SPECIAL EDITION CARTOON FORUM / MIPJunior 2017
THE ANIMATION GAZETTE drawn by animation
FLANDRIENS HIT TOP FORUM Whenever Cartoon Forum comes to town, the Flandriens of Animation are never far behind. As Toulouse prepares to welcome the 2017 edition of this venerable TV animation pitch and co-production event, toon talent from across Flanders is climbing into the saddle and hitting the road. This year the charge is led by A Private View, who have teamed with Beast Animation to pitch Mister Paper, a stop-motion, cut-out animation series about a man with a cut-out solution for every situation. They are joined by Ghent-based producer Lunanime, which is pitching Ollie, a pre-school series created by Anton Setola about a group of animals who have adventures in a small, forgotten city park. Many animation series under way in Flanders, or recently released, have free-wheeled through
Cartoon Forum in recent years. In 2012 writer-director Joeri Christiaen pitched his medieval comedy My Knight and Me, which has since been sold globally by CAKE Entertainment to Turner’s channels. It is now available on Cartoon Network and Boomerang in over 100 countries, including the US. He followed up in 2014 with a meta spin-off called Roger Flambé: animated actor, which is now under development with Disney Channel EMEA. Also riding well is Beast Animation’s George
RICH PITCH FOR CUT & PASTE HERO A Private View is best known for live-action fiction features, such as Moscow Belgium, Oxygen and Vincent, but its heart also beats for animation. In particular the Ghentbased producer loves stop-motion, teaming with fellow Flandriens Beast Animation to make magical TV series for kids. Their first outing was Rusty, based on books by Sieb Posthuma about a puppy growing up and exploring the world. This model
Mister Paper
Catherine
Britt Raes’ animated short Catherine is a runaway success, receiving invitations from 55 film festivals (from Tehran to Austin, Texas) and collecting nine awards on its travels. It tells the story of a young woman who loves her pet cat, but finds it increasingly hard to connect with other people. Will she find love, or is she destined to become a crazy old cat lady? Creative Conspiracy in Ghent is the producer.
WHAT IS A FLANDRIEN, P.3
PARK LARKS AFTER DARK
Ollie
In a world dominated by 3D animation, Lunanime is committed to 2D, from hand-drawn to computer animation. “There are a lot of artists that still have something to tell us, and who want to explore, and we want to be there for them, to help them develop new things,” says production head Annemie Degryse. One of these is Anton Setola, whose atmospheric short Jazzed toured over 70 festivals around the world, picking up several awards in the process. Now he is working on Ollie, a series for pre-schoolers set in a small park, enclosed and forgotten, in the middle of the city. It’s here that Ollie the baby owl and his friends -- a small stork, a young frog and five little birds -- play and have adventures. Ollie was pitched at Cartoon 360°, the market for cross media animation, and will also appear at Cartoon Forum. As well as producing, Ghent-based Lunanime has an in-house animation unit,
StudioLumière, which made important contributions to Oscar-nominated feature A Cat in Paris and Phantom Boy, both by Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol. Its 15 animators are now busy with feature co-production Funan, by Denis Do, about a young woman trying to survive the Khmer Rouge regime. The company is also developing several other feature co-productions, including: Tulip by Felicioli and Gagnol; The Siren by Sepideh Farsi (pitched at Cartoon Movie this year); I Lost My Body by Jeremy Clapin; and Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Pierre Foldes.
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animation series charmed broadcasters and won a cinema release in Belgium. Their next project is Mister Paper, a series in a classical cut-out animation style to match his cut-and-paste hero. Mister Paper cuts out and sticks together his world. He lives in a paper house, set in a paper landscape. His only companion is a cat, but thanks to his scissors and his imagination, he is never alone. For every situation, he creates a solution by cutting or pasting something new. Through his adventures, the world of children is brought to life in a playful, imaginative manner. A world rooted in reality, where anything is possible. The 26 x 7’ series is based on original work by Elvis Peeters and Gerda Dendooven, noted writers and illustrators of kids’ books in Flanders. The series will be coproduced by Beast Animation, Viking Film and VRT/Ketnet and pitched at this year’s Cartoon Forum.
& Paul, a stop-motion series about two friends made of coloured wooden blocks. The series is finished and the episode Sleepwalking was selected for this year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival. Distribution 360 is handling international sales. Fox and Hare sped through Toulouse in 2014 and is now in production. This tale of forest folk is based on the famous children’s books by Sylvia Vanden Heede, with illustrations by Thé Tjong-Khing. Tom Van Gestel and Mascha Halberstad direct, with Walking The Dog and Submarine producing. Also under way are Elvis & Benny, produced by Haptic, and Interstellar Ella, a BBC co-production with Flemish smarts from Grid Animation. Both were presented at Cartoon Forum in 2015.
