Nickelodeon Inks Multiplatform Deal with James Corden and Ben Winston to Produce Animated Movie and TV Series Based on Children's Book, 'Real Pigeons Fight Crime'

NICKELODEON INKS MULTIPLATFORM DEAL WITH JAMES CORDEN AND BEN WINSTON TO PRODUCE ANIMATED MOVIE

AND TV SERIES BASED ON CHILDREN’S BOOK,

REAL PIGEONS FIGHT CRIME

Newly Released Title from Best-Selling Book Series in Movie and TV Development

at Nickelodeon

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BURBANK, Calif.—July 7, 2020—Nickelodeon has struck a multiplatform deal with James Corden and Ben Winston, and their production company Fulwell 73, to produce an animated movie and TV series, based on the recently released children’s book title, Real Pigeons Fight Crime. The movie and TV series are being developed to air on all Nickelodeon platforms.

Said Winston, “We are so delighted to be working with our great friends at Nickelodeon on this wonderful, charming and funny book, and can’t wait to help bring it to life for kids everywhere!”

Added Ramsey Naito, Executive Vice President, Nickelodeon Animation Production and Development, “Real Pigeons Fight Crime is about a secret squad of crime-fighting pigeons, with high stakes and true hilarity making it a perfect fit for our audience. By fusing the humor and expertise of this the incredible team at Fulwell 73 Productions, we are ready to show kids what pigeons really do--fight crime, solve mysteries, take down bad guys, and keep neighborhoods safe!”

Written by Andrew McDonald and illustrated by Ben Wood, Real Pigeons Fight Crime was published in Australia by Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing and is now available in over 10 territories including North America, where it was recently released by Random House Children’s Books. Hilarious, engaging and completely ridiculous, the Real Pigeons series has sold hundreds of thousands of books and has amassed legions of fans around the globe. Real Pigeons Fight Crime reveals the secret life of crime-busting pigeons who set out to keep a town safe. The deal underscores key elements of Nickelodeon’s content strategy, to build and expand the worlds of popular franchises and give audiences more of what they love.

The forthcoming Real Pigeons Fight Crime animated project is the latest addition to Nickelodeon’s programming, joining the recently greenlit Big Nate series as well as hit franchises like Star Trek, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Henry Danger, among others. Nickelodeon’s new content slate is informed by the network’s ongoing research and insights into today's generation of kids, who are the most diverse generation ever and expect to see themselves authentically represented in media and in the world around them; who want to make a positive difference in the world as they grow up; who consider social media stars as their top role models, alongside their parents; and who increasingly meet their much-desired need for family time by co-viewing entertainment content together.

The Real Pigeons Fight Crime TV series is executive produced by Corden and Winston, with Andrew McDonald and Ben Wood serving as consultants throughout development and production.

Andrew McDonald is a children’s author who lives in Melbourne, Australia. He is the author of the Real Pigeons series and loves writing stories that make kids laugh, gasp, think and wonder. His books have been shortlisted for the Readings Children’s Book Prize and the Australian Book Industry Awards.

Ben Wood is the illustrator of the Real Pigeons series and has always been drawn to stories with humor and heart. He has illustrated over 30 books for children, with several titles recognized on the Children Book Council of Australia (CBCA)’s “Notables” lists and was shortlisted for the Australian Book Industry Awards in 2019 and 2020.

McDonald, Wood, and Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing are represented by UTA and Writers House.

About Fulwell 73 Productions

Fulwell 73, is a television and film production company, set up in 2005 by lifelong friends Ben Winston, Leo Pearlman, Ben Turner and Gabe Turner. In March 2017 James Corden joined the company as a fifth full partner.

Fulwell 73’s television slate is extensive. They are the producer of multi Emmy award-winning, “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” which currently has over eight billion views online. Their other productions include, “Drop the Mic” for TBS, “Game On” for CBS, “Carpool Karaoke: The Series” for Apple, “Sunderland Til’ I Die” for Netflix, “Stand Up To Cancer,” and “Gavin and Stacey” for BBC1 this Christmas. They were recently unveiled as the producers behind the new “Friends” Reunion for HBO Max. Their shows were nominated for 13 Emmy awards in total last year, with partners Ben Winston and James Corden gaining the most nominations of any individuals.

The company first came to the public’s attention in September 2007 with the release of its debut feature In the Hands of the Gods (Lionsgate). The film received great critical acclaim, opened on more screens than any other UK-made documentary and appeared in cinemas around the world. Since then Fulwell’s theatrical film releases include: the most successful sports documentary of all time, The Class of 92 (Universal Pictures); the huge box office hits One Direction 3D: This is Us (Sony/Columbia) and I Am Bolt (Universal). They were also behind the recent documentary feature on Showtime “Hitsville: The Making of Motown” and are currently in production on “Cinderella” for Sony Pictures.

