Cookie Jar goes Boing Boing

Building on the ratings success of Cookie Jar Entertainment’s Doodlebops run on Playhouse Disney this summer, the mouse-house caster decided to shift the series into the big time, giving it 9 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. slots in September, in addition to its regular spot on CBC. The three candy-colored siblings are also rocking their way into their own merchandising line; Cookie Jar sold Mattel the manufacturing and marketing rights for toys, dolls, feature plush, figures, playsets, games and puzzles tied into the series for a market launch in fall 2006. DVDs, CDs, books, apparel and accessories will also launch in the second half of 2006.

Meanwhile, Cookie Jar recently sold 26 episodes of its Gerald McBoing Boing series to caster Channel Five in the U.K. Coproduced with New York’s Classic Media, the show features a little boy who communicates in sound effects. It bowed on Teletoon this year and can be seen on the Cartoon Network in the U.S.

Recent hires at the Jar, which has opened a corporate office in Toronto in addition to the former Cinar’s Montreal digs, include Catherine Donohue as VP of distribution and sales operations, Lisa Tanzer as VP of U.S. marketing, and Andre Lake-Mayer to the post of VP, U.S. licensing.

www.thecookiejarcompany.com

Cuppa’s Bruno goes bananas

Toronto’s Cuppa Coffee Animation is serving it up with service gigs on season three of Playhouse Disney’s flagship preschool show Jojo’s Circus, as well as Little People for Mattel/Fisher Price. Also in production is a new season of MTV’s Celebrity Deathmatch and a stop-motion show for VH1.

In terms of original home brew, Cuppa has just wrapped Tigga and Togga, a 26 x 3 2D musical preschool series that has generated serious broadcaster interest out of MIP. Also, Bruno is taking the world by storm, with a 50 x 1 interstitial series airing worldwide on Nick Jr., Noggin, CBC, TFO and BabyTV, among others.

Bruno has also spun off into Bruno and the Banana Bunch (26 x 11), supported by a major merchandising and licensing push in conjunction with Charles Day at L.A.’s Sharpe Company.

Cuppa’s 45-minute A Very Barry Christmas will air locally this holiday season on CBC, in addition to a DVD release and a U.S. debut on ABC. The yuletide success story has led to The Big Stuff, a feature-length spin-off currently in preproduction.

www.cuppacoffee.com

There’s snow in Amberwood this X-mas

Ottawa’s Amberwood Entertainment is currently in post-production on the second cycle of The Secret World of Benjamin Bear, with work already underway on a third. The Family Channel-commissioned series has been licensed to more than 65 territories worldwide and airs in Canada on French-language pubcaster Radio-Canada.

In a different vein, Amberwood has also recently completed The Snow Queen, to air this holiday season on CBC, BBC and BBC Worldwide. The one-hour special is a treaty coproduction with Total Eclipse Television of the U.K., featuring a traditional fairy-tale story and classical score. The live-action special was filmed in Canada and features CG backgrounds by London’s Intro.

www.amberwoodanimation.com

Studio B provides Classy New Year’s for Teletoon

Teletoon unveils Studio B Productions’ Class of the Titans in epic style with a three-part pilot this New Year’s Eve. The toon features seven teenagers who are direct descendants of ancient Greek heroes battling nasty immortal Cronus.

Vancouver-based Studio B is also in prepro with YTV on season two of 2005 Gemini best animated series nominee Being Ian. The new episodes will begin airing in November and conclude with a one-hour movie special. Nelvana distributes both Class of the Titans and Being Ian.

Also with YTV, along with the U.K.’s ITV and Cartoon Network, is The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers!, a Canada/U.K. copro with Pesky distributed by Bejuba Entertainment. The show features a trio of daredevils whose mission is to perform the greatest stunts the world has ever seen. Meanwhile, the 78 x 7 Pucca, featuring the Asian licensing starlet, billed as ‘funny love and kung-fu kicks,’ is in the production pipeline for a 2006 airdate on Jetix U.K.

www.studiobproductions.com

Image expands into other galaxies

Image Entertainment’s first Walter series (featuring the big-eared, environmentally conscious hero), which currently airs on TV5, has been picked up by Quebec’s VRAK.TV for a January launch.

Meanwhile, several other toons from the Montreal animation shop are enjoying continued international success. Teen toon Martin Mystery (66 x 26) is running in Europe on M6, Rai and Canal J, while the Beverly Hills special agent gals of Totally Spies are on call for seasons three and four on TF1 and Jetix in France, where it has been the number one series among four-12 year-olds.

Reflecting the year’s solid growth, Image has expanded its offices and looks forward to production on new series Team Galaxy, while developing shows including Constantine – which was selected for the Pitch This! event at the Ottawa International Animation Festival, and, along with Walter, was presented at last month’s MIPCOM in France.

www.image-cie.com

Decode pots hat trick on Teletoon

Toronto’s Decode Entertainment has three new series on Teletoon this fall that showcase the range of its toon chops. Bromwell High (13 x 30) is an adult digital 2D animated series copro’d with U.K.-based Hat Trick for Channel 4 in the U.K., while Planet Sketch (13 x 11) is set to premier Nov. 19. The CG/digital 2D blended series is a copro with the U.K.’s Aardman Animation, and is billed as the first sketch comedy series for kids. Delilah and Julius (26 x 22), a copro with Halifax-based Collideascope Digital Productions, launched in September. The action-cum-comedy targets eight-to-12-year-olds and takes a late afternoon weekend slot.

In addition, the tween-focused Girlstuff/Boystuff on YTV, preschool series Franny’s Feet for Family Channel, and the CBC preschool series Save-Ums are heading into their sophomore broadcast seasons.

On the corporate front, Polly Beel has been promoted to Decode’s manager of communications.

www.decode-ent.com