Global Screen, the distribution arm of German prodco Telepool, has acquired the international sales rights to Finnish studio Animaker’s upcoming CG-animated holiday flick Niko—Beyond The Northern Lights (pictured).

The 85-minute pic is slated for theatrical release in December 2024 and is the third film in the Niko trilogy, following Niko & The Way To The Stars (2008) and Niko—Little Brother, Big Trouble (2012). Global Screen has sold these first two titles into more than 120 territories in a mix of theatrical and streaming/broadcast deals.

Aimed at tweens and families, the Niko franchise centers around a young reindeer who faces challenges ranging from overcoming his vertigo to rescuing a kidnapped step-sibling. The third film will see a pre-teen Niko dealing with stiff competition from a new female reindeer, who edges him out for a spot on Santa’s famous flying brigade.

Animaker (Help! I’m a Fish) is co-producing the film with Germany’s