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Cinar's insurance company, Liberty Mutual, has hired private investigators to look into the allegations of fraud against the children's television producer. Liberty may have to pay out millions if the board of Cinar is found liable. The insurance company's law firm Gasco Lelarge hired two former Montreal police detectives, Alain Pirrol and Andre Boudreau, to head up the investigation. Pirrol and Boudreau run the Montreal-based investigation agency Quali-T Investigation.

Shockwave.com announced it has appointed former Pixar Animation Studios executive Lawrence Levy as its new president and CEO. Levy will also join the board of directors of the company. This new position will be effective June 19. Rob Burgess will continue as chairman of shockwave.com and chairman and CEO of Macromedia. Levy was the executive vice president and chief financial officer at Pixar where he spearheaded business operations and was responsible for Pixar's 1995 initial public offering.

Nelvana Limited announced it has acquired the development, production, distribution and associated merchandise licensing rights for animated television programming, based on the 13-book series, DOCTOR DOLITTLE, written and illustrated by Hugh Lofting. Nelvana has also acquired the production publishing tie-in rights to animated television programming, which the company will develop and produce from its adaptation of the book titles. Nelvana will also develop and produce original stories based on the classic character, who made his book debut in 1920.

In July, Warner Bros. will start shooting HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERERS STONE at Leavesden Studios in the U.K. The deal with Warner is similar to the one Lucasfilms struck for EPISODE 1. The production will occupy the entire 286-acre studio for about 18 months. The movie is based on the young adult book by the same name, which follows a young wizard during his training. Chris Columbus is directing the film. The scheduled release date for the picture is November 2001. No doubt the production will tap into the local talent just like George Lucas did for his 13-month PHANTOM MENACE shoot.

Makati City, Philippines-based pasi and BKN Kids have teamed up to co-produce 40 half-hour episodes of KONG, THE ANIMATED SERIES. As part of the pact, pasi and BKN will also produce a direct-to-video feature entitled KONG, KING OF ATLANTIS. The series is scheduled to air in over 80 territories. KONG will put a modern twist on the classic King Kong character by pitting the gentle-hearted giant against his enemies, who want to capture the power of the Internet. The demands of producing 40 episodes at a rapid schedule pace will require pasi to utilize several allied studios throughout Asia.

Spain's Terra Networks have announced that their shareholders have approved the company's US$12.5 billion purchase of U.S. Internet portal Lycos. The shareholders also okayed $17.7 billion in capital increases to pump up liquidity in the new arm. "The acquisition of Lycos is the big leap that will allow us to position ourselves as a truly global company," Terra president Juan Villalonga said at the company's shareholders meeting. The Spanish-language Internet server and provider announced last month its intention to purchase Lycos as an inroad to the U.S. market.

* Friday, June 16, 2000. Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.

Finishing up on June 4, 2000, The World Animation Celebrations competition has announced its winners. Prizes in over 30 competition categories were awarded. There were over 500 entries from all over the world. Annecy 1999 and Cannes winning short WHEN THE DAY BREAKS by Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis took home the grand prize. Taking the top prize for theatrical features was STUART LITTLE. The live-action/CGI animated feature beat out DreamWorks PRINCE OF EGYPT, which took home the second place prize. Below is a complete list of the winners.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Cartoon Network are joining forces to bring THE POWERPUFF GIRLS to the big screen. The shows creator Craig McCracken will supervise the feature. This film marks the first-ever feature based on an original Cartoon Network series. This collaboration will be the first production of a full-length animated film at the newly opened Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, California. THE POWERPUFF GIRLS is targeted for a summer 2002 release.

Speaking at an investors conference in London, Viacom president and COO, Mel Karmazin, emphasized to attendees that if UPN doesnt begin to make a profit it would either be shut down or sold off. Karmazin said Viacom expects UPN to meet the performance criteria set for all its operating divisions. The total losses for the five-year old network have risen to nearly $800 million. "UPN will become profitable, or it wont exist," Karmazin said.