Sean Clarke Set for TV Kids Summer Festival

Sean Clarke, managing director of Aardman, will take part in a keynote conversation during the TV Kids Summer Festival, which is being held from June 7 to 10.

The free four-day, must-attend virtual event will explore the challenges and opportunities facing the children’s content community today. It will feature keynotes and panels with leading executives and creatives discussing the major trends in the children’s programming business. It will be streamed live and available on-demand on TVKidsFestival.com.

Clarke joined Aardman as head of consumer products in 1998, after several years as U.K. licensing director for Disney Consumer Products. In 2008, he became head of rights and brand development, responsible for global brand development and distribution of Aardman and third-party rights across all platforms. He was instrumental in developing Aardman’s rights team, the launch of the studio’s YouTube channels, and the studio diversifying into new areas of immersive storytelling, including its first Shaun the Sheep Land, which opened in Sweden in 2015.

The studio is behind such hits as Chicken Run, The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Wallace & Gromit and Shaun the Sheep. It has had ten Oscar nominations and has won four.

During his keynote, Clarke will discuss Aardman’s commitment to innovation, the company’s various services and activities, upcoming films and TV series, nurturing talent, diversity and inclusion priorities, philanthropic initiatives and opportunities for growth in the next 12 to 24 months.

Look for more announcements in the coming weeks about key speakers and panels taking place during the TV Kids Summer Festival. Registration will open shortly.