Cynopsis: Kids!

11/09/09

Good morning. It’s Monday, November 9, 2009, and this is your first early morning Kids briefing. 

Magic Lantern Entertainment concludes a $10 million deal with TF2 Ventures via its Innovation Entertainment label for up to 20 feature films for production over the next three to five years.  The first movie under the pact is Bad Kitty, a mixed media/CGI animated adventure comedy based on the famous droll cat character Heathcliff.  Featuring a script by noted animation writer/producer Tom Ruegger (Animaniacs, Tiny Toon Adventures among many others), Bad Kitty is currently in pre-production and targeted for a 2011 release.  No word yet on the voice cast for the movie.

Cartoon Network picks up two new hour-long live action series, Tower Prep (13×60) and Unnatural History (13×60).  Both original series are set to being production in January 2010.

• An action series, Tower Prep follows the adventures of a rebellious teen that awakes one day to find he is stuck at a mysterious prep school.  He forms a secret group of students that work together to figure out where they are and how to get home.  Produced out of Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, in association with Dolphin Entertainment, the Tower Prep pilot was executive-produced and written by Paul Dini (Lost, Batman: Arkham Asylum) and directed by Terry McDonough (Breaking Bad, The Street).
• Unnatural History is a mystery/action series about a smart and skilled teen, the son of two anthropologists, who is shipped of to high school in Washington DC.  Along with his smooth-talking cousin, the two find themselves immersed in mysteries revolving around the national museum.  Created by Mike Werb (Face/Off, The Mask), who also penned the pilot, which was directed by Mikael Salomon (Band of Brothers, The Andromeda Strain, The Company).  Unnatural History will be executive produced by Werb and produced by Warner Horizon Television (WHTV).

NEW PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT

9 Story Entertainment began production over the weekend in Ontario on a new live-action TV movie adaptation of Louise Fitzhugh’s classic book Harriet the Spy.  Starring Jennifer Stone (Harper on Wizards of Waverly Place) as Harriet, the telepicture will premiere in 2010 0on Disney Channels worldwide and in Canada on CBC, MC and YTV.  The new updated version of Harriet the Spy is directed by Ron Oliver (A Dennis the Menace Christmas, Goosebumps) from a script by Heather Conkie (Heartland) and her daughter Alexandra Clarke.  Additionally the telepic will feature choreography by Blake McGrath (So You Think You Can Dance).

Warner Bros. may soon have a cast for its mixed live-action/CG animated movie adaptation of Hanna-Barbera‘s Yogi Bear, with news that Anna Faris, Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake are in the midst of negotiations, per THR.  Faris would play a nature documentary filmmaker, while Aykroyd would lend his voice to Yogi and Timberlake could lend his to Boo Boo.  Directed by Eric Brevig and produced by Donald De Line and Karen Rosenfelt, production on the movie is targeted to begin in New Zealand next month.  Brad Copeland penned the current version of the script, with the original draft by Joshua Sternin and Jeff Ventimilia.

Phase 4 Films, Barry Meyerowitz’s new North American distribution company, acquires the US rights to the Spanish animated movie The Missing Lynx: Paws on the Run (The Missing Lynx in the US, www. themissinglynxmovie.com ), which was co-produced by Antonio Banderas, per Variety.  Phase 4 will release the Missing Lynx, which is now screening in LA, on DVD in the US in spring 2010.   Additionally, Phase 4 has also picked up the US distribution rights to another movie from Banderas along with producer Enrique Posner and Kandor Graphics (both partners on The Missing Lynx), per Variety.  Titled Goleor, the Scale and the Sword, pre-production has begun on the Spanish 3D animated, English-language feature film, which has a budget of $33 million.  In addition to lending his voice to a character in the picture, Banderas will cast and direct the voice-over cast. 

MORE KIDS STUFF

ABC3, Australia’s new kid-targeted digital and online channel, commissions an Australian version of the series Prank Patrol (26×30), which will be produced by activeTV.  Currently in production, ABC3 will launch Prank Patrol in primetime from Q4.  Created by Canada’s Apartment 11 Productions, the original Prank Patrol is a long running series on YTV (Canada) with a UK format version airing on CBBC (UK).  The Australian adaptation of Prank Patrol is the first production resulting from a partnership between activeTV and MarVista Entertainment.  MarVista will also handle worldwide distribution of the Australian version of the program.

