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Academy adds seven members to its Science and Technology Council

Know-How

licensing

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October 5, 2017

Academy adds seven members to its Science and Technology Council

Bringing the council’s 2017–2018 membership roster to 25, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had invited Nafees Bin Zafar, Maryann Brandon, Bill Corso, Andrea Kalas, Ai-Ling Lee, Leon Silverman and Steve Yedlin to be members of the Science and Technology Council. All of them have accepted the invitation.

A brief:

Nafees Bin Zafar, a technology development supervisor at Digital Domain, has worked in live-action visual effects and feature animation for the past 17 years.

He received a 2007 Academy Scientific and Engineering Award for his work on the development of Digital Domain’s fluid simulation system, and a 2014 Academy Technical Achievement Award for the development of large-scale destruction simulation systems.

His software has been used in a number of films like Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, 2012, The Croods and Kung Fu Panda 3.

Inidentally, Zafar also serves on the Academy’s Scientific and Technical Awards Committee and the Digital Imaging Technology Subcommittee. He became a member of the Visual Effects Branch in 2017.

Film editor Maryann Brandon earned an Oscar nomination for her work on Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Her credits include films such as Star Trek, Star Trek Into Darkness and Passengers. She is currently working on the feature The Darkest Minds for 20th Century Fox.

Brandon has been a member of the Academy since 1998, and also is active in the Directors Guild of America, American Cinema Editors and Women in Film. This month she appears in TCM’s Trailblazing Women series.

Bill Corso is an Oscar-winning makeup artist and designer whose recent credits include Deadpool, Kong: Skull Island, Blade Runner 2049and the upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

His desire to bridge the gap between practical, on-set makeup and digital technology led him to create Digital Makeup Group, specializing in CG beauty work, age manipulation and makeup effects done from an expert makeup artist’s perspective.

He has been a member of the Academy since 2004 and has served as governor of the Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch and chair of its executive committee. He has also served on the Academy’s Preservation and History Board Committee.

Andrea Kalas, vice president of archives at Paramount Pictures, has restored or preserved more than 2,000 films and is a technical innovator in systems for digital preservation and archive-based analytics.

She also is a public advocate for preservation and film history through the Association of Moving Image Archivists, where she currently serves as president. She recently joined the Academy as a Member-at-Large.

Born in Singapore, sound designer Ai-Ling Lee earned Oscar nominations for Sound Editing and Sound Mixing for La La Land. Her credits include films like Buena Vista Social Club, Spider-Man 2, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Godzilla,Wild, Deadpool and Battle of the Sexes. She has been a member of the Academy’s Sound Branch since 2014.

As general manager, Digital Studio for the Walt Disney Studios, Leon Silverman oversees digital studio services, which provide postproduction on-lot infrastructure, mastering, digital distribution services and workflow expertise.

He is a past president and founder of the Hollywood Professional Association, a trade association focused on the professional media content creation industry. He currently serves as governor-at-large of the Society of Motion Picture Television Engineers and is an associate member of the American Society of Cinematographers and affiliate member of ACE.

He has been an Academy Member-at-Large since 2015 and serves on the Members-at-Large executive committee.

Steve Yedlin is a cinematographer best known for his collaboration with director Rian Johnson on his films Brick, The Brothers Bloom, Looperand Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

He has made ongoing contributions to industry technical awareness and education with his short film demos, papers and seminars. Yedlin has been a member of the ASC since 2015, a guest lecturer at the American Film Institute since 2011, and a member of the Academy’s Cinematographers Branch since 2016.

The Council’s 16 other returning members are Wendy Aylsworth, Academy president John Bailey, Rob Bredow, Annie Chang, Douglas Greenfield, Rob Hummel, Academy governor John Knoll, Beverly Pasterczyk, Cary Phillips, Joshua Pines, Douglas Roble, David Stump, Steve Sullivan, Bill Taylor, Academy vice president Michael Tronick and Beverly Wood.

