Cyber Group Ramps Up Activities

CANNES: French-based producer and distributor Cyber Group Studios made a host of announcements in Cannes today, including its expansion into the feature-length animation business, a range of international sales and a co-production with WWF for a new Ozie Boo! series.

Pierre Sissmann, the president of Cyber Group Studios, called the movie a "natural extension of our business and a further exploitation of its copyrights. We are delighted to do it with OuiDO! Entertainment, whose vision and experience complete our own."

Boris Hertzog and Sandrine Nguyen, the co‐managing directors of OuiDO!, added: "This agreement will allow us to pursue the development of our feature-length projects and combine  our skills. With our friends from Cyber Group Studios, we are pleased to have found partners who share our vision and ambition and whose dynamism will help kick‐start our projects."

In addition to the Ozie Boo! feature film, Cyber Group has announced plans for Ozie Boo! Save the Planet, a 78×4-minute co-production with Tiji in partnership with WWF France. The show aims to demonstrate to kids 2 to 5 how to protect the earth, with animated scenes with the endearing Ozie Boo penguins as well as live-action nature footage. WWF France’s Club Panda is providing content for the show, which will focus on the animal world, daily preservation of the planet and the discovery of the planet.

"I am particularly proud that our Ozie Boos, today present worldwide, have joined forces with the WWF in order to defend such values as ecology and protection of the environment," Sissmann said. "It’s so important for children growing up today, who will be grown men and women tomorrow, and I’d like to thank the WWF teams for trusting us with this project and offering us their scientific knowledge of the chosen themes."

"Airing on Tiji for years, the Ozie Boos have been teaching children how to live with each other every day," added Pierre Belaisch, the director of programming and channels for Lagardère Active. "It’s therefore natural for them to explain ecological issues in an entertaining way to our younger viewers."

Slated for a fall 2010 release, Ozie Boo! Save the Planet has already presold to 50-plus territories, including Latin America, Canada, Norway and the Middle East.

In other new-product news, Cyber Group has inked a partnership with the Korean producer Sieun Design for the development and co-production of Academie Royale, a CGI-animated show for kids 5 to 8. The series focuses on three young heroines learning to be princesses in the idyllic Duchy of Malamar.

Cyber Group has also picked up the worldwide distribution and licensing rights to Australian outfit Burberry Productions Emmy-winning series Animalia. Based on the bestselling picture book by Graeme Base, the 40×30-minute CGI animation was produced for BBC, CBBC, Ten Network Australia, PBS and CBC, following two contemporary kids, Zoe and Alex, who visit the extraordinary land of Animalia, a spectacular place inhabited by talking animals.

Ewan Burnett, executive producer, said: “Burberry and Animalia Productions are delighted to be placing our series in the hands of Cyber Group for international distribution and licensing. Cyber are rapidly becoming one of the market leaders in children’s branding and we believe Animalia will sit very well in their catalogue and market strategy. Animalia has already achieved considerable success around the world and we look forward to working with Cyber to take the show to the next level."

Sissmann noted: “Animalia is a groundbreaking series for 6-to-10 years old with a strong appeal for buyers seeking top-quality programming with action, adventure, and fun. With a current presence in more than 100 markets and very high ratings, we are very excited to continue to extend the franchise internationally."

Cyber Group has already licensed Animalia to Sri Lanka, Public Broadcasting Services in Malta and Ecuavisa in Ecuador.

 Meanwhile, Cyber Group arrives in Cannes with a string of deals clinched on its existing library. Ozie Boo! has sold to new broadcasters such as Cartoon Network India, MTV3 Oy Finland, Public Broadcasting Services Malta and TV5 Monde; while the Ozie Boo! Christmas special, Winter Adventures, went to TV2 in Norway, Video Art and RTV in Slovenia, TG4 in Ireland, Astro Ceria in Malaysia, Disney Playhouse in Italy, Good TV in Taiwan, Canal + Mini Mini and Mediaway in Poland, MTV3 Oy in Finland, Disney Latin America, Tiji in Russia, Public Broadcasting Services in Malta and TV5 Monde.

The Tiji series Manon is rolling out to ABC in Australia, Canal Panda in Portugal, Hop! Channel in Israel, TV2 in Norway, V‐me in the United States, Disney in Latin America, MTV3 Oy in Finland, TSR in Switzerland, and Public Broadcasting Services in Malta.