Comedy Central Announces Development Of Two New Animated Series (THR)

The Little Prince Wins Top French Export Award (AnimationMagazine)

Canadian Province Funds March Entertainment studio (The Sudbury Star)

Sticky Pictures, Kyla May Productions and Brown Bag Films have today announced they will co-develop and co-produce the animated tween comedy series Dream Factory (52 x 12’).

Dream Factory is a comedy series that follows the adventures of apprentice-dream maker Tommy Winks in the Dream Factory, a magical dream-making studio in the clouds. As an apprentice to the mythical Sandman, Tommy is learning to master the art of dream making. It’s not just about extraordinary ingredients and getting the recipe right; every night Tommy has to put on a showstopper that puts his audience to sleep – and keeps the Bogeyman at bay.

Dream Factory is designed and created by prolific creative director, brand creator and designer Kyla May (Smirk, Flea-Bitten, Kyla May Missbehaves, SheZow). It will be produced by Australia’s Sticky Pictures (Me & My Monsters, Pearlie, Dennis & Gnasher) and award-winning Irish animation studio Brown Bag Films (The Octonauts, Olivia, Noddy in Toyland)

Donna Andrews, CEO & Executive Producer, Sticky Pictures said: “Sticky is thrilled to be working with Brown Bag Films on Dream Factory. The concept has a delicious mix of mischief-making, magic and mayhem. Combined with Brown Bag’s impressive track record in stunning design and production, Dream Factory will be a visual feast and wonderfully entertaining.”

Jennie Stacey, Development Executive, Brown Bag Films added: “We were instantly drawn to the fantastical comedy setting of Dream Factory and are very excited about working with Sticky Pictures to bring these great characters and magical stories to life onscreen.”

The Dream Factory has been developed with the assistance of the Australian Children’s Television Foundation.

New York, December 5th, 2011 – The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced today the launch of The International Emmy Kids Awards, a new competition and stand-alone ceremony, solely dedicated to recognizing excellence in children’s television programming produced and initially aired outside of the United States.Six new categories have been created for this event: Kids: Preschool; Kids: Animation; Kids: Factual; Kids: Non-Scripted Entertainment; Kids: Series, and Kids: TV Movie/Mini-Series. The inaugural awards ceremony is scheduled for February 2013 in New York City. Entries into the kids competition will run concurrent with The International Emmy Awards competition which opens December 6th and closes February 15th, 2012. The 3 rounds of judging for these 6 categories will take place throughout the summer and fall of 2012. Rules and regulations can be found on the Academy’s website at http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_entry.aspx.

The management team of leading children’s and family entertainment producer and rights management company Coolabi today announced that their £4.95 million management buyout, funded by Edge Performance VCT, has been declared unconditional in all respects.

Edge, a leading specialist fund in the entertainment and media sector, partnered with Coolabi’s Chief Executive, Jeremy Banks, and the rest of the Coolabi management team, to effect the buy-out and take the company private.  The buy-out was made through North Promotions plc, a company funded by Edge.

The deal will give Coolabi access to significant additional funds which will allow the company to invest in support of its current portfolio of brands, develop new properties and grow the business through strategic acquisitions. An initial £1 million will be made immediately available.

Under the terms of the agreement, Coolabi will de-list from London’s Alternative Investment market (AIM). The board will comprise Jeremy Banks as Chief Executive, Gordon Power as Chairman, Tim Ricketts as Finance Director and William Harris as Non-Executive Director. Coolabi’s management team will remain in place with Michael Dee as Director of Content, Zoe Scurfield as Head of Development & Production and Natasha Dyson as Head of Licensing.

“Edge is excited to strengthen its involvement with Coolabi. Coolabi has a well-respected portfolio of assets and management team and, with the addition of Edge’s financial support, its prospects are excellent. We have supported the business since becoming a shareholder in November 2009 and we believe that the business will continue to develop under the strategies being pursued by the executive management team,” says Gordon Power, Chairman.

