Special Event: MIPCOM

Rich Ross, President of Disney Channel Worldwide, will present a keynote address on the second day of MIPCOM Junior, which will be held on the Oct. 6-7, 207, at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes.

Rich Ross, who has been with The Walt Disney Co. for 11 years, manages the company's successful and burgeoning global kids' TV business, a total of 67 channel feeds around the world. He is a key member of the team behind the HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL franchise. Ross will share the reasons behind the channel's phenomenal success during his keynote speech at MIPCOM.

Montreal-based Pop6 is producing an animated feature version of Jeff Amano's comic book series GENE-FUSION, reports ICv2.com. The comic was the first title published by Amano's Beckett Ent. The initial issue was launched at MIPCOM 2002. Later, Ivan Brandon penned and Neil Vokes drew a four-issue run. Pop6 hopes to have the film ready for 2008.

GENE-FUSION: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS follows a group of highly trained athletes called Fusers, who compete with genetically altered animals that were created by fusing the DNA of three separate creatures together.

Aardman Animations has found an American home for its internationally successful children's property SHAUN THE SHEEP. The animated series, which just last week won the Cristal Award as Best TV Production at the Annecy Animated Film Festival, will premiere on Disney Channel on Sunday, July 8, 2007, in primetime. Since its successful launch as the most viewed show at Mipcom 2006, the property has sold to primary broadcasters in 145 territories including Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Germany, India, France, Benelux, Japan and Latin America.

The latest Acrobat edition of Animation World Magazine is now online. Download it today while it's still available for free. This issue tackles the topics of feature films and shorts. Start your engines, folks, it's that time of year again -- Rick DeMott takes a lap around the Oscar buzz arena to uncover who's ahead and who hasn't even left the starting line. Philippe Moins surveys the European animated feature scene and discovers a vast array of subjects and styles. Karen Raugust looks at how the animated feature film business is no longer closed to independent animation houses in the U.S.

Since its launch three months ago at MIPCOM 06, Aardman Animations' SHAUN THE SHEEP has racked up television sales in 60 countries and tied up licensing deals in several key territories worldwide.

Following its success as the most viewed show at MIPCOM Jr., the series has been sold by Aardman Int'l to multiple broadcasters across the globe, including France, Japan, Asia and Latin America.