Evolution unveils Paraskevas toon
LA-based licensing firm Evolution has brought in a Canadian producer to develop an animated series from Maggie & the Ferocious Beast creator Michael Paraskevas.
Taffy Saltwater
CCI Entertainment will co-create a TV show based on girl-skewing brand Taffy Saltwater. The franchise is being developed on several platforms, including a significant licensing programme. A hardcover book will be published in spring 2013 through Random House.
“Everything is subject to what the property is and how you approach negotiation,” Evolution CEO Travis Rutherford recently told C21. “We put ourselves in a stronger position by having a strategic plan and having the pieces in place to monetise the property.”
The series, aimed at 4-8s, comes from artist Paraskevas, who co-created Nickelodeon series Maggie and others such as PBS’s Marvin the Tap Dancing Horse, and his twin sister Judy Paraskevas. It is intended to make its broadcast debut in 2014.
Taffy follows a girl with a vivid imagination and a knack for imaginative storytelling and her beach buddies, including a talking beach ball.
Jesse Whittock
07-06-2012
©C21Media
GENRES: Animation, Children's
SHOWS: Maggie and the Ferocious Beast, Marvin the Tap Dancing Horse, Taffy Saltwater
PEOPLE: Judy Paraskevas, Michael Paraskevas
COMPANIES: CCI Entertainment, Evolution, Random House
SECTIONS: C21 Kids
COUNTRIES: Canada, US
Thursday, June 07, 2012
Evolution Unveils Brand New Cartoon From Michael Paraskevas, The Creator Of The Animated Nickelodeon Preschool Series "Maggie And The Ferocious Beast"
From C21Media:
Spanish Public Broadcaster TVE Picks Up The Spanish Free-To-Air Rights For Nickelodeon's Brand New "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" TV Series For TVE's Clan TV Channel; To Debut In Spain In May 2013
From C21Media:
Spanish net gets Turtle powerAlso, from Kidscreen:
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
A leading Spanish broadcaster has acquired the CGI remake of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which debuts on Nickelodeon in the fall [2012].
Pubcaster TVE [Televisión Española] has bought the series from Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) for its free-to-air digital terrestrial children’s channel Clan TV and will launch it in May 2013, under a three-year deal.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will debut on Viacom-owned Nickelodeon in the US and internationally later this year. A consumer products line follows in spring 2013.
The Spanish pubcaster’s programme acquisitions director Juan Ignacio Jiménez Gargantilla said other Nick series such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Victorious had proved to be “extremely popular” with TVE’s audience.
Jesse Whittock
07-06-2012
©C21Media
GENRES: Action, Animation, Children's, Comedy
SHOWS: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
PEOPLE: Juan Ignacio Jiménez Gargantilla
COMPANIES: Nickelodeon, TVE, Viacom International Media Networks
SECTIONS: C21 Kids
COUNTRIES: Spain, US
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles head to SpainAlso, from Animation Insider:
Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), has inked a deal with Spanish broadcaster, Television Espanola (TVE), that will see Nickelodeon's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series air across the Spanish market. The news comes ahead of the show’s official fall international launch.
Following a three-year deal with national Spanish broadcaster and long-term partner, TVE, the series will air on Clan, the market’s biggest kids digital terrestrial channel, from May 2013.
Long-standing toy partner Playmates Toys has already unveiled a line of new products developed to support the refreshed series for an international consumer products rollout starting next spring. A wider program across further categories involving additional partners is set to be announced shortly
Tags: CLAN TVE, TVE, Viacom International Media Networks
TV Animation Sales 2012 (June)
TV Animation News: Global Sales Update
The following article spotlights a few news items regarding TV animation sales announced during June 2012. Nickelodeon's revival of sewer-dwelling ninja reptiles are already earning international sales (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Ankama's flexible MMORPG-based adventures move to Cartoon Network (Wakfu), and a pair of preschool items about everyday piglets find new homes as well (Wibbly Pig, Peppa Pig).
[...]
Nickelodeon is still on track to premiere the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles CG series this autumn. Having unveiled a first-look of the series only within the past two weeks {TMNT preview}, Nick is still quite high on the prospects of its heroes in a half shell. Television Espanola (Spain), for example, has acquired the rights to the series. The new TMNT animation will hit Spain in spring 2013 as part of a three-year agreement. Nick Consumer Products [Nickelodeon Consumer Products] unveiled a prodigious slate of toys earlier this year.
Summer Day Trips: Blackpool Pleasure Beach And Nickelodeon Land UK
From The Yorker blog:
Summer day trips: Blackpool Pleasure Beach
For anyone familiar with the geography of the north of England, Blackpool may not seem like an obvious destination for a day trip from York. At around 3 and a half hours on the train each way, planning is essential to get the most out of your day. Alternatively, why not spend a night, or even a weekend there, for a full dose of British seaside madness?
The main attractions to Blackpool are obvious; The Blackpool Tower for sightseers, sandy beaches for the more relaxed, and the pier and the Pleasure Beach for the thrill seeker.
Partly by choice, and partly under duress, I went for the latter of these options. Be warned, a day at the Pleasure Beach is not cheap, with day wristbands starting from around £25 in advance, giving you unlimited access to most rides and attractions.
Fortunately we visited on a fairly empty day, so did not queue for too long. Visiting at the height of summer, you would struggle to get value for money, although Speedy Passes are available for the larger rides. Access to the park alone, without anything else included, costs £5. Once inside, food and drink is cheaper to buy than expected, although naturally you are offered overpriced ride photos and souvenirs at every opportunity.
A thrill seeker must is the Pepsi Max Big One, which apparently (I couldn't testify, as I had my eyes closed the whole way) sees you plummeting towards the sea. Had I seen the sheerness of the drop before I queued up, I may have thought twice about going on.
Once that’s blown away a few cobwebs, its neighbour, Infusion, appears a little tamer if we’re going by size (theme parks being one area of life where size does matter). However, two minutes of leg dangling, cork screwing, upside-down madness later, I genuinely empathised with that old couple from the Specsavers advert.
If water rides are more your thing, Valhalla is worth a go, although you will get soaked. Fear not though, there are full body dryers available for £1. Alternatively, a couple of turns on Ice Blast should do the trick. If you can bear to keep your eyes open, there are decent (but brief) views of Blackpool and beyond from the top of Ice Blast - you’re only there for a split second before you’re dropped back to earth and your stomach ends up in your size 5s.
Avalanche is another one for the more hardcore theme park connoisseur- resembling a bob sled, you hurtle at high speed above the park, with seemingly nothing preventing the vehicle you're in from derailing.
For a more, ahem, vintage experience, try out the Big Dipper, which we were forced to conclude, after a hairy few seconds, is held up only by love (and if you find the kidney I left behind on this beast, please send it back to me). Similarly, the Grand National has been running since 1935, and heck, can you feel it.
The kids' area, Nickelodeon Land, is also worth a visit if you have time (I sense your eyes glazing over, but stick with me on this one). The Avatar Airbender, resembling the love child of a traditional pirate ship ride and a fairground waltzer, is a stomach dropper which had my 24-year-old male friend squealing like a girl. Similarly, the Nickelodeon Streak offers you the thrills of the older rollercoasters with the security of solid metal, rather than rickety wood.
If the Pleasure Beach has worn you out and the weather is looking good, cross over the road and tram tracks and you will find yourself on a lovely sandy beach, where you can relax, and ensure all body parts are returned to their rightful places – just watch out for sinking sand!
To get the most out of a visit to Blackpool, consider staying overnight.
Why not consider day trips to Scarborough and Whitby too? Go on, you deserve a break.