Nelvana Enterprises inks programming deals for several series with Australian broadcasters:

• ABC3 acquires Nelvana’s new series Spiced!, as well as further episodes of 6teen.  The new kid-aimed network also renews pacts for Class of the Titans and Jane and the Dragon, which debut on the channel beginning Friday, December 4, 2009.
• A package of classic Nelvana series, including Babar (65 episodes) and Franklin (65 episodes), has been acquired for air on ABC2.  Additionally, the new CGI series, Babar, now in production, will debut on ABC TV in 2010 as part of the deal.
• Nickelodeon renews the Miss Spider’s Sunny Patch series and specials
• Playhouse Disney picks up Willa’s Wild Life for air in 2011

Spain’s BRB International completes a new deal with France 3 for the 3D HD animated series Suckers (104×2), which will broadcast the series in 2010.  The series takes a look at life through the eyes of designer dolls that live suctioned to the back windows of cars.  Produced in Spain by Screen 21, Genoma Animation and Televisio de Catalunya (TVC), and distributed by BRB worldwide, the first 52 episodes of Suckers are in the can, with the remaining episodes to be completed in 2010.  The short-form, non-verbal series was recently acquired by Disney XD for broadcast in the US, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Japan and India.

STONE SOUP

Weekend Box Office Estimates for kids/tweens/teens rated G, PG or PG-13; November 68, 2009:
A Christmas Carol (2009) (Buena Vista) PG                 Opening Weekend $31.0m
Michael Jackson’s This Is It (Sony/Columbia) PG          $14.0m-2 wk total $57.9m
The Fourth Kind (Universal) PG-13                              Opening Weekend $12.5m
The Box (Warner Bros.) PG-13                                    Opening Weekend $7.9m
Couples Retreat (Universal) PG-13                              $6.4m-5 wk total $96.0m
Where the Wild Things Are (Warner Bros.) PG              $4.2m-4 wk total $69.3m
Astro Boy (Summit Entertainment) PG                         $2.6m-3 wk total $15.1m
The Stepfather (2009) (Sony/Screen Gems) PG-13       $1.9m-4 wk total $27.5m
Amelia (Fox Searchlight) PG                                        $1.8m-3 wk total $11.3m
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Sony/Columbia) PG $1.4m-8 wk total $121.1m
Source: Rentrak ( www.rentrak.com )

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Hasbro Studios appoints Kathy Samuels as Executive Producer.  Based in LA, Samuels will oversee production on a number of the new studio’s creative efforts across a range of program genres.  An industry veteran, Samuels previously toiled for CBS Television Group Distribution Group (CTDG) as SVP and NBC as Sr. Broadcast Producer.

RATINGS

Live + Same Day Ratings Kids Cable Network Averages (000) for Thursday, November 5, 2009, 6am-11pm, ranked by K2-11:
NICKELODEON:         K2-11 1130; K6-11 500; TWEENS 9-14 374
DISNEY CHANNEL:     K2-11   867; K6-11 563; TWEENS 9-14 457
CARTOON NETWORK: K2-11   564; K6-11 290; TWEENS 9-14 197
DISNEY XD:               K2-11   105; K6-11   70; TWEENS 9-14   57
Source: MTVN Research from Nielsen Media Research Data

Answer to Yesterday’s Trivia Question:  On the Andy Griffith Show, the men who played four Darling sons were also known collectively as whom?   A SINGING GROUP, THE DILLARDS  Kudos to:  Mark Krause-WXMI/Grand Rapids; Tom Lieberman-Libermania/Minneapolis; Pamela Lilienthal-Enterprise High School/Redding CA; Pat Brady-CESD/LA; Claire Wilmut-Boomstone Entertainment/Ottawa

Today’s Trivia Question:  Who am I?  I was a paratrooper in WWII and now happily work my business in LA and in the evening reach for a refreshing bottle of Ripple.  I even like creating my own Ripple drinks including the Mintchipple (Mint Julep and Ripple) and the Champipple (Champagne and Ripple).  Who am I?  (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: Only the second four correct answers from each time zone will be mentioned; and once you’ve been mentioned in any of the Cynopsis editions, you can’t be mentioned again that calendar week.)

Later — Gwen
 Gwen Billings for Cynopsis Kids!
11.09.09

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