French production and distribution company Alphanim , which has been part of the Gaumont Group since 2007, is rebranding as Gaumont Animation and is marking the occasion by co-producing the new Noddy series with DreamWorks Classics and France Televisions.

The development and production agreement is for 52 x 11-minute episodes of the 3D CGI-animated series. The Noddy character was originally created in 1949 by children’s author Enid Blyton.

The company is attending MIPTV next month under its new moniker. Gaumont Animation will continue to expand its development efforts to include both original content, such as Dude That’s My Ghost for Disney XD, and classic properties such as Calimero, which is currently in production, and now Noddy.

Gaumont Animation is launching as parent company Gaumont strengthens its feature film division – namely through the recent box-office success of The Intouchables, which has earned US$400 million at the international box office.