Fulwell 73 prides itself in making shows with some of the top music and sports talent in the world, making broadcast specials for artists including, Bruno Mars, Harry Styles, Sam Smith, Shawn Mendes, Kacey Musgraves. They recently produced the live Global Citizens event from South Africa to honor Mandela’s 100th birthday, with artists including Beyoncé, Jay Z and Oprah.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, now in its 41st year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The brand includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, digital, location based experiences, publishing and feature films. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC).

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The deal has come as a shock to the modest Australians.

“My philosophy is that I make books, and I’m really excited that they think that they think that they can turn the story and the characters into something that will appeal to a TV and film audience,” McDonald told Guardian Australia.

The novels follow a secret band of crime-fighting pigeons, Rock Pigeon, Tumbler, Frillback and Homey, who save unsuspecting humans – and other animals such as the endangered kakapo – from all kinds of trouble.

The stories had their genesis when McDonald started paying closer attention to the ubiquitous urban birds on his walks.

“I started wondering about pigeons and what’s going on in their little brains, and I thought, wouldn’t they be the ultimate crime-fighting outfit or surveillance network? Because they are everywhere, they see everything,” he says.

Soon he was falling down a research rabbit hole, uncovering all kinds of interesting morsels about the different types of pigeon and their distinctive traits, such as the common rock dove, the frillback pigeon “that looks like a wedding cake bird” and tumbler pigeons, which can somersault mid-flight.

“I learned that pigeons can fly faster than cheetahs can run,” he says. “I learned that their eyes are better than human eyes. They’re obviously a superbird.”

His publisher, Hardie Grant Egmont, paired him up with Wood, the illustrator.

The partnership is “organic” and truly collaborative, Wood says. “Illustrators don’t always have that kind of relationship with authors.”

The books are an unconventional mash-up of visual and literary storytelling styles, with pages resembling anything from comic strips, to chapter books to a cinematic shot from a film.

Wood says he always imagined the characters as animations when designing them, giving the artwork a dynamism that naturally lends itself to film adaptation.

“I never went into it as a 2D world, it was always an animated world in my head,” he says. “Even the way I compose the images, I tend to think, ‘Where’s the camera?’ I want them to be immersive.”

Related: Bluey: The Beach named book of the year at Australian Book Industry awards

McDonald and Wood say they have fans across the primary school age bracket, partly due to the books’ distinctive visual style.

“When a kid opens up a Real Pigeons book we give them two things,” McDonald says. “We say, we’re gonna have fun and solve a mystery together and it’s going to be a bit like a game, and it’s going to be really silly. We definitely lean into the silliness.”

There are five books so far in the series, published by Hardie Grant Egmont, beginning with Real Pigeons Fight Crime.

The series has been a solid seller for the publisher: since its release in 2018, Real Pigeons Fight Crime has sold 28,452 copies in Australia alone, and it has been available in New Zealand, the US, Canada and some European territories since late last year.

A start date for production and voice cast are yet to be determined.

From The Age:

It's a coop: local kids' books to be Nickelodeon film and TV series

When you think of an animal that could portray a detective in a children’s book, a pea-brained pigeon doesn’t seem the obvious choice.

Melbourne author Andrew McDonald disagrees. Like spies, he says, they can hide in plain sight, and they’ve been smart enough to live close to humans for millennia.

And kids are loving the gumshoe birds’ zany antics as they protect their city in Mr McDonald and illustrator Ben Wood’s Real Pigeons books, which have sold 250,000 copies in 11 countries.

And on Wednesday, publisher Hardie Grant Egmont revealed that global entertainment firm Nickelodeon and US TV star James Corden’s production company, Fulwell 73, will make an animated Real Pigeons Fight Crime film and a TV series based on the books.

You could say it’s a "coop" for Mr McDonald, and Mr Wood, both aged 37, who will be consultants.

"I’m a little bit overwhelmed," said Mr McDonald. "Having a big Hollywood adaptation is kind of beyond what you dream of, when you dream of being a writer. It’s amazing."

The books, which have a graphic novel style, follow four main characters: Rock Pigeon, who disguises himself using everything from chocolate to chip packets; Homey, a homing pigeon good at geography; Frillback, a super-strong female; and Tumbler, who can bend herself into shapes.

