Jim Henson Co. To Debut Two New Animated Shows At MIPCOM

The Jim Henson Company will debut two new CGI-animated series, DINOSAUR TRAIN and THE SKRUMPS, at MIPCOM Jr.

Created for 3-6 year old children, DINOSAUR TRAIN, featuring a colorful steam engine that carries dinosaurs to the many prehistoric eras, is currently in development as 52 x 11 episodes for PBS Kids. The world of DINOSAUR TRAIN is seen through the eyes of Buddy, a preschool-age Tyrannosaurus Rex. Rescued and hatched by a female Pteranodon, Buddy soon realizes that he looks quite different from his siblings. In response to Buddy's enthusiasm to learn more about himself and other dinosaurs, mom takes her family for adventures on the DINOSAUR TRAIN. Kids will get on board with Buddy and his family to meet all kinds of dinosaurs and learn new fascinating facts about these incredible creatures.

Also debuting at the market for pre-sales is THE SKRUMPS, a series based on characters created by artist John Chandler and made popular by his line of collectible figures and illustrated storybooks. THE SKRUMPS, a uniquely colorful troupe of Skrumpland residents, is currently in active development for long-form direct-to-DVD production with a future television series also anticipated. The characters are performed using the Henson Digital Puppetry Studio. Several short videos, including a music video and several character video-blogs were initially produced and distributed on Yahoo Kids! in January 2007 to launch the brand. THE SKRUMPS were also featured in their first interactive game launched on Yahoo in March 2008.

"Based on input from paleontologists, science educators, and early childhood education experts, DINOSAUR TRAIN has developed an ambitious, creative curriculum and harnesses children's enthusiasm for and curiosity about dinosaurs, sparking children's interest in life science and natural history," said President and COO Peter Schube. "The innovative and irreverent quality of THE SKRUMPS continues our legacy of creating families of engaging characters that audiences around the world will connect with and we are excited to launch this new property across all media including online content and television productions, as well as merchandising and licensing."