Established in 2003 by the Academy’s Board of Governors, the Science and Technology Council provides a forum for the exchange of information, promotes cooperation among diverse technological interests within the industry, sponsors publications, fosters educational activities, and preserves the history of the science and technology of motion pictures.

Sony gives up filming rights of Sonic the Hedgehog

Movie Licensing

licensing

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October 5, 2017

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Sony gives up filming rights of Sonic the Hedgehog

According to reports, Sony has allowed film rights of its iconic video game Sonic the Hedgehog expire. This means a film adaptation from Sony will no longer materialize.

This could go either ways, a sad day or a happy day for the fans of the videogame depending on how they feel about a film adaptation from Sony Pictures.

But there is still hope for those who really want to see a Sonic film, regardless of which studio is at the helm, as Paramount Pictures has taken over the project and has retained key players.

Some of the people who have stayed on include Deadpool director Tim Miller as producer along with Blur Studio’s Jeff Fowler and Neal H. Moritz of the Original Film.

According to initial reports, the film will use hybrid live action and CGI which could be a point of contention for many fans, if the mixed reaction towards 2006’s Sonic the Hedgehog game is any indication.

Mattel goes for a lot of new appointments

Toy Licensing

licensing

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October 5, 2017

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Mattel goes for a lot of new appointments

With former Sprint executive Joseph (Joe) Euteneuer joining as CFO and Sven Gerjets taking over as CTO, Mattel has carried out lot of appointments to support its transformation strategy.

Additional appointments include Amy Thompson as chief people officer and Nancy Elder the toymaker’s new chief communication officer.

In his role as CFO, Euteneuer will work with Mattel’s senior management team and board of directors to provide financial and administrative leadership. He replaces Kevin Farr who left the company on September 29, and will report directly to CEO Margo Georgiadis.

Earlier, Euteneuer served as CFO at Sprint Corporation and before that, he held CFO roles at Qwest Communications, XM Satellite Radio and Comcast Corporation.

Gerjets will be responsible for all aspects of technology implementation, including shared technology platforms, analytics, software and hardware development, and connected products. He previously served as chief product officer at software startup n.io Innovation, and as chief information officer at Time Warner Cable.

In her role as CPO, Thompson will focus on building a progressive human resources organization and establishing a high-performance company culture. Thompson joins Mattel from TOMS Shoes, where she served as head of HR.

Elder, meanwhile, will oversee all aspects of communications, including corporate, employee, brand, government affairs and the Mattel Children’s Foundation. Previously, Elder was CCO at JetBlue Airways Corporation and was responsible for managing media relations, internal communications, social media and crisis communications.

Unveiled in June, Mattel’s five-pillar strategic plan will see the company right-size its dividend by more than half to free up resources for reinvestment.

In the last few months, Mattel has been focused on building its Power Brands including American Girl, Barbie, Thomas & Friends, Fisher-Price and Hot Wheels–into 360-degree connected systems of play and experience.

Jim Henson Company signs multiple distribution deals for Splash and Bubbles

TV Series Licensing

licensing

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October 5, 2017

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Jim Henson Company signs multiple distribution deals for Splash and Bubbles

The Jim Henson Company, an established leader in family entertainment for over 60 years, has signed multiple new distribution deals for its underwater CGI-animated adventure series Splash and Bubbles co-produced with Herschend Studios. The series is being currently airing in the U.S. on PBS KIDS.

MBC GROUP, through its Kids Edutainment Channel MBC3 has secured basic cable and satellite rights to Splash and Bubbles in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region as well as worldwide Arabic language rights.

Netflix has acquired global streaming rights; Fox Latin American Channel LLP has secured rights for Nat Geo Kids and POD Worldwide has acquired free TV rights for Thailand. Canadian public broadcasters TVO (Ontario) and Knowledge Network (British Columbia) acquired the broadcast rights to the series earlier this year.

