The Licensing Machine Lines Up Kids’ Fare

MODENA: The Licensing Machine (TLM), the licensing and media division of the Panini Group, is heading to Cannes with a range of children’s titles that "are not competing with each other and can fill the complete range of time slots for channels," Bruno Zarka tells World Screen Newsflash.

For the youngest set, geared toward children 18 months to 2 years old, comes Kokomom. The 52×13-minute series based on a set of original children’s books that have sold more than 200,000 copies in Japan. Zarka, the TV, home video and digital sales-and-services manager at TLM, says the show is "really trying to explain to the viewers—who are mothers and their kids together—the relationships you may have inside the family and in your neighborhood." Featuring egg-shaped characters, each episode starts when Kokodad leaves for work and Kokomom has to take care of her 10 little Chickadees. Each day holds a new adventure for Kokomom and the Chicks.

Pikaboo, produced by BIGMOON Animation Studios for Portugal’s RTP2, skews to the slightly older preschool demo, 2- to 6-year-olds. Zarka explains that the 52×11-minute series revolves around a group of children living in the same preschool. When learning new things to overcome their problems, the children gather together to call on Pikaboo, a magical creature that takes them into a world of fantasy. There, they discovery the answer to their problems. After they return to the schoolyard, the children sing a song about what they have learned in each adventure.

Another RTP2-commissioned series produced by BIGMOON, Tic Tac Tales, combines live action and animation. The show, which ages up to the 6-to-12 set, has 39 seven-minute episodes that include 12 original songs. Tic Tac Tales is set in a watch shop, featuring Master Elias and his apprentice, along with a cast of animated characters who help tell a variety of stories. "The great thing about the series is nothing is related to any specific cultural aspect," Zarka notes. "They are stories that you can find in any fairytale, so it’s multicultural."

D Team, another BIGMOON production, also makes the list of highlights. The 26×26-minute animated series is scripted like a video game. The forces of evil are winning the necessary power to conquer the world and enslave all Greenbay City citizens. Fortunately, there is a team of heroes—Jack Punch, Suzy Adventure and Bob Banievel—managed by zillionaire Mr. D, with the power to stop them. The series is created and directed by Paulo J Gomes, the founder of BIGMOON. Gomes also directed and produced Pikaboo and Tic Tac Tales