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BEAST STOP SHOP RUNS NON-STOP It’s all go for Beast Animation, the versatile stop-motion studio set up by Steven De Beul and Ben Tesseur in 2004. The pair recently finished the animated series Rusty and George & Paul, and they are currently working on the pilot of Mister Paper for production company A Private View. This inventive cut-and-paste series will pitch at Cartoon Forum. In November, they will start animating the second season of Dimitri, a collaboration with French animation studio Vivement Lundi! Dimitri is a little bird from northern Europe who has landed on the plains of Ubuyu in Africa, where being different is a distinct advantage in the adventures of daily life. Beast is also in pre-production with Coppelia, a feature length film combining animation and ballet which the studio is developing with the Dutch National Ballet. Higher up the pipeline are a feature on the legendary horse Bayard and a new series Sex, Say What?
George & Paul
CYBORN’S DRAGON TAKES FLIGHT 3D animation specialist Cyborn is beginning production on Dragon Rider, a feature adaptation of Cornelia Funke’s best-selling fantasy novel. It tells the story of Ben, a boy who goes on a quest with a silver dragon called Firedrake and a brownie called Sorrel to find a place where the dragons can live in peace. As well as co-producing this Constantin Film production, Cyborn’s team of 50 in Antwerp will handle all the character modelling and rigging, along with 75 minutes of character animation and grooming for the production. Cyborn is also wrapping production on Ploey -- You Never Fly Alone, an animated adventure film already sold in more than 60 countries (release end 2017), and developing an ambitious sci-fi project called Hubris.
DOG PREPARES NEW TRICKS Two new series are sprinting into production at Walking the Dog, the boutique animation studio founded by Eric Goossens and Anton Roebben. The first is Fox and Hare, about a surprising mix of animals living in a forest. Stories revolve around good-humoured Fox and sensitive Hare, who solve problems in an original and creative way.
Fox and Hare
The 26 x 11’ series, combining clay models and 3D animation, is directed by Mascha Halberstad and Tom Vangestel. It is based on books by Sylvia Vanden Heede, illustrated by Thé Tjong-Khing, whose Picnic With Cake was a past Walking the Dog project. The second series is The Memets, a 26 x 13’ series in which six characters have wacky adventures while trying to find out about their world. They don’t realise, yet, that they are all essential components of a child’s brain. Also in the pipeline are the features Hump, by Rob Gibbs; Anne Frank by Ari Folman; and Charlotte by Bibo Bergeron. The recently finished Richard the Stork (DE-NO-LU-BE), by Reza Memari and Toby Genkel has been sold worldwide.
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IT’S GREAT TO MUTATE WITH ELVIS & BENNY
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Best friends Elvis and Benny may live in a post-apocalypse world, but they are not down-hearted. They live high above the ground, safe in their tree house, having a laugh and falling in love with Toucane, a beautiful seahorse mermaid. But danger lurks below in the form of Sandy, a giant blue subterranean rabbit lobster. The wild world of mutation in Elvis & Benny is the brainchild of Flemish TV veteran Stef Wouters, who pitched the 2D animated series at Cartoon Forum in 2015. His company Haptic is
Mush-Mush and the Mushables
ADVENTURE AND MUSH MUSH MORE Mush-Mush and the Mushables community were created by Flemish artist Elfriede de Rooster. This charming forest universe is now making its way to the small screen thanks to La Cabane Productions in France and Thuristar, the Belgian company headed by Joeri Christiaen and Perrine Gauthier. Mushables are Guardians of the Forest, each with a special talent; while Mush-Mush can
communicate with nature, Chep has a huge memory and Lilit glows. But as kids, they all still have a lot to learn about the amazing world surrounding them and about themselves… The 52 x 11’ CGI series for upper pre-schoolers is currently in development with French network CANAL+, in coproduction with VRT-Ketnet and with kids’ entertainment specialist CAKE joining as co-producer and international distributor. The producers are aiming to greenlight production beginning of 2018.
Ninjas deliver success for CC Elvis & Benny
co-producing with Wknd Barcelona, with support from the VAF/Media Fund and broadcasters VTM/KZOOM and TV3 Catalonia. The 26 x 5’30” series is due to deliver in March 2018.