“The Jim Henson Company name is synonymous with quality entertainment and Splash and Bubbles continues that legacy meeting the needs of traditional and digital media partners around the world,” commented Ian Lambur, Management Consultant, The Jim Henson Company. “Our new clients will introduce Splash and Bubbles and their humorous adventures to kids everywhere, inviting them to explore the teeming life within our ocean, and encouraging them to care for this essential part of the earth we all share,” he added.

Created by John Tartaglia Splash and Bubbles that premiered in fall 2016 on PBS KIDS encourages kids between ages 4–7 to explore the diversity and spectacle of our natural undersea world.

Developed with an advisory panel of top marine biologists, digital media innovators and pre-school educators Splash and Bubbles is produced using the Emmy Award-winning Henson Digital Puppetry Studio, a proprietary technology from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™ that allows puppeteers to perform digitally-animated characters in real-time, enabling the animation to be more lifelike and spontaneous.

Splash and Bubbles is produced by The Jim Henson Company and Herschend Studios, the media arm of Herschend Enterprises While the Jim Henson Company oversees all distribution and merchandising for the property, Herschend Enterprises administers all location-based themed entertainment rights, including live-shows. The series is funded in part by the Corporation for public broadcasting and by the National Science Foundation.

Shellhut Entertainment and Tiny Island Pictures set to sign a 10-feature film co-production MOU with Wings Media

Entertainment Licensing

licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Shellhut Entertainment and Tiny Island Pictures set to sign a 10-feature film co-production MOU with Wings Media

Shellhut Entertainment Co.Ltd. and Tiny Island Pictures will sign a 10-feature film co-production MOU with Wings Media, a member of Oriental Pearl Group and a wholly owned subsidiary of China’s 2^nd largest media group, Shanghai Media Group.

The first two named is a joint venture between Thailand’s Shellhut Entertainment Co.Ltd. and Singapore’s Tiny Island Productions.

The cooperation will be confirmed at its signing ceremony at MIPCOM 2017. Valued at an estimated USD$250 million, this will be the biggest animation film cooperation in Asia and the first ever China-Singapore-Thailand animation co-production.

The first film produced by the joint venture will integrate Wings Media’s sci-fi centric hit reality TV series Starship MZ: 2049 with Tiny Island Productions’ award-winning animated series Dream Defenders.

It is expected to be completed for release in 2020, with a new film based on a new IP to be rolled out each following year.

The long term goal will be to build China’s own version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that will entertain audiences worldwide.

Shellhut Entertainment and Tiny Island Productions had earlier partnered to produce Shellhut Entertainment’s hit animated TV series project Shelldon.

This venture is part of the Shellhut Entertainment’s Strategy to expand its media footprint in Asia, and IPs from these films will be used to build theme parks in Thailand.

“We are dedicated to searching the globe for the best film and television content,” said Dr. Jwanwat (Tan) Ahriyavraromp, CEO of Shellhut Entertainment. “We are confident that this partnership will introduce the world’s audience to the new, exciting and unique flavors of Asia,” he added.

An international team of animation veterans will be assembled to lead the development and production of the films, led by director Paul Chung who has worked for feature film studios like Dreamworks, Walt Disney, Warner Brothers and MGM, on films such as Who framed Roger Rabbit, Space Jam, Shrek, Madagascar, Megamind and Jungle Book.

Wings Media views Shellhut and Tiny Island Pictures as important long-term partners and will use this partnership to lay the foundation for more extensive collaborations in the future to create more quality content for international markets.

Xilam signs a restaurant deal with Grani & Partners S.p.A.

Food & Drink

licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Xilam signs a restaurant deal with Grani & Partners S.p.A.

Xilam, the award-winning French animation production company, has signed a deal with Grani & Partners S.p.A. to provide Italian burger and steak house, Old Wild West, with Oggy & the Cockroaches 3D figurines which will be included in their children’s meal options.

Brokered by Xilam’s Italian licensing agent Discovery Kids, the deal will run from October 2017 and will be available in more than 160 Old Wild West restaurants across Italy.

Oggy & the Cockroaches figurines will come in four different varieties and will be based on season 5 (Oggy through the Ages) of the show.

