Canadian CGI animation studio Rainmaker Entertainment has joined forces with family entertainment producer Jane Startz to develop and produce two feature films based on publishing properties Tiger’s Apprentice and Fergus Crane.

The upcoming Tiger’s Apprentice film is based on Laurence Yep’s bestselling young adult novel of the same title, and Far Flung Adventures: Fergus Crane is based on the children’s fantasy tale written by Paul Stewart.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter David Magee (Finding Neverland, The Life of Pi) has written the feature adaptation to Tiger’s Apprentice, the first book in a trilogy that follows the adventures of Asian-American teenager Tom Lee.  Meanwhile, David Berenbaum (Elf, The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Haunted Mansion) has written the screenplay for Fergus Crane, which chronicles a poor 10-year old boy whose explorer father has mysteriously disappeared.

Producer Startz’s credits include Ella Enchanted, The Indian In The Cupboard, Tuck Everlasting and the The Magic School Bus TV series. On top of her film and television projects, she is a media consultant to publishing houses in the US and the UK, the creator of the young adult book series Amigas published by Hyperion/Disney Press and the co-founder of experiential retail concept Ridemakerz. She formed Jane Startz Productions in 1997 after serving as co-founder and EVP of Scholastic Productions, the film and television division of Scholastic.