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Octonauts
Press Release from Chorion
London/New York, 13 June 2011: Heading into Licensing International Expo, leading family entertainment producer, distributor and licensor Chorion has secured its first major multi-rights deal with German broadcaster Super RTL.
The channel has acquired 50 x 11’ minutes and 2 x 22-minute specials of Chorion’s hit preschool series Octonauts with a second window to play on Disney Germany. The deal combines TV, home entertainment and licensing & merchandising rights for the brand. The TV series is planned to debut in Germany on Disney Junior in Summer 2011 and Super RTL in Autumn 2011.
This follows the announcement of the signed agreement with Disney U.S. for the premiere of Octonauts on Disney Junior next year.
Geraint Marsh, SVP Television Sales at Chorion says: “We are pleased to have signed our first deal of this kind with leading broadcaster Super RTL. We feel privileged to work with a broadcaster that has shown such enthusiasm and commitment to Octonauts by acquiring all rights to the brand and we are looking forward to taking the show to a new audience in Germany.”
Carsten Göttel, Programme Director of Super RTL adds: "We are very pleased to welcome the Octonauts to our Toggolino strand. The show has all the ingredients to become a favourite among our preschool audience. It was love at first sight when we saw the characters in an early trailer and Chorion has done a fantastic job bringing this underwater world to life and to the TV screens around the world."
Chorion has secured several new international broadcast deals for Octonauts with other Disney Junior channels in France, Italy, India and SE Asia, alongside Al Jazeera Children's Channel in the Middle East and Hop! Israel as a second wave of TV launches in Scandinavia on YLE, DR andTV2 Norway.
Octonauts is proving to be a major hit show for Chorion. Since its launch on CBeebies in October 2010 the animated show has become a huge success, attracting large audiences and has quickly become the top-rated animated show for children aged 4-6 on the channel.* The show has been such a success for CBeebies that a second series has been ordered.
The launch of Octonauts in Australia has seen a similar reaction to the UK, becoming an instant hit on ABC since it began airing in January. Octonauts ranked number two on ABC for kids 0-4, number one on ABC 1 for kids 5-12 and was top show on i-view (the ABC’s catch-up service) from first broadcast, an unprecedented result for a new preschool show.
The first series of Octonauts has also been acquired by TF1 France, RTE Ireland, Discovery Kids Latin America, MNet South Africa, Yoopa Canada, RTP Portugal, Disney Japan and Truevision Thailand, bringing the series to the small screen in more than 140 territories worldwide.
Chorion manages the consumer products program for Octonauts which is set to launch in the UK this year. Following the early success of new publishing titles introduced from Simon & Schuster UK this Spring, a full toy range from Fisher Price will roll out across UK retailers in the Autumn.
Based on the richly imaginative books by award-winning design team, Meomi, the TV series combines elements of classic team action-adventure with dazzling CGI animation to transport preschoolers into a world they can’t ordinarily visit…the ocean. The show will arouse the curiosity and feed the imagination of preschoolers, answering questions in a journey of discovery through the world’s oceans.
Executively produced by Emmy® Award-winning writer Stephanie Simpson and Chorion’s SVP Creative Kurt Mueller, the brand new animated series includes 50 x 11’ plus 2 x 22’ special. The HD CGI animation was produced by Academy Award®-nominated Brown Bag Films who are also the producing studio on Chorion’s OLIVIA and Noddy in Toyland.
*Source: Eurodata TV / BARB / Kantar Media May 2011
About Chorion
Chorion is a leading provider of quality family entertainment for the global marketplace. Chorion brings a combination of brand management savvy and creative vision to the development of literary copyrights across all media. Chorion’s portfolio includes classic children’s brands such as Mr. Men and Little Miss, Beatrix Potter, Paddington, Noddy, OLIVIA, and The World of Eric Carle as well as art and lifestyle brands. Chorion also owns and manages the literary works of Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler and Georges Simenon, among others. Chorion’s animated television productions include OLIVIA, The Mr. Men Show, Famous Five: On the Case and Noddy and Noddy in Toyland, Octonauts, and Gaspard and Lisa. Chorion has offices in London, New York and Sydney. For more information, please visit
www.chorion.co.uk .
