BBC Studios

The UK studio has teamed up with Big Deal Films (Dreaming Whilst Black) to develop Humza Arshad’s Little Badman books as an animated series. BBC Studios optioned the three-book series, which first launched in 2019 and follows an 11-year-old rapper who tries to solve unusual mysteries. The project is in the early stages of development, with few details finalized yet, says Big Deal managing director Dhanny Joshi.

Jetpack

London-based Jetpack Distribution has acquired worldwide rights to 2D-animated/live-action comedy series Critters TV (pictured) from Irish studio Turnip & Duck. The 26 x 11-minutes revolves around a bunch of animals watching humorous nature documentaries about other animals. Aimed at four to eights, it premiered on Ireland’s pubcaster RTÉjr in 2019.

PBS KIDS

Florida-based theme park operator Falcon’s Beyond Global is turning the US pubcaster’s shows into physical interactive play spaces for the first time. PBS KIDS brands including Elinor Wonders Why, Odd Squad, Dinosaur Train, Sid the Science Kid, Let’s Go Luna, SuperWHY!, Wild Kratts and Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum will all be getting brick-and-mortar attractions. And locations should be announced in the coming months.

IMC Toys 

The Spanish toyco has tapped New Jersey-based Blue Plate Media Services to distribute its animated shows in the US. Blue Plate will manage TV and streaming sales of IMC preschool series Cry Babies Magic Tears (22 x five minutes) and VIP Pets (six x 14 minutes).

Cry Babies Magic Tears is about a group of babies who explore the world, while VIP Pets focuses on pets that help each other on adventures.

IMC has been successful in building a YouTube presence for its shows that currently has more than 600,000 subscribers. And it has also inked several UK broadcast deals, including one with Nick Jr. in 2020. The next step is to build out its reach stateside through this new partnership.

Guru 

The animation studio has tapped Fauna Entertainment as an exclusive licensing and distribution partner for its animated show True and the Rainbow Kingdom (37 x 22 minutes) in Turkey. Based in that market, Fauna will manage the preschool adventure series’ licensing program, broadcast sales and YouTube channels donestically.

True is a Netflix original series that premiered in 2017, starring a magical young girl who helps the residents of Rainbow Kingdom. Guru has also been growing the brand off-screen recently, bringing in United Smile as its new master toy partner.