Said, Marie-Laure Marchand, SVP Global Consumer Product & Media Distribution Asia-Pacific, USA and UK, “Season 5, the latest season of Oggy & the Cockroaches, is bursting with potential for promotional opportunities, so we’re delighted to partner with Old Wild West in Italy – the first restaurant chain promotion based on the new season.

There’s even more fun in store for young diners at Old Wild Wests across Italy with their favorite characters from the show joining them for meals.”

This particular deal strengthens Xilam’s licensing activity with the following categories; collectible toys, toys and games, publishing, apparel, food, meets and greets, accessories, and health and beauty.

The deal also adds to Xilam’s growing presence in Italy, where Discovery Italy’s kids’ channel K2 will launch season 5 of Oggy & the Cockroaches this month.

Saban Brands details its Power Rangers continued EMEA expansion

Uncategorized

licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Saban Brands details its Power Rangers continued EMEA expansion

Following the recent U.K. premiere of Power Rangers Ninja Steel, the 24^th season of the iconic TV series and before the franchise’s 25^th anniversary, Saban Brands has shared details of its Power Rangers continued EMEA expansion that is being fuelled by new content, fresh product lines, engaging retail initiatives and comprehensive marketing activity.

Following the March 2017 release of the feature film Saban’s Power Rangers with Lionsgate, Saban Brands is bringing fresh content to its U.K. fans with the TV series’ 24^th season, Power Rangers Ninja Steel that premiered in August and is currently rolling-out across EMEA.

New broadcast partners continue to come on board and this year Saban Brands has welcomed Neox (Spain), POP (Italy), E-Vision (UAE), Gulli Arabi (Middle East), Smile TV (Greece) and London Live (UK) to its expanding line-up.

Saban’s Power Rangers is a top boys action brand in the U.K. and to support the new TV episodes, Saban Brands and longstanding toy partner Bandai are teaming with major retailers across EMEA who are lining-up to stock the Ninja Steel products and proactively supporting the launch.

To generate excitement in France, hypermarket Auchan and toy specialist JouéClub will host Power Rangers meet and greet events.

In addition, JouéClub will have flagship window displays and will be promoting their activity through radio advertisements.

Saban’s Power Rangers partners continue to be attracted to the broad EMEA licensing programme that now boasts almost 50 licensees.

Bandai has launched a brand new Ninja Steel line of action figure and role-play toys. New additions to Saban Brands’ line-up include Sambro for backpacks/arts & crafts, IMC for RC and electronic toys, as well as Tech 4 Kids for ‘Mashems’ and ‘Blastems’.

Alongside these deals, Saban Brands has recently renewed its long-standing partnerships with Rubies (dress-up) and AFG Media (Morphsuits) and continues to see significant growth with apparel partner Smith and Brooks.

In June last, Saban Brands launched a successful DTR deal with UK retail giant Tesco, that saw a range of personalised gifting items including stationery, drink bottles, phone cases and much more launch online that fans can customise with their name.

Cartoon Network details comprehensive first collection of EMEA licensing partners in EMEA

TV Series Licensing

licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Cartoon Network details comprehensive first collection of EMEA licensing partners in EMEA

The latest recapitulation of Cartoon Network’s enduring original franchise Ben 10 made a spectacular debut on TV screens across EMEA in October 2016.

Now with the show delivering consistently great ratings and broadcast exposure being boosted through free-to-air deals, Cartoon Network has detailed its comprehensive first collection of EMEA licensing partners secured in the region.

The EMEA merchandise programme is being anchored by master global toy partner Playmates with Giochi Preziosi Group on board as the pan-European marketing and distribution partner and Flair distributing the range in the UK.

The innovative toy range that includes figurines, role-play items and play sets began hitting shelves across Europe in July this year heavily supported by creative retail activations.

Building on the early success of the toy launch, Cartoon Network is assembling a robust line-up of partners for additional key categories and products will begin rolling out this Autumn/Winter.

