Jim Henson to Bring New Animated Series to Cannes

LOS ANGELES, September 29:
The CGI-animated series Dinosaur Train and The Skrumps are
new offerings from The Jim Henson Company that will make their debut at MIPCOM
Jr.

Targeting children aged 3
to 6, Dinosaur Train features a
colorful steam engine that carries all kinds of dinosaurs. The 52×11-minute
series is currently in development for PBS Kids.

Also debuting at the
market for presales is The Skrumps.
The series is based on characters created by artist John Chandler and made
popular by his line of collectible figures and illustrated storybooks. The
Henson Puppetry Studio brings these characters to life into the colorful world
of Skrumpland. Several short videos, including a music video and several
character video blogs, were initially produced and distributed on Yahoo Kids!
in January 2007 to launch the brand, and the first interactive game debuted on
Yahoo! in March.

“Based on
input from paleontologists, science educators and early childhood education
experts, Dinosaur Train has developed an ambitious, creative curriculum and harnesses
children’s enthusiasm for and curiosity about dinosaurs, sparking children’s
interest in life science and natural history,” commented Peter Schube, the president and COO of The Jim Henson Company. “The innovative and irreverent quality of The Skrumps continues our legacy of creating families of engaging
characters that audiences around the world will connect with and we are excited
to launch this new property across all media, including online content
and television productions, as well as merchandising and licensing.”

“The
Skrumps and Dinosaur
Train offer tremendous
creativity and a level of quality that broadcasters associate with The Jim
Henson Company, and we are extremely proud to present both series to the
international television marketplace for the first time at MIPCOM,” added Sam
Ewing, the company’s recently appointed head of international sales and new
programming.

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski