European feature artists, producers and directors have a great cure for the winter blues. This week, many of them are descending on the beautiful city of Bordeaux to attend the annual Cartoon Movie event (March 7-9), which is the best spot to pitch, finance and generate interest for upcoming cinematic projects. This year, over 800 producers, directors, writers, distributors, sales agents, broadcasters, video game companies and new media players from Europe and beyond will be attending the 20th edition.
This year, 60 projects from 22 countries have been selected to be pitched at Cartoon Movie 2018: 21 of them are concepts, 26 are in development, six are in production and seven are sneak previews. France will be represented by 18 projects, followed by Germany with seven projects and Spain with five projects, Denmark with three projects, and Belgium, Czech Republic, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and South Korea with two each. A majority of 48 projects out of the 60 selected are comedies aimed at families and children.
Among the event’s highly anticipated titles are:
- Terra Willy (In Development; TAT Productions/BAC Films, France). This new adventure by Eric Tosti tells the story of a boy and his robot companion on an uncharted planet, discovering its fauna, flora and dangers.
- A Greyhound of a Girl (In Development; Paul Thiltges Distributions, Luxembourg/ The Illuminated Film Co., U.K./Aliante, Italy). Enzo d’Alò’s charming adaptation of Roddy Doyle’s novel is an affirmation of life and all its mysteries.
- The Last Whale Singer (Concept; Telescope Animation, Germany). This new movie from Reza Memari (Richard the Stork) raises awareness about saving oceans.
- In the Dark and Mysterious Forest (Concept; Je Suis Bien Content, France). This poetic new film by Alexis Ducord (Zombillenium) is an adaptation of Dans la Forêt Sombre et Mysterieuse by Winshluss, a.k.a. co-director Vincent Paronnaud (Persepolis).
- Bartali’s Bicycle: Hopes for Tomorrow
- Coppelia (In Development; Submarine Animation/3 Minutes West, Netherlands; Lunanime, Belgium; MotionWorks, Germany). This modern fairy tale is told using live-action dancers of the Dutch National Ballet where 2D characters are placed in 2D/3D backgrounds.
In addition, three Cartoon Connection projects will be presented at Cartoon Movie to expand the collaboration established at Cartoon Connection Canada and Korea. They are:
- From Canada: Brad, the Pomerleaus’ Genie by Pierre Greco (10th Ave Productions), selected at the last Cartoon Connection Canada by European broadcasters’ representatives from CBeebies, CBBC, France Télévisions, Turner Broadcasting Systems Europe, RAI and Canal+ France.
- From South Korea: Millionaire Woody by Jay Jang (Studio Gale) and Make the Princess Laugh by Youncheol Jeong (Anitoart), selected at last Cartoon Connection Asia by European broadcaster representatives from France Télévisions, BBC & CBBC, Turner EMEA and YLE.
- From the Czech Republic: The Precious Gift by Lenka Ivancikova (Animation People). This project was pitched at Cartoon Springboard 2017, an initiative dedicated to the emergence of young talent.
Cartoon Movie is organized by CARTOON with the support of Creative Europe —MEDIA, CNC (Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée), Région Nouvelle Aquitaine, Bordeaux Métropole, the city of Bordeaux and Pôle Image Magelis.
Check out all the 2018 Cartoon Movie projects here.
Spanish Spotlight
This year’s spotlight country is Spain, which is celebrated for its acclaimed artists, innovative and well-recognized digital software companies, and its new animation incentives. There are eight projects selected for this special focus:
- Dragonkeeper (Dragoia Media, in development)
- Another Day of Life (Kanaki Films, in sneak preview)
- Elcano & Magellan, The First Voyage Around the World (Dibulitoon Studio, in production)
- Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles (The Glow Animation Studio, in production)
- Unicorn Wars (Abano Productions & UniKo, in development)
- Gabo – Memoirs of a Magic Life (The Glow Animation Studio, in concept)
- The Impossible Journey (El Viaje Imposible/3 Doubles Producciones, in concept)
- Trip to Teulada (12 Pinguinos, in concept)
By the Numbers
- No. of films pitched at Cartoon Movie since 1999: Over 300
- Total budget of films pitched at the event since 1999: 2 billion euros
- Most popular target demo: Families and Children, 42 out of 60
Young adults, 14 out of 60
