France-based Technicolor has secured a deal for the CGI adaptation of Tom Taylor’s hit graphic novel series The Deep that sees Canada’s Nerd Corps Entertainment join Australia’s A Stark Production as a co-production partner.

Technicolor is the property’s exclusive international distributor, excluding Australia and New Zealand, where A Stark Production will distribute, and Canada, which is being handled by Nerd Corps.

The 26 x half-hour adventure series targeting kids six to 12 years old and their families has been commissioned by Australia’s ABC Television and The Seven Network and has been pre-sold to Germany’s Super RTL.

Published as a standalone novel by Gestalt Comics, The Deep follows the adventures of a family of underwater explorers, the Nektons, who live aboard a state-of-the-art submarine, the Aronnax, while exploring the deepest recesses of the Earth’s oceans.

The Nekton family includes 12-year-old Antaeus (Ant); his 15-year-old sister and crack navigator Fontaine; and their parents Will, an oceanographer, and Kaiko, a marine biologist.

Taylor, a bestselling Australian comic book author and playwright whose other credits include Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight and Star Wars: Blood Ties, is serving as head writer on the TV series with The Deep‘s illustrator James Brouwer (Justice League Beyond) on board as art director.

A Stark Production is handling pre-production on the series including music, designs, scripts and storyboards while Nerd Corps is tasked with animation production including voice talent, CG modelling and animation through final picture and sound.

The series marks Nerd Corp’s first international co-production.

Technicolor is managing the worldwide rollout of the series for broadcast and is looking to extend the brand in the licensing space.