In the UK, kicking off the apparel and accessories category are Smith & Brooks (daywear), Fashion UK (daywear), Cooneen Group (nightwear and underwear), Drew Pearson International (accessories) and Roy Lowe and Sons (socks).

The first publishing licensees signed are Centum Books (master publishing partner) and Panini (magazine) while in homewares Dreamtex (bedding) and Zak (lunchware and drinkware) are on board.

In Spain and Portugal, the brand’s first partners include Air Val Iberia (personal care), and Kid Licensing Iberia (watches and lights). For fans in Poland, Uroda (bedding) and Smyk (apparel, footwear and accessories) will expand the Ben 10 merchandise offering and in Turkey, Zorluteks Tekstil Ticaret Ve Sanayi A.S. builds the homewares category. In Italy, Commerciale Campana Srl (footwear) and Original Marines (apparel and accessories) join the line-up while Sun City Sasu is developing kidswear and fashion accessories for the Italian and Iberian markets.

Additionally, Skybrands is on board for bedding and kidswear in the Nordic region and will also launch bedding in Germany.

In a raft of pan-European deals, Cartoon Network has also signed IMC (walkie talkies, board games), Mondo (inflatables) and Ferrero (Kinder Surprise Eggs). A brand-new Ben 10 video game from Outright Games will also launch across EMEA in November.

“After all these years, Ben 10 has maintained significant momentum and playground credentials thanks to its combination of relatable characters and exciting action-adventure that really appeals to kids and fires up their imaginations” explains Maria Rosaria Milone, Senior Director, Category Management & Agent Markets, Cartoon Network Enterprises EMEA. “The outstanding sales success that we’re seeing for Playmates’ new toy range has laid a strong foundation for the wider Ben 10 licensing programme. We’re delighted to be revealing such high calibre partners who will introduce fresh, innovative and creative products and give our fans the best possible experience of the brand,” she added.

Targeting a new generation of boys 4-8, the all-new Ben 10 sees the energetic, fun-loving, Ben Tennyson return in his original and favourite form, as a 10-year-old boy who transforms into aliens. In Q2 2017 alone, Ben 10 reached an enormous 178 million individuals across the globe.

Anima Kitchent and toy maker Clementoni in an agreement to launch toys based on Cleo&Cuquin

Toy Licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Anima Kitchent and toy maker Clementoni in an agreement to launch toys based on Cleo&Cuquin

Anima Kitchent and toy maker Clementoni have signed an agreement to launch a line of educational toys based on Cleo&Cuquin. The toys include puzzles, Edukit toy cases and electronic, interactive, recreational and creative games, all of which will hit the shelves in Spain in autumn next year.

Clementoni will be supporting Mattel which was recently named global Toy Master for Cleo&Cuquin on positioning the brand in the Spanish market.

The first line of Mattel products are to launch in time for the Christmas 2018 campaign.

The series is set to air on Clan TV (Spain), Discovery Kids (Latin America), Televisa’s Canal 5 (Mexico) and Hop (Israel) in November this year.

This initial expansion into the international market will be underpinned by new broadcasting agreements in a range of markets in the coming months, which will position Cleo&Cuquin firmly as a strong global brand.

Targeted at pre-schoolers aged four to five, Cleo&Cuquin features the Telerin brothers and sisters, especially big sister Cleo and the baby of the family, Cuquin. Each episode sees the little kids tackle a big adventure as Cuquin’s mischief gets Cleo and her brothers and sisters into trouble, and they come up with solutions the only way kids know how: by playing!

They pretend to be astronauts, gardeners, detectives, monsters or whatever they need to be to get the job done. Best of all, at the end of every episode, Cleo figures out what she wants to be when she grows up… at least for that day!

Familia Telerin was a brief cartoon aired by TVE in the late 60s which was hugely popular as it featured a catchy song telling kids it was time to turn off the TV and head for bed, helping parents with the tricky task of settling them down for the night.

The clip aired for two decades in Spain and was also broadcast in Latin America, where it featured in TV programming for many years.

