Nickelodeon UK Alumna Debbie MacDonald Guides New Canadian ProdCo Animated Series "Mighty Mighty Monsters"

From C21Media:

Nick alumna guides Monsters toon

MIPJUNIOR: Debbie MacDonald, the former head of programming at Nickelodeon in the UK, is now working with a Canadian prodco on its first animated project.

MacDonald, who left her role at Nickelodeon UK in December last year after spending 17 years at the kidcaster, is now a freelance children’s media consultant.

She is currently advising Bron Animation, the fledgling toon division of Canadian movie producer Bron Studios, on its debut TV project, Mighty Mighty Monsters (2x44′).

The holiday specials, which follow a group of monstrous children who try to fit in at a school for normal humans, are currently being shopped here in Cannes by Toronto indie Shaftesbury.

“The shows are about the juxtaposition between monsters and terrifying tween culture. I’m working very closely with them on the specials and the elements around the project, such as the marketing and promotion. Hopefully, it will move forward into a full series,” MacDonald said.

MacDonald is also advising Music Sales Group (MSG), which holds the rights to a huge catalogue of classical and pop songs and claims to be the largest printed music publisher in Europe, as it looks for opportunities to invest in the kids sector.

“MSG recognises that the kids’ TV business can be both lucrative and creative. We want to bring great shows and catalogues to the table, invest in them and give producers advances and help them with production,” MacDonald said.

While at Viacom-owned Nickelodeon, MacDonald managed Nick UK’s acquisitions, original productions and scheduling across its portfolio of channels, which included Nick Jr and Nicktoons.

“I’ve learnt so much and seen the business change on the content side drastically over the years. It can be overwhelming for small producers just coming into the business. I’ve been across the whole sector as a programming director and I’d say my passion was in preschool production,” she told C21.

Ed Waller
07-10-2012
©C21Media

TAGS: Mipcom, MipJunior
GENRES: Animation, Children's
PEOPLE: Debbie MacDonalds
COMPANIES: Nick Jr, Nick UK, Nickelodeon, Viacom International Media Networks
SECTIONS: C21Kids
COUNTRIES: Canada, UK

Also, from Screen International:

Bron Animation announces key hires

The new division of British Columbia-based Bron Studios has added former Nickelodeon UK CEO Debbie Macdonald as creative consultant.

Macdonald will work on the company's Mighty Mighty Monsters specials.

Bron Animation has brought on Kevin Drew and Ohad Benchetrit to work on the music. Bezhad Mansoori-Dara joins as director of photography for Mighty Mighty Monsters.

Managing director Aaron L Gilbert’s Bron Studios is in post on A Single Shot starring Sam Rockwell, Jeffrey Wright, Jason Isaacs, Melissa Leo, and William H Macy.