Business
Fox Invests In Ciné-Groupe. Fox Family
Worldwide, parent company to Fox Kids, Fox Family Channel and Saban, has acquired
a 20 percent equity stake in Montreal-based animation studio, Ciné-Groupe,
a subsidiary of Lion's Gate Entertainment (LGE: TSE). Ciné-Groupe employs
250 people producing animated TV series such as Princess Sissi, Kit
& Kaboodle and Bad Dog for Fox and other international clients.
The studio is currently animating Heavy Metal F.A.K.K. 2, sequel to
the animated feature, Heavy Metal, for Columbia TriStar.
Learning Co. Adds Broderbund To Fund. Cambridge, Massachusetts-based
The Learning Company, Inc. (NYSE: TLC) and Novato, California-based Broderbund
Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: BROD) have reached a definitive merger agreement.
The aggregate $420 million deal will combine the two interactive software
publishers by September 1998, expect analysts. Broderbund publishes games
based on animated properties such as Arthur, Carmen Sandiego
and Rugrats and books such as The Cat in the Hat. The Learning
Company recently signed a deal with DIC Entertainment to adapt their interactive
animated character Reader Rabbit for animated TV series.
Wild Brain Harvests Plantation. San Francisco-based animation company
Wild Brain, Inc. has acquired the boutique computer animation studio, Imagination
Plantation. The deal brings CG production capabilities in-house at Wild Brain,
which has been contracting work out to neighboring Imagination Plantation
on projects such as FernGully 2 and various commercials. Noah Hurwitz,
founder and president of three year-old Imagination Plantation has relinquished
his interest in the company to pursue other interests. The two other partners
and lead CG animators Nicholas Weigel and Ben Fischler will join Wild Brain's
full-time staff of 65 people, but they won't have to move far; The two companies
have shared studio space since 1996.
Animeland Trial Postponed. The trial of Tibor Clerdouet, Yvan West
Laurence and Cedric Littardi--all former editors of AnimeLand magazine,
accused of publishing material deemed offensive to children--has been postponed
until February 16. Originally scheduled to take place on June 23 in the High
Court (Tribunal de Grande Instance) in Paris, the trial questions the viability
of animation as a form of entertainment for adults. "This leaves us time
to assemble testimonies from important people around the world," said
Cedric Littardi, one of the men on trial who is seeking letters of support
from people in the animation community, and material which supports the defense
that a market for adult animation does exist. Mr. Littardi may be contacted
by e-mail at kaze@planete.net.
Mr. Littardi has also written an
article about the case, featured in the July 1998 Adult Animation &
Comics issue of Animation World Magazine.
Note: Readers may contact any Animation World Magazine contributor by sending an e-mail to editor@awn.com.
Table of Contents
Feedback?
Past Issues
About | Help | Home | info@awn.com | Mail | Register
| Animation
World Magazine | Animation World Store | The
AWN Vault The AWN Gallery | Animation Village | Calendar of Events | Career Connections | Forums & Chats | Home |