Now in its second year, Nickelodeon expands its Animated Shorts Program to include international pitches, and announces the program’s 2013 finalists.
Nickelodeon has picked 12 finalists for its second annual Animated Shorts Program, according to a report by Kidscreen. The Animated Shorts Program, which this year saw nearly 900 submissions from around the world, is intended to cultivate creative talent and develop original comedy-driven kids content.
The network will develop the 12 concepts into fully realized shorts that could end up airing on Nickelodeon, Nick.com and the new Nick App, which is growing in popularity, attracting more than one million users since launching in February.
With the added distribution platform for shorts and growth of the program (300 more pitches compared to 2012, spanning all styles from 2D, digital 2D and CGI to stop-motion and mixed media), Nickelodeon plans to further expand the shorts program with an international launch in the coming months.
According to SVP of animation development Jenna Boyd, the network’s London-based SVP of international production and development, Nina Hahn, is extending the entry deadline until Annecy in June to take international pitches.
Concepts chosen from the 2013 program as finalists include Bug Salad, Earmouse and Bottle, Welcome to Woodstump and Broats. Bug Salad, created by Carl Faruolo (director of the upcoming animated Nickelodeon series Sanjay and Craig), follows the story of a naïve fly and his two best friends, while Earmouse and Bottle,from storyboard artist Brian Morante, follows a revenge story involving an indestructible Earmouse and a fragile bottle character who are cursed by an evil wizard.
Artist Zach Smith’s Welcome to Woodstump features main character Dennis Deer’s epic adventure to get home after realizing he accidentally wore his mom’s jeans. Jack Cusamano’s Broats, meanwhile, focuses on three slacker goats that open their own petting zoo.
Looking at the progress of the 2012 shorts program, six of the final 12 created shorts are currently in series development with two set for pilot orders. Pam and Sid’s Port-a-Party, one of the shorts in series development, will head to the Nick App, but it has not been determined which platforms the other shorts will air on.
Click on the image below to view Pam and Sid’s Port-a-Party:
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
