is extremely rewarding,” said Michele Schofield, SVP Content Distribution. “We’re delighted for every opportunity to entertain kids and families around the world.”
- In a multi-territory deal, Netflix has picked up Season 3 of Oddbods, with the latest installment replacing S2 on the platform in April 2022. In Europe, TFOUMAX (France) has renewed S2 and Trenitalia (Italy, Vatican City, San Marino & France) has picked up the on-board entertainment license for Oddbods short-form.
- For Asia, Singapore-based distributor Bomanbridge Media has sold Insectibles to Radio Television (Brunei) and Antiks to Mediacorp (Singapore). Further deals include EBS (Korea) for Oddbods S3 and all four seasonal specials, with Daekyo (Korea) also taking S1-3, the four specials and the short-form of Oddbods. In Indonesia, VIDIO has picked up S2&3 of Oddbods long-form.
FuturumKids (futurumkids.com) has a busy MIPTV planned: The team, including Global Head of Sales Brendan Kelly and CEO Francis Fitzpatrick, will be attending the show to discuss pre-sales and L&M partnerships for its newest preschool property Ling Ling with potential broadcast and licensing partners., while Futurum’s distributor, Monster Entertainment, will focus on developing additional territories for its fast-growing children’s hit Paddles. FuturumKids will also be highlighting plans for new projects, including a major U.K. children’s book property that the company has acquired with the aim of beginning work on another preschool series later this year.
Ling Ling is the story of a wide-eyed panda newly arrived from Shanghai at Tavistock’s International School for Animals, London’s premier – and most eccentric – preschool educational establishment. Ling Ling launched at the 2021 Cartoon Forum to a very positive response and is now in pre-production at Futurum’s studios in Las Palmas.
The studio’s first pre-k series, Paddles has already been sold to Cartoonito U.K. and has aired on Ireland’s RTE. It’s also on its way to the Stan streaming service in Australia thanks to a deal brokered by Monster Entertainment, appointed in early 2021 to handle global television sales for Paddles in all territories except Korea. More major broadcast deals are imminent.
More sales & expansions:
- Prime Entertainment Group has secured a deal with pubcaster NHK to bring award-winning short film Vanille, A Caribbean Tale to Japan.
- Sinking Ship Entertainment and Fred Rogers Productions‘ Emmy-winning Odd Squad Season 1 has launched in France on-air (France 4) and online (Okoo) through France Télévisions.
- Sky Cinema offers a trio of animated feature premieres in the U.K. this month: DreamWorks Animation’s Spirit Untamed (April 2) and The Boss Baby: Family Business (April 8), plus PAW Patrol: The Movie (April 16) from Spin Master/Mikros/Nickelodeon/Paramount.
- Cartoonito, WarnerMedia’s preschool brand anchored by “Humancentric Learning,” has made its Asian debut as a morning programming block on Cartoon Network in Japan (March 1) and in Southeast Asia and Korea (March 28).
- Disney+ has confirmed launch dates for the 42 countries and 11 new territories set to launch this winter. The streaming service will launch in South Africa on 18 May 2022. Pricing has been announced at R119.00 per month, or R1 190.00 for an annual subscription.
- Paramount+ has allied with C&W Communications to bring its premium content exclusively to subscribers of Flow and BTC video services in more than 15 new markets, including Anguilla, The Bahamas, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands. Additional markets may be announced in the future.
