Cannes will play host to some 10,000 buyers and sellers when MIPCOM returns to the Palais des Festivals Oct. 9-13, again joined by its kid-themed sideshow, MIPCOM Jr. The annual TV market saw nearly $3 billion change hands last year, and will again put special attention on mobile content and digital distribution, with keynotes from such notables as Sanjiv Ahuja, CEO of European mobile leader Orange Group, and Todd Wagner, founder of art-house distributor 2929 Entertainment.

The following are some of the Canadian companies in on the action at 2006 MIPCOM.

Studio B Productions

The B.C. animation house is taking old and new titles to both MIPCOM and MIPCOM Jr., looking to presell developing series such as Casey’s Orbit and George of the Jungle alongside the more established Being Ian and Class of the Titans.

The first completed episode of Orbit – about a boy and his pet robot, aimed at four- to eight-year-olds – will debut alongside works-in-progress George of the Jungle and Ricky Sprocket – Showbiz Boy, both of which are due to air next fall.

Classic Media will handle sales for George, while Studio B and its partners at Bejuba divide the work on Ricky Sprocket, the former selling the digital rights while Bejuba handles TV.

‘Our goal is to support the TV side,’ says Studio B partner and exec producer Blair Peters. ‘The TV side still wags the dog, but in all properties we really feel… all the partners have to work together on all these shows to makes sure the launches go well.’

Studio B will also show off The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers!, now halfway through production of its first 78 x 7 season, while its Flash service work on the South Korean property Pucca (78 x 7) plays at the Jetix Europe booth. Being Ian and Class of the Titans are distributed by Nelvana.

CHUM International

The distribution wing of the Toronto TV giant is again off to sunny, southern France with shows heavy on music, lifestyle and star-watching – putting its biggest push behind new entries Nosedive (15 x 30), about the downfall of pop idols, and the HD-ready Cruel and Unusual (1 x 60), a feature doc about transgendered women in American men’s prisons.

It will also be hawking info series, including its behind-the-scenes movie series Cinenews (52 x 30), the literary The Word This Week (22 x 30) and the nerdy, gossipy Hypaspace Weekly (52 x 30). Its slate also includes In Fashion (24 x 30) and a number of Sextv half-hour specials on topics such as pornography, blaxploitation and female circumcision.

CHUM Television is also on the lookout for possible arts programming, says VP of programming Ellen Baine, though it does more shopping during the springtime at MIPTV.

‘What we’re really looking for are bigger specials,’ suitable for Bravo! or CHUM’s many music channels, she says, though ‘we still look a little bit for documentaries and lifestyle for the digitals,’ such as Star! and FashionTelevision.

Cookie Jar

Its recent, splashy debuts on Kids WB! and Teletoon will do much to push the Montreal mega-outfit’s Johnny Test, which will be foremost among the titles Cookie Jar will push at MIPCOM and MIPCOM Jr. The 26 x 30 toon recounts the adventures of a boy, his genetically engineered dog, and his nuclear scientist twin sisters who use him as a guinea pig in their many experiments.

The series, aimed at preteen boys, has recently sold in the Middle East, South Africa, Ireland, the U.K. and to Nickelodeon in Europe.

Cookie Jar will also chase sales for its Spider Riders (52 x 30), Caillou (66 x 30) and The Doodlebops (65 x 30), while president and COO Toper Taylor will deliver a talk about licensing at the close of MIPCOM Jr.

Breakthrough Animation

Adult-aimed animation is high on the list for Breakthrough, which will shop its Buddy’s and Femme Fatale series.

Comic Scott Thompson lends his voice and signature Kids in the Hall character to the gay-themed Buddy’s, in development with Atomic Cartoons. Breakthrough and Xilam Productions of France, meanwhile, are developing the high-fashion toon Femme Fatale.

Breakthrough will also bring mobile-ready shorts from three of its biggest animated series – Atomic Betty, Miss BG and Captain Flamingo – while its sister company Breakthrough Entertainment shops the 90-minute MOWs The Road to Christmas, Absolution and Cradle of Lies.

Sullivan Entertainment

The Toronto outfit’s CG-heavy feature treatment of Mozart’s The Magic Flute is in post-production and will be on the block next to Anne – Journey to Green Gables, a 90-minute animated spin-off of the Anne of Green Gables franchise. The Sullivan catalogue also includes Road to Avonlea (91 x 60) and Wind at My Back (65 x 60)

Meanwhile, Kevin Sullivan and team will be shopping for other kid-friendly features fit for theatrical release, home video or broadcast.

Alliance Atlantis

Fisher-Price toys based on Lunar Jim (26 x 30) hit the shelves in the U.K. in April, and in Canada at the end of summer – just the sort of extra push Alliance Atlantis VP Alan Gregg will be looking for when he talks up the educational preschooler series at MIPCOM.

‘We have to be careful with this show,’ he says. ‘We’re not looking for a sale just for the sake of getting a sale. We need a placement where it’s going to be showcased.’

The 26 x 30 show, seen here on CBC and Radio-Canada, also has licensing deals in place for a line of clothes, bags and other accessories. It is produced by AAC and The Halifax Film Company, and has sold well overseas, but still needs a U.S. broadcaster.

‘That’s the pot of gold,’ says Gregg, noting that MIPCOM and MIPCOM Jr. are more useful for dealing with kids genres, in part because of the long lead time of animation.