Dipping its toe further into the live-action pool, Cartoon Network has just put Tiger’s Apprentice, a made-for-TV movie project based on the bestselling YA novel of the same name by Lawrence Yep, into pre-production.

The new film joins previously announced live-action fare already in development, including comic-inspired movies Firebreather, The Vanishers, Mice Templar and a follow up to the first Ben 10 movie.

David Magee, Oscar-nominated screenwriter of Finding Neverland, adapted the book for film treatment and Jane Startz has been tapped as executive producer for the film that’s slated to premiere on CN in 2010.

The story revolves around teen orphan Tom Lee who is put under the protection of Mr. Hu, a mystical tiger that can morph into a human. The ensuing adventure leads the pair into the magical and hidden world of San Francisco’s Chinatown.