BKN to Co-Produce New 2-D Series

LONDON, October 10: BKN International’s Barcelona- and
London-based companies are co-producing Pocket Penguin Adventures, a new computer-animated HD series targeted at 4- to
7-year-olds, with Canada’s Huminah Huminah Animation.

All scripts, music and post-production will be done in the
U.K., while preproduction elements will be handled in Canada. The digital
animation will be done in Spain. The series will consist of 52 11-minute
episodes, with the first 26 episodes set for delivery in spring 2010 and the
remaining 26 to follow in fall 2010.

Pocket Penguin Adventures is set in the chilly lands of the Southern Hemisphere, home to the
Pocket Penguins. These special birds all work together and use their talents to
try to thwart Fisherschmidt, a bumbling bad guy.

“Targeting the age group of 4 to 7, our plan is to captivate
our audience with simple but sophisticated and funny scripts written here in
the U.K.,” said Nicola Andrews, the managing director of BKN New Media. “While
the characters that populate this magical world, and the stories we will tell
will be the key, the crystal-clear high-definition animation will add a level
of quality to this show that we believe is ground breaking.”

Adam Mimnagh, the owner and producer of Huminah Huminah
Animation, added, “Pocket Penguins is a
delightful series. I was very impressed with the quality of the pilot episode,
which I believe Canadian broadcasters will really warm to, and given our
expertise in Toon Boom we know we can do preproduction work that will make the
series ‘pop’ right out of your TV.”

“Our team here in Barcelona are experienced producers of
animation,” commented Laura Tapias, the managing director of BKN’s Spanish arm.
“Unlike our other successful properties, which target a slightly older age
group, we’re looking forward to the challenge of producing something for this
younger audience which will rely more on stimulating the viewer with bright
colors and visual humor, rather than the action we pack into a current
animation series.”

—By Kristin Brzoznowski