Creative Conspiracy’s Three Little Ninjas are riding hard for the finish line. The pilot for this slapstick series, Three Little Ninjas Delivery Service: Damsel in Distress, was selected for last year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and is currently touring events around the world. CC is currently in financing phase for the series, in a co-production with eOne Entertainment. CC specialises in developing and producing character-driven animation for commercials, television series, short films and features. Its portfolio includes kids’ series Uki and Klumpies, with OttO’s Tall Tales and BaDaBoo (pitched at Cartoon Forum in 2014 and 2016 respectively) also in development.
ROLLING WITH THE FLANDRIENS Telidja Klaï - VRT/Ketnet
If you are producing an animated series, you’ll want a Flandrien on your team. Flemish animators can take on any terrain, from 2D (handdrawn and computer animation), to 3D and stop-motion. And they know how an international co-production rolls, adding their drive to series such as Minuscule 2, My Knight and Me, Dimitri, Percy’s Tiger Tales, and What’s the Big Idea. “The Flanders region has 22 production companies specialised in animation projects, 10 animation studios, and currently we have 25 feature-length movies in the pipeline and 30 animated series,” says Eric Goossens, vice-chairman of animation producers’ association Anim.be and producer at Walking The Dog. Flemish producers connect with broadcasters VRT/Ketnet and VTM/KZoom, both keen investors in original, high-quality animated content, and with local digital platforms Proximus and Telenet. Flanders also boasts excellent post-production facilities, such as sound recording, scoring and dubbing. The support team for all this activity is the
What the Flandrien!? They call them Flandriens, badassed cycle racers who force their machines over the cobbled roads and murderous hills of Flanders, oblivious to the cold and the rain. My Knight and Me
Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF), whose cash and coaching are there to drive the Flandriens of animation onwards. In 2016, the VAF/Film Fund gave over 2.1 million EUR to 22 animated projects, including co-productions, and the VAF/Media Fund channelled 1,260,000 EUR into 11 animated series. Screen Flanders supports audiovisual productions that spend part of their budget within the region, providing an average of 912,000 EUR to animation projects annually. Since its launch in 2012, the main Screen Flanders fund has supported
GRID LIFTS LID ON NEW TOONS
20 animation projects. International projects qualify through their Belgian co-producers, and if the qualifying expenditure occurs in the Flanders region, co-productions can apply for up to 400,000 EUR from the Screen Flanders economic fund. If spending is eligible for the Fund, then it also counts for the Tax Shelter, a governmentapproved tax incentive that encourages investment in audiovisual projects. This puts an average of 14 million EUR into animation in Flanders every year.
“A Flandrien is passionate, dedicated and hard-working, and he is a team player,” explains Telidja Klaï of kids’ TV channel VRT/Ketnet. “And the Flemish animation scene is also very dedicated, passionate, hardworking and full of team players. No mountain is too high for Flemish animators.” The Flandrien grit and determination drives Flemish animators to climb new heights, using their skills to emerge from the pack and sprint towards glory. “Flemish animators push the boundaries of the genre every day by making things that are unique and of a very high quality, and by working at the highest international level.”
FAB FANTASTIQUE WORKS KNIGHT SHIFT Fabrique Fantastique has just wrapped production on the pilot of Sir Mouse, a 2D cut-out animation series for kids between 6 and 9. It concerns the unusual friendship between Mouse, who stubbornly insists that she is a knight, and Dragon, who gently puts up with all her nonsense. Sir Mouse is based on the Mouse & Dragon books written by Dirk Nielandt and illustrated by Marjolein Pottie. The series challenges
preconceptions about traditional gender roles in an entertaining and colourful way. Pitched at Cartoon Forum in 2016, Fabrique Fantastique is producing with Scopas Medien in Germany and Flemish broadcaster VRT/Ketnet. The company is also busy writing Juul, its first animated feature. This 2D tale, for both young people and adults, concerns a 17-yearold circus girl who falls into a coma after an acrobatic act goes wrong. When her father exploits her as a living marionette, she turns by force of will into porcelain and shatters. Her friend Kaz then tries to make Juul whole again.
Interstellar Ella Sir Mouse
Together with the other members of the Tinker Group, a collective of European producers, animation and VFX studios, Grid is working on an impressive line-up of series pilots set to deliver in 2017 and 2018. Mouse Mansion (52 x 7’) relates the adventures of best friends Julia and Sam in the eponymous house. Pitched at Cartoon Forum in 2016, the series is created by Steve Middleton and Camiel Schouwenaar, from books by Karina
Schaapman. The series is currently supported by AVROTROS and VRT/Ketnet, with German and French broadcasters in negotiation. Interstellar Ella (52 x 11’) follows the space exploits of seven-year-old Ella in a series that mixes adventure and science. Conceived by Adam Long, it is supported by BBC’s Cbeebies and VRT/Ketnet, with Canadian and French broadcasters in negotiation. Crazy Humans takes Bonnie, Clyde and Jerry on a journey through the surreal world of legendary cartoonist Guillermo Mordillo. Besides this television series, the feature Crazy Island (also based on Mordillo’s universe) is about to start production in early 2018. Finally, Deep Sea Doctor Derek is about a doctor who lives in a lighthouse and treats the creatures of the deep. It is based on books by Leo Timmers, the creative mind behind Ziggy and the Zootram, which also has a second series on the way.