With a view to rekindling this success and a clear international approach, Televisa joined forces a year ago with Anima Kitchent, MAI and Selecta Vision to co-produce the new transmedia brand based on the Familia Telerin.

Cleo&Cuquin has brand new scripts, updated characters and a meticulous design. As well as the TV show, the brand boasts apps, including the El Acostador bedtime app, web content and music video clips. Cleo&Cuquin launched on the Familia Telerin’s YouTube channel, and after just a year and a half its 17 music video clips have chalked up over 600 million views and 1.5 million subscribers.

Anima Kitchent CEO Víctor M. López said, “Clementoni’s line of educational toys will play a crucial role in positioning this pre-schooler-targeted brand. The Mattel-Clementoni tandem will ensure we can furnish the market with quality toys that meet the expectations of kids and parents alike.”

Clementoni CEO Pilar Amaro added, “We are convinced that the launch of this educational toy line based on Cleo&Cuquin will be a huge success in Spain; as Mario Clementoni once said – and this sums up the company’s philosophy perfectly – ‘Growing up is a wonderful game, and our job is to help children learn whilst having fun’.”

Anima Kitchent and Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial in a publishing agreement

Publishing

licensing

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October 4, 2017

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Anima Kitchent and Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial in a publishing agreement

Anima Kitchent and Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial have reached a publishing agreement for children’s books based on Cleo&Cuquin.

As per the agreement, a range of book formats will be published including story books, educational books, early reading books, painting and colouring books and activity books. These will be on sale from standard retailers in Mexico, Spain and the rest of Latin America as of spring 2018.

Broadcasting is set to begin on Clan (Spain), Discovery Kids (Latin America), Televisa’s Canal 5 (Mexico) and Hop (Israel) in November 2017, a few months before the Cleo&Cuquin book launch to give the young viewers time to get to know the series.

Cleo&Cuquin (52×7’) is targeted at pre-schoolers aged four to five and features the Telerin brothers and sisters, especially big sister Cleo and the baby of the family, Cuquin.

Every episode will see the little kids tackle a big adventure as Cuquin’s mischief gets Cleo and her brothers and sisters into trouble and they come up with solutions the only way kids know how: by playing!

They pretend to be astronauts, gardeners, detectives, monsters or whatever they need to be to get the job done. Best of all, at the end of every episode, Cleo figures out what she wants to be when she grows up… at least for that day!

Familia Telerin was a brief cartoon aired by TVE in the late 60s which was hugely popular as it featured a catchy song telling kids it was time to turn off the TV and head for bed, helping parents with the tricky task of settling them down for the night. The clip aired for two decades in Spain and was also broadcast in Latin America, where it featured in TV programming for many years.

With a view to rekindling this success and a clear international approach, Televisa joined forces a year ago with Anima Kitchent, MAI and Selecta Vision to co-produce the new transmedia brand based on the Familia Telerin.

Cleo&Cuquin has brand new scripts, updated characters and a meticulous design. As well as the TV show, the brand boasts apps including the “El Acostador” bedtime app, web content and music video clips.

Cleo&Cuquin launched on the Familia Telerin’s YouTube channel, and after just a year and a half its 17 music video clips have chalked up over 600 million views and 1.5 million subscribers.

Toy maker Mattel recently announced that it had been awarded the worldwide Toy Master License for Cleo&Cuquin.

The first line of products is set to be rolled out in Mexico in time for Christmas 2018, following the TV debut of the show in the North American country.

This initial expansion into the international market will be underpinned by broadcasting agreements in a range of markets in the coming months, which will position Cleo&Cuquin firmly as a strong global brand.

In relation to the agreement, Víctor M. López, CEO of animation house Anima Kitchent, said, “For content like Cleo&Cuquin, which is seeking to position itself as an entertainment brand, a strong publishing strategy is key; Random is the perfect partner to approach that challenge with absolute confidence. Books are a source of fun for kids and help forge very positive links with parents, which we see as a way of instilling reading habits in kids from a very early age.”