Frog & Friends

TV Kids Weekly, February 27,
2007

ORIGIN: The animated series Frog & Friends is based on the award-winning Frog books by Max Velthuijs, which have millions of readers in
more than 40 countries worldwide.

CREATORS: Author: Max Velthuijs; Head Scriptwriter: James Still;
Director: Gene Deitch

TV SHOW: The series, which targets 4- to 7-year-olds, consists of
26 7-minute episodes produced in 2-D animation. The first episode is completed.
All scripts have been finalized and the other 25 episodes will go into
production in March 2007 and are scheduled to be completed during the second
half of 2008. Delivery of the finished episodes can start in the fall of 2008.
Additionally, Telescreen, the producer and distributor of Frog & Friends, intends to produce a second run of 26 episodes.

In the television series, Frog's
world is made abundantly clear through Max Velthuijs' unique visual style and
his perfect use of color to capture pure emotion and a kind of yearning for the
long, full days of childhood.

Frog lives in an unspoiled part of
the world in a hilly landscape with streams, lakes and rivers. It’s a simple
world: an unhurried and unassuming community in which everyday events aren’t
overwhelmed by modern life. Nature, seasons and all kinds of weather play an
important role. Everything in Frog’s world breathes a sense of freedom and
security.

Within Frog’s community there is a
general belief in loyalty, trust and friendship. The stories revolve around the
value that friendship overcomes everything. But, at the same time, the
characters are still individuals who respect each other’s differences and
regard freedom as a great good.

All the characters—Frog,
Pig, Duck, Rat, Hare, Little Bear and Fox—are active thinkers, talking
and acting like people. The main characters are all the same size, which gives
them absolute equality.

Frog and his friends deal with
human experiences like love, fear, happiness, sadness, insecurity and even
death. These themes are presented by simple, clear stories. Luckily in Frog’s
world, friends are wise enough to know they can’t solve Frog’s problems for
him, but they can be supportive in a variety of ways. The adventures center on
a philosophical theme with a happy ending and a party or dinner at the end. By
experiencing Frog’s adventures with him, children learn the power of friendship
and realize that it’s much better to get through life together!

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Lisette Looman

TV SALES: The following broadcasters have registered for pre-sales
of Frog & Friends: KRO in The
Netherlands, VRT in Belgium, SVT in Sweden, NRK in Norway, YLE in Finland.
Additional great interest for the series is coming from Italy, Germany,
Australia and the U.K.

Universal Pictures Video Benelux
and Warner Bros. Scandinavia have shown interest in the home-video rights.

STRATEGY FOR ROLL OUT: Telescreen holds all media rights worldwide (excluding
Benelux), including merchandising, toys/games and book publishing.

“At the moment, the focus has
mainly been on TV and video distribution of the Frog & Friends series,” says Theo van der Schaaf, the general manager of
Telescreen. The series has been received warmly by different partners from all
over the world. Thanks to pre-sales, Frog
is developing a solid platform to grow from and is positioned strongly in the
global marketplace.

The target group of the series is
children 4 to 7 but Frog strongly
appeals to adults as well. Parents seem to find in Frog what they want for
their children. Frog is recognizable and loved by children and their parents
for his pureness, innocence, curiosity, humor and lack of inhibition.

In publishing, Frog’s success is proven. It all started with the first Frog book, 17 years ago. Nowadays, you can find Frog books all over the world, translated in more than 50
languages. New books will be developed, based on the scripts of the TV series.
The scripts will result in 14 new titles and a complete range of novelty books
in various languages, which will be available for kids around the world.

In the Dutch market, a complete
range of Frog merchandising is being
developed by Kids at Work, such as health snacks, apparel, plush dolls, bags,
board games, dinnerware, home decoration and silverware. The success of these
fun products proves that Frog & Friends is a unique brand with high merchandising potential.

First presentations and
negotiations with global licensing agents outside Europe shall be initiated
this year. In 2007, the European marketplace is to be explored with agent
meetings, strategy, and sales visits throughout Europe. In June, Frog &
Friends will be one of the characters to
be seen at the New York Licensing Show at the Telescreen booth.