Nickelodeon to Deliver Virtual PAW Patrol Show in April
If the young ones have been pining for more PAW Patrol-themed entertainment at home, Nickelodeon has just the right thing for you. The cabler is planning a live interactive streaming event titled PAW Patrol Live! At Home slated for Saturday, April 24 and Sunday, April 25. The virtual 45-minute extravaganza promises to kids at the center of the action; an opportunity to watch the show in a shared viewing room with friends and family; and an immersive pre-show area with games, videos, printable activities and more.
The PAW Patrol Live! At Home show, which will be available in English and Spanish, was originally conceived for the stage by VStar Entertainment as PAW Patrol Live! Race to the Rescue. This reimagined production recreates a communal theater-like experience enhanced by the interactive livestream production of lili Studios. Families can enjoy a pre-show immersive experience, a fully customizable AR avatar called the Cheer Squad Chicken and a PupPad, a virtual, customizable screen overlay version of Ryder’s communication device that allows guests to click on the badge of one of the members of the PAW Patrol and have their virtual pad display in the core colors of that pup. Their selected character will also speak directly to them during select moments in the show.
To purchase tickets, visit www.pawpatrolliveathome.com.
Sesame Workshop’s Olexa Hewryk Promoted to Head of Animation
Sesame Workshop has announced the promotion of Olexa Hewryk to VP & Head of Animation, where he will oversee Sesame Workshop’s vast animation efforts. Hewryk was instrumental in the production of Esme & Roy, which launched in 2018 as Sesame Workshop’s first new animated series in nearly a decade, and led efforts to create the first-ever animated Sesame Street special The Monster at the End of This Story. In this expanded role, Hewryk will oversee production for Sesame Workshop’s forthcoming Sesame Street animated spinoff Mecha Builders and recently-announced Bea’s Block, as well as other specials and shorts. He will also manage the Workshop’s in-house animation team and relationships with external animation partners.
Hewryk’s promotion is one of several promotions across Sesame Workshop’s production team. It was also announced that Sal Perez was promoted to Supervising Producer and Vice President for Sesame Street Productions, overseeing the domestic productions of Sesame Street, The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo, and all other U.S.-based production efforts for live action content, and Ben Lehmann, Executive Producer of Sesame Street, was also named Senior Vice President & Head of Live Action, adding oversight of production for Sesame Workshop series The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo, Helpsters, and Ghostwriter, and special projects to his slate.
Imira Opens Up New Territories for Mondo Yan
Spanish kids and family entertainment company Imira Entertainment, has announced a fresh slate of deals across territories for its comedy adventure series Mondo Yan. The 52×12’ CGI series is a co-production between Imira, TV3 of Catalunya, Telegael, Toonz Media Group and Melon Prodüksiyon, Istanbul. Imira is handling the global distribution of the series. Recent broadcast partners include Clan TV in LATAM, Minika in Turkey, Discovery in MENA, Omri Batz in Israel, Trans 7 in Indonesia and Astro in Malaysia, besides the streamers Primo in US Hispanic and TTNETTargeted at 6-9 year olds.
The original animated series centers on three unlikely heroes who have been chosen to protect their peaceful, mystical land from a power-obsessed villain and his mutant monsters. Set in two distinct, eye-catching worlds, the series boasts of multiple backgrounds and elaborately developed characters. While the series has already been picked up by Primo and Minikka, TV3 will go live with the show in Spain in July 2021.
Click here to watch the show’s trailer: https://vimeo.com/359265327
Wow Kids and Twinkl Launch Educational Tie-Ins for ‘Vir: The Robot Boy’
India and Singapore-based studio Cosmos-Maya’s Wow Kids has made a new publishing deal with leading educational material provider Twinkl for its popular animated show Vir: The Robot Boy. The new jointly-created teaching resources aim to inspire children and engage them in learning by featuring one of India’s favorite cartoon robots. The animated superhero character’s show, owned by Cosmos-Maya, is currently streaming on 50 digital video platforms worldwide.
Children can enjoy Vir: The Robot Boy-themed material as they develop skills in a wide range of topics that are suitable for ages 3 to 11.. Covering subjects such as literacy and art, the resources on Twinkl include activities such as sentence formations, creative writing prompts and coloring sheets. The educational materials are free to use and accessible to everyone through the Twinkl website. For more info, visit twinkl.co.in.
ZAG Games and CrazyLabs Develop New ‘Miraculous’ Game
ZAG Games has partnered with game developer and publisher CrazyLabs to create a second mobile game for the property, Miraculous Ladybug Puzzle RPG. The game is the second project to move forward at ZAG Games since the division was established in October 2020, led by industry executive Elinor Schops who serves as VP. The first is an adventure quest game for the Roblox platform, set for release May 3, 2021. The Miraculous Ladybug Puzzle RPG—slated for debut to coincide with the holiday 2021 premiere of the Miraculous theatrical movie, Ladybug and Cat Noir: Awakening—is a new take on bubble shooter puzzle games combining RPG elements that feature challenging fighting levels designed for a new generation of players. In the game, users will form their own superhero team starring the show’s beloved characters.
The company also announced the addition of Eran Holzman as creative director at ZAG Games, who will be working closely with CrazyLabs on the development of the game. Holzman joins ZAG from Matific where he served as senior game designer and producer developing games to make math learning enjoyable for children, overseeing all aspects of the game’s features, rules, story, mechanics and goals. Prior, he was product manager and game designer at Jelly Button Games.