Jeremy Banks, CEO of Coolabi adds: “We are thrilled to be embarking on a new chapter in our long-standing, successful relationship with the team at Edge. We are, perhaps, in a unique position amongst small independent media companies in the UK of having significant funds available to both develop original content and acquire some of the exciting intellectual property assets and businesses that will undoubtedly become available in the next few years.”

(Toronto, ON, December 2, 2011) – TELETOON starts the holidays right by adding the animated series Mad to its already hot programming lineup. This cult-classic will begin airing December 5 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Produced by Warner Bros. Animation and inspired by the iconic Mad magazine, published by DC Comics, Mad a 15-minute sketch-comedy series that utilizes a twisted mix of humor and animation styles in order to pull back the curtain and expose the sordid truth behind movies, TV shows, games and, of course, curtains!

Alfred E. Neuman, Spy vs. Spy and other classic Mad icons are on board to help skewer the viewer, because no one and nothing is safe from Mad’s barrage of pop culture parodies and punch lines.

Studio Ghibli Makes Event Anime for Nico Nico’s 5th Anniversary (AnimeNewsNetwork)

Chinese Video-Sharing Site Tuduo Starts Original Cartoon Production Studio (Penn-Olson)

Robot Chicken Quartet Led By Seth Green Launches New Animation Studio (Deadline)

AnimeNewsNetwork.com is reporting that Japanese animation director and character designer Shingo Araki passed away on Thursday. Araki worked on a number of anime projects, including Yu-Gi-Oh!, The Rose of Versailles and the Saint Seiya series. In addition, he worked on several 1980s American productions like Inspector Gadget, The Adventures of the American Rabbit and G.I. Joe: The Movie. Toei Animation released a statement about Araki’s passing, saying:

We are very sorry to hear about the sudden passing of Mr. Shingo Araki. We offer our deepest sympathies to his family.

Mr. Araki was a great animator who was adept at creating dynamic action anime sequences and elegant character designs beloved by many fans. At our studio, he was deeply involved with many works, such as Babel II, Cutie Honey, UFO Robo Grendizer, and Saint Seiya, which have transcended the times and continue to attract fans even now. He infused lively charm into his characters.

All of us at Toei Animation are deeply grateful for his kindness and contributions during his lifetime and express our heartfelt condolences.

Animationmagazine.net is reporting that prominent French television animator Bruno Bianchi passed away this morning. Bianchi was a co-creator of the popular Inspector Gadget series in the early 1980s, and worked on a number of animation shows as a writer, director and artist. Services for Mr. Bianchi will be held on Tuesday (Dec. 6) at Le Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.

Leading Canadian CGI Animation Studio Will Partner With Top Creatives to Expand Its Reach to Include Branded Opportunities Across Multiple Media Platforms

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Dec 02, 2011 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — Catherine Winder, President and Executive Producer of Rainmaker Entertainment, the Vancouver based multifaceted animation studio, has hired formidable New York and LA-based management and production firm Circle of Confusion to support the company’s expansion of its current slate of animated feature films. Putting this effort on the fast track, Circle of Confusion will identify brand building opportunities across multi-media platforms for Rainmaker’s library of animated characters and properties.

Effective immediately, Rainmaker Entertainment will be represented by Circle of Confusion’s David Alpert and Ken Freimann who will work with Winder on identifying the new properties and talent for the digital and emerging platforms including online, mobile and social media, and, in the process, taking its animated film slate to a new level.

Currently, Rainmaker Entertainment is in production on Escape From Planet Earth, an animated feature film which will be distributed The Weinstein Company in 2012 and stars the voice talents of Brendan Fraser, Jessica Alba, Sarah Jessica Parker and James Gandolfini. Rainmaker Entertainment’s most recent effort, Luna, premiered at SIGGRAPH 2011 and has been accepted into the competition at numerous festivals.