CARTOON FORUM PICKS TUESDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 11:00 Ollie – produced by Lunanime – Pink room
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Grid Animation’s top team of Jan Goossen and Mark Mertens are no strangers to the international animation scene. In 2013, only two years after setting up Grid Animation, they won Producer of the Year at Cartoon Forum. In 2016, they shared the same honour at Cartoon Movie with their partners in Ooops! Noah Is Gone.
THURSDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 12:00 Mister Paper – produced by A Private View – Pink room
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FLANDRIENS OF ANIMATION @ CARTOON MOVIE
FLANDERS WAS FOCUS REGION AT THIS YEAR’S INAUGURAL CARTOON MOVIE BORDEAUX. HERE ARE SOME MOMENTS TO CHERISH. ENJOY!
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WHY WORK WITH FLANDRIENS?
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Yellow jerseys conquer Cartoon Movie
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Scan the QR code to find out, or go to flndrs.im/worki9f0e
FLANDRIENS OF ANIMATION TOUR 1st-day Cyborn
ANTWERP Sancta Media
BRUGES Creative Conspiracy GHENT De Hofleveranciers Lunanime
Hoaxland Animation
A Private View Grid Animation Thuristar
Haptic Beast Animation
Fabrique Fantastique Walking The Dog
Caviar
Vivi Film Studio Souza Potemkino BRUSSELS AIRPORT S.O.I.L. Tondo Films Eyeworks Film & TV Drama Magicworlds Productions BRUSSELS nWave Pictures
HASSELT
IN-HOUSE ANIMATION STUDIO ANIMATION PRODUCTION COMPANY
STUDIOS ELIGIBLE FOR SCREEN FLANDERS
T H E A N I M AT I O N GA Z E T T E # 2
1st-day zino@1st-day.com 1st-day.com
Beast Animation
info@beastanimation.be beastanimation.be Caviar coproductions@caviar.tv caviar.tv
Creative Conspiracy info@cc.be cc.be
Cyborn
info@cyborn.be cyborn.be
Eyeworks Film & TV Drama drama.belgium@eyeworks.tv eyeworksfilm.be
Fabrique Fantastique
info@fabriquefantastique.be fabriquefantastique.be
Grid Animation
info@grid-vfx.com grid-vfx.com Haptic haptic.eu@gmail.com
Hoaxland Animation
Lunanime
mail@lunanime.be lunanime.be Magicworlds Productions doosterlynck@magicworlds.be magicworlds.be nWave Pictures info@nwave.com nwave.com Potemkino lize@potemkino.com potemkino.com
info@hoaxland.be hoaxland.be
A Private View info@aprivateview.be aprivateview.be
De Hofleveranciers info@de-hofleveranciers.be de-hofleveranciers.be
Sancta Media info@sancta.eu sancta.eu
CREDITS CONTENT IAN MUNDELL - EDITORIAL BOARD KATRIEN MAES, JAN ROEKENS, CHRISTIAN DE SCHUTTER - ART DIRECTION KARIN PAYS LOGO & DESIGN FLANDRIENS OF ANIMATION EUGENE AND LOUISE - PRINT WILDA.BE PUBLISHED BY SCREEN FLANDERS / VAF - ALL STILLS COPYRIGHTED BY THE RESPECTIVE PRODUCERS - CONCEPT AND DESIGN TEAM FLANDERS
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S.O.I.L. info@soilart.be Studio Souza marco@studiosouza.be Thuristar info@thuristar.com thuristar.com Tondo Films arielle@tondofilms.be cafard.eu Vivi Film info@vivifilm.be vivifilm.be
Walking The Dog info@walkingthedog.be walkingthedog.be
BROADCASTERS VRT/KETNET Telidja Klaï www.vrt.be
VTM KAZOOM/KADET Luc Janssens www.medialaan.be
DIGITAL PLATFORMS TELENET PROXIMUS Siegfried Moens Paty Colemont www.telenet.be www.proximus.be FUNDS FLANDERS AUDIOVISUAL FUND - VAF Karla Puttemans - www.vaf.be SCREEN FLANDERS Jan Roekens - www.screenflanders.be