Historic licensing company of The Smurfs, IMPS / Lafig has chosen Rainbow Group to manage the licensing plan that will accompany the new series of The Smurfs on the Italian territory.
"We are thrilled and it's a pleasure to work for a timeless brand like The Smurfs, already beloved by the Italian audience and undoubtedly synonymous with cutting-edge values,” says Matteo Olivetti, sales director, global consumer product, Rainbow Group. “We are already in the process of finalizing several agreements with top-level partners for CP development in the classic categories but stepping outside the box and experimenting is one of our strengths, and we look forward to launching new collaborations.”
Rainbow has already inked deals with many consumer product (CP) partners for the development of the countless possibilities offered by the brand, a success that is supported by more than four generations of fans and always very popular.
“The love story between The Smurfs and the Italian audience is a long and passionate one and we are so happy to now have such a strong and dynamic agency as Rainbow on board,” says Véronique Culliford, president and founder, IMPS / LAFIG and daughter of Smurfs creator, Peyo.
“We are very excited to work together making the blue color of the rainbow shine with a broad range of amazing Smurf products.”
The new season of the property recently made its world premiere on Ouftivi in French-speaking Belgium on Sunday 18th April 2021, and will debut on Nickelodeon channels globally this fall. The series will also air on Italian free-to-air Rai Yoyo in spring 2022 with 52 episodes of 11 minutes and target audience 5-10 years. Following, the series will also land on TVOD, and AVOD platforms in the first half of 2022, to be distributed on SVOD services, including Netflix in early 2023. The series is set to launch on French television channel TF1 on May 8th.
In additional Smurfy news, The Smurfs has teamed up with Rovio for an exclusive The Smurfs tournament on Angry Birds Friends. In the game, players have to to free the Smurfs from Gargamel. The Smurfs x Rovio will be available to play until Sunday 2nd May 2021.
Following, the series will also land on TVOD, and AVOD platforms in the first half of 2022, to be distributed on SVOD in early 2023.
For over 60 years a great formula of friendship, tolerance and respect for the environment, The Smurfs never cease to excite thanks to their edutainment-rich and always compelling stories.
In addition to the content partnership, ViacomCBS Consumer Products (VCP) will manage consumer products licensing for The Smurfs property across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Malaysia. VCP will seek new merchandising and promotional partners in select categories and territories for The Smurfs classic brand, in addition to a new product line for the new animated series The Smurfs, spanning categories including toys, stationery, apparel and accessories, home, consumer packaged goods and more, to launch at retail in 2022.
From Animation Magazine:
New CG ‘Smurfs’ Series Begins Global Adventure
Presented in development at the 2018 Annecy International Animation Film Market (MIFA), The Smurfs, a new animated series produced by Dupuis Edition et Audiovisuel with Peyo Productions, for TF1 in France, heralds the revival of the famous little blue creatures on television. The series has been licensed globally by Nickelodeon, with a U.S. premiere slated for this year followed by international rollout.
Peyo’s beloved characters, created 1958, first made the transition from comics to the screen in 1959. The Smurfs began their animated adventures on TV, with Dupuis and then American studio Hanna-Barbera (Tom & Jerry, Scooby-Doo, The Flintstones, Wacky Races) and then the big screen, always with the same success. However, they have not been adapted for television since the late 1980s.
With Peyo Productions and Dupuis Edition et Audiovisuel, these small but scrappy stars will be back on the small screen starting May 9 in France on TFOU, in a brand new, totally updated 3D animated series: 52 original 11-minute stories directed by William Renaud (Calimero, A Kind of Magic…), featuring colorful characters (and not just because they’re nearly all blue) — including a whole team of daring and inventive girl Smurfs alongside Smurfette — and punchy dialogue. A joyful mixture for both girls and boys from six to 10 years old, which will also allow older children to enjoy rediscovering the essence of the comics.
“For Dupuis Édition et Audiovisuel, which was involved in the first animated adventures of the Smurfs back in the 1960s, it is extremely exciting to revisit this universe in this ambitious new series, alongside Peyo Productions and in collaboration with TF1,” said Caroline Duvochel, producer of the series. “This is a key project for our studio, in which all the teams have been particularly involved. We are very proud to be able to contribute to bringing today’s children these new 3D images showing the marvellous adventures of these characters, full of kindness, mischief and sparkle, things we need so much of in this day and age.”
“We are delighted to welcome the Smurfs to TFOU for new adventures, each one funnier than the last. This comedy/adventure series has its rightful place in our schedule as the world of these friendly little blue creatures and their very special language fits perfectly with TFOU’s mischievous yet caring tone,” said Yann Labasque, director of youth programming at TF1. “By giving the series consistent and powerful exposure on all its platforms, the TF1 group acts as a unique and strong sounding board for the franchise, whose licence is already managed by TF1 Licences.”
Véronique Culliford, founder and president of Peyo Productions and IMPS (distribution) and Peyo’s daughter, added that she was “very happy to be able to continue my father’s work once again by co-producing a new Smurfs TV series.” She added, “And this, almost 40 years after the world-famous original series. You will discover Smurfs in ‘3D’ effect, like in the last film Smurfs: The Lost Village [Sony Pictures Animation], with a lot of humor and lots of adventures full of twists and turns. This co-production has the best actors on the market and will enchant both young and old for decades to come!”
Distributed internationally by IMPS, the series made its world premiere on RTS in Switzerland and RTBF and VRT in Belgium in mid-April, and is now preparing to move into France and Germany before meeting the rest of the world.
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Original source: License Global; Additional source: Licensing International.
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