83 TV Series Projects To Be Presented at Cartoon Forum 2017
The French city of Toulouse will host the 28th edition of Cartoon Forum, the co-production platform for European animation series that will present 83 new projects from across Europe from 12-15 September 2017. Over the past quarter of a century, Cartoon Forum has steadily grown in quality and size. This year a record was reached: 23 countries have selected projects.
- The UK will be pitching four projects
- Ireland will be pitching nine projects
- France leads the selection with 28 projects
- 70% of the projects are 2D projects
About 900 sector professionals will have the opportunity to discover some 470 hours of animated series that can boast of original stories and innovative visual material.
Projects from 23 countries
France leads the line-up by country with 28 projects followed by Ireland with 9 projects, Belgium and Poland with 5 projects each, which confirm their solid production trend. Four projects will be presented by Finland, Italy, Spain and the UK. Animation production continues to expand across the rest of Europe: Germany, Portugal, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, …
For the third year, Korean projects will be also presented:
- “Animal Rescue” by Hong Dang Moo
- “Botos Family” by Comma Studio
- “The curious world of Linda” by TakToon
“Botos Family” and “The Curious world of Linda” have been selected by European broadcasters’ representatives from France Télévisions, BBC & CBBC, Turner EMEA, YLE and “Animal Rescue” by SK Broadband.
In addition, three projects that were pitched at Cartoon Springboard 2016, event for the emergence of young talents, were selected for the Cartoon Forum 2017: “Hungry Bear Tales” by Bionaut, “Mabel Cleans Up” by Viola Lippmann and “The Brownies” by Zographic films.
Focus on cross-media
In terms of format, European producers continue focusing on cross-media, enabling 50% of the pitches at Toulouse to be viewed on mobile phones, video games, tablets or the Internet, in addition to television screens.
Spotlight on Poland!
For the second time, Cartoon Forum will be putting the spotlight on a country. Poland, more and more well-known in the animation sector, has offered its candidature for being the spotlight country to go under the full limelight of the media. On the strength of its five selected projects this year, Poland animation will appear as a constant thread throughout Cartoon Forum: presentations of Polish studios during Croissant Shows, Polish Farewell Dinner & Party, … and many more surprises!
About the Polish animation industry
The seventy-year history of Polish animated film has led to the creation of some notable works of art. Polish animation is synonymous with artistic craftsmanship and mastery and over the years made its mark at international festivals and has been an inspiration for artists throughout the world. The animation industry in Poland has shown a great potential over the last few years and now, there are more than 30 active animation studios in Poland. In 2017, the budget for development and film production amounted to PLN 94 million PLN (21.3 M EUR). The allocation for the production of animated films its approximately 20 million PLN (4.6 M EUR) (including the production of TV series, films for children and youth and animated films).
Pre-school series represent a third of the projects
In line with the growing number of children’s television channels across Europe, half of the projects are aimed at children. Pre-school series represent a third of the projects and less than 10% of the shows are aimed at the “new” target of young adults and adults.
Cartoon Forum has fast-tracked European animation to the front row
Created in 1990 to boost the co-production and distribution of European animation for television and new media platforms, Cartoon Forum has built since a true network of transborder cooperation, by restoring confidence in the relationship between producers and broadcasters, and by showing that there is sufficient on offer, of quality, within the European Union. Cartoon Forum has helped 706 animation series obtain financing to the tune of over 2,4 billion euros.
And the results are considerable. European animation has become now the leader on its own territory.
The main partners of Cartoon Forum Toulouse are Creative Europe – MEDIA, CNC (Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée), Region Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée, Mairie de Toulouse, Toulouse Métropole, Casino Barrière and France Télévisions.
A public event: “Les Toons débarquent!”
“Les Toons débarquent!” is a local initiative to promote the animation industry in Toulouse and in the Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée region to the general public and youth in particular.
The complete family will also enjoy great animated films at open-air screenings in Toulouse. School sessions throughout the week of Cartoon Forum will highlight the heroes of the animated series made in Toulouse and in the region Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée and will introduce children to the different animation techniques and universes. This year, a special exhibition on the “Jungle Bunch” series will be held at the Toulouse Museum in collaboration with TAT productions and France 4 Ludo.