“There is so much that Rainmaker can offer the entertainment community, regardless of the platform,” said Winder in making the announcement. “Whether it’s translating an existing film or TV brand for online, mobile and gaming or developing an original property for all of today’s engagement platforms, Circle of Confusion understands the expertise that Rainmaker brings to the table.”

“We are thrilled to be working with Catherine and her talented management team at Rainmaker to take the company in this new direction,” said Freimann. “Based on both our experience in developing properties for the entertainment community and our ability to package and represent creatives’ potential, we’re confident in our ability to guide Rainmaker through its next growth phase, shepherding a development slate that is ripe with possibility.”

Alpert added: “Catherine and the Rainmaker team have a wealth of characters and storylines that are enormously appealing to today’s all-encompassing entertainment universe. The company’s development slate is overflowing with engaging stories and characters and we look forward to bringing them to audiences around the globe.”

Beverly Hills, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 animated short films will advance in the voting process for the 84th Academy Awards®. Forty-four pictures had originally qualified in the category.

The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company:

Dimanche/Sunday, Patrick Doyon, director (National Film Board of Canada)
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, directors (Moonbot Studios LA, LLC)
I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat, Matthew O’Callaghan, director and Sam Register, executive producer (Warner Bros. Animation Inc.)
La Luna, Enrico Casarosa, director (Pixar Animation Studios)
Luminaris, Juan Pablo Zaramella, director (JPZtudio)
Magic Piano, Martin Clapp, director and Hugh Welchman, producer (BreakThru Films)
A Morning Stroll, Grant Orchard, director and Sue Goffe, producer (Studio AKA)
Paths of Hate, Damian Nenow, director (Platige Image)
Specky Four-Eyes, Jean-Claude Rozec, director and Mathieu Courtois, producer (Vivement Lundi!)
Wild Life, Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, directors (National Film Board of Canada)

The Short Films and Feature Animation Branch Reviewing Committee viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting in screenings held in New York and Los Angeles. Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will now select three to five nominees from among the 10 titles on the shortlist. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco in January 2012.

Avant Garde Animation Takes Over Madison Square Park (DNAInfo)

Animation Hotbed City Glendale Gets Animated Image Makeover (Los Angeles Times)

Perez Hilton Gushes On “First Animated Lesbian Sci-Fi Film” (PerezHilton)

Naruto’s Rock Lee Gets Spinoff Anime (AnimeNewsNetwork)

HOUSTON, December 1, 2011— Sentai Filmworks proudly announces the company’s acquisition of distribution rights for the critically acclaimed animation masterpiece Grave of the Fireflies.  Based on the semi-autobiographical retellings of survivor Nosaka Akiyuki and directed by Iaso Takahata (co-founder, with Hayao Miyazaki, of Japan’s legendary Studio Ghibli, the studio that performed the animation duties for the film,) Grave of the Fireflies has been universally hailed as both an artistic and emotional tour de force, with famed critic Roger Ebert calling the feature “An emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation” and stating that “it belongs on any list of the greatest war films ever made.”  Sentai Filmworks is extraordinarily honored to have been given the privilege of handling the digitally restored version of one of the art of animation’s true crowning achievements.

As the Empire of the Sun crumbles upon itself and a rain of firebombs falls upon Japan, the final death march of a nation is echoed in millions of smaller tragedies.  This is the story of Seita and his younger sister Setsuko, two children born at the wrong time, in the wrong place, and now cast adrift in a world that lacks not the care to shelter them, but simply the resources.  Forced to fend for themselves in the aftermath of fires that swept entire cities from the face of the earth, their doomed struggle is both a tribute to the human spirit and the stuff of nightmares.  Beautiful, yet at times brutal and horrifying, it is a film that perhaps only the animated medium could render without completely overloading human senses, transforming the fog of war and the screams of the dying into what Ebert calls “visual poetry.”

Digital distribution of Grave of the Fireflies will begin through many outlets this winter, and a DVD of the digitally restored master will be in stores next year.