Lion King & Frozen Talent On Board New GBI Show

BEVERLY HILLS: Genius Brands International (GBI) has teamed up with The Lion King director Rob Minkoff and Frozen co-writer Shane Morris for the development and production of the preschool series Rainbow Rangers.

Rainbow Rangers centers on seven magical girls from the other side of the rainbow who work together to save Earth from an evil villain. The 52×11-minute CGI-animated show will be produced by Minkoff, with Morris also serving as a producer and head writer alongside Tim Mansfield. Key designs were created by Brittany Myers and Ruben Aquino.

GBI expects to launch a Rainbow Rangers special in fall 2017 and the full series in spring 2018. The company is also developing a global L&M and retail program for the property to coincide with the show’s premiere.

“We are absolutely ecstatic to be working in collaboration with Rob, Shane, Tim and Ruben on developing this joyous, empowering adventure for little girls,” said Andy Heyward, GBI’s chairman and CEO, and executive producer for Rainbow Rangers. “The creative genius being poured into this original and powerful property is already attracting incredible interest from all sectors of the industry.”

“Rainbow Rangers is an exciting premise with fantastic characters and an incredible world,” noted Morris. “It’s also inspirational. It’s about the amazing power and strength of these seven magical girls. I truly enjoy writing stories that demonstrate girls can do anything, and when girls work together, well, anything is possible.”

“With two young children at home I’ve been exposed to a lot of TV animation lately and felt it was time to jump in with both feet,” stated Minkoff. “The appeal of a team of young girls protecting the planet is undeniable and couldn’t be more timely. Rainbow Rangers is truly an incredible opportunity, and I’m very pleased to be working with GBI’s creative team.”

“We are very eager to debut the concept to potential media, licensing and promotional partners at this year’s MIPJunior,” added Stone Newman, GBI’s president of global consumer products, worldwide content sales and marketing. “Our schedule is already fully booked, and we have no doubt Rainbow Rangers will be a huge hit for us at the market.”