In the fifth book, Real Pigeons Peck Punches, the detectives had to find a a missing rare bird called a kakapo before it was eaten by a weasel.

In the sixth book, due out in November, Real Pigeons Get Bready, a bread monster and evil bunnies run rampant, and the Mayor bans birds from the city.

Mr McDonald, who didn’t disclose the value of the Nickelodeon deal, said he realises it happens to very few authors.

"Luck is the overriding factor," he said. "Getting published is such a game of luck — you have to meet the right person, at the right time, with the right manuscript, with the right champion inside a publishing house."

"And meeting Ben [the illustrator] and working with him was a stroke of luck.

"I write in a similarly wacky, slapsticky, cinematic way that he draws."

Mr Wood, who has illustrated 30 children’s books, said when he read the first Real Pigeons manuscript, "it felt like Andrew had written it for me to draw".

"What I engage with, and what I think kids engage with in the series, is that pigeons are small, and the world is such a huge place. They can relate to that.

"And they like the idea of working together to achieve good things, and I think if you can have fun with your friends when you do it, that’s great."

The fifth book came out in May, and Mr Wood is happy that, as the effects of COVID-19 were being felt, ‘‘it was a way to have some enjoyment, have some escape for a little bit. But also enjoy a good story."

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From The Bookseller:

Australian children's series flies to Egmont

Egmont Books will publish Australian children's series Real Pigeons, written by Andrew McDonald and illustrated by Ben Wood.

Lindsey Heaven, publishing director for fiction, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights for three books from Charlotte Bodman at Rights People, acting on behalf of Australian independent publisher Hardie Grant Egmont. The first book in the series, Real Pigeons Fight Crime, will be published in April 2021.

The synopsis for the title reads: "Did you know your city is protected by a secret squad of crime-fighting pigeons? It’s true! With master of disguise Rock Pigeon, bendy Tumbler, strong Frillback and super-finder Homey, the Real Pigeons are here to solve mysteries, catch bad guys and make you laugh your beak off."

The deal comes after the series was picked up for development by Nickelodeon, which struck a deal with James Corden and Ben Winston, and their production company Fulwell 73, to produce an animated movie and TV series based on the books.

Heaven commented: "Real Pigeons has been such a massive hit in Australia and we can’t wait for our feathered crime-fighting friends to fly round the other side of the world and win over all the young readers here in the UK. We’re delighted that the major streaming deal with Nickelodeon means that millions of children have another way to immerse themselves in this hilariously addictive world."

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From South Gippsland Sentinel-Times:

Real Pigeons take flight with Nickelodeon

Children’s book illustrator Ben Wood was born and raised in Mirboo North. His book series is being turned into a Nickelodeon TV show and movie.

THE POPULAR children’s book series Real Pigeons is being turned into a TV show and has a surprising connection to South Gippsland.

Real Pigeons illustrator Ben Wood was born and raised in Mirboo North and credits his high school art teachers for encouraging him to follow his passion.

The series is co-created by Ben and author Andrew McDonald and follows the antics of a team of crime fighting pigeons that act as a surveillance system, looking after the city they live in.

The Real Pigeons books has been sold in 11 countries. It was recently announced the books would be turned into a TV series and movie by Nickelodeon.

Ben said Nickelodeon approached the pair after the first book was published in 2018.

“It actually happened really quickly. We were a bit gobsmacked really. We never expected to have the level of excitement that the series has received in Australia and internationally.”

The Real Pigeons Fight Crime TV series will be executive produced by The Late Late Show host James Corden and executive producer Ben Winston with Andrew and Ben serving as consultants throughout development and production.

“They were really keen to sign on,” Ben said.

“It’s still really early stages but we are thrilled that James and Ben have signed on because they have the right humour for the series.

“The story is funny but it also has a lot of heart and they seem like the right fit for the series.”

Andrew first developed the idea for the series by questioning how ubiquitous pigeons are, Ben said.

“Most of the time humans don’t pay much attention to them,” Ben said.

“But the book is really about how this team of five pigeons, who all have different – what we call pigeon powers but are basically character strengths – what they can bring to the team and how they can solve things.”

Ben said the books are a mix of the traditional style of storytelling with visuals and text, mashed up with comic-book style panels and cinematic viewpoints.

“It’s always a juggle for what’s the best way to tell the story,” he said.

“We wanted both elements; the text and imagery, to be really strong and give readers a lot to go through.”

Book six is set to be released in November this year.

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More Nick: Nickelodeon Upfront 2020 Roundup!

Originally published: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 at 17:15 BST.

Additional source: Amazon.com.

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