Kristin Brzoznowski

NEW YORK: The Thomas & Friends special The Great Race is launching on PBS member stations in the U.S. on October 17, to be followed by a week of all-new episodes from the eighth season of the series on PBS KIDS.

CANNES: Cyber Group Studios is introducing Iqbal, Tale of a Fearless Child, which marks the first animated feature to be distributed by the company.

SEATTLE: Amazon has ordered two new original series, the comedy Little Big Awesome and Ronja the Robber's Daughter, which won an International Emmy Kids Award.

LONDON/LOS ANGELES: Bento Box Entertainment has teamed up with Andrew Davenport, co-creator of Teletubbies and creator of In the Night Garden, to launch the new kids' and family division Sutikki.

HOLLYWOOD: The Jim Henson Company's Fraggle Rock has been digitally remastered in HD and will return at the end of this year on HBO, which was the original home of the series when it premiered in 1983.

BEVERLY HILLS: Genius Brands International (GBI) has launched the first apparel program for its new music-driven tween property SpacePOP, with a clothing line becoming available at select Kohl’s stores in the U.S. and online.

LONDON: Entertainment One (eOne) has secured a raft of sales for the 2D-animated comedy Winston Steinburger and Sir Dudley Ding Dong, including with POP in the U.K.

The co-owner of Pukeko Pictures and Weta Workshop and an executive producer on the show talks about fulfilling his boyhood dream by continuing the Thunderbirds legacy.

MUNICH: m4e has tapped Umbrella as the licensing agent for its preschool properties Wissper and Tip the Mouse in Latin America.

Pierre Sissmann, the chairman and CEO, discusses the ambitious growth path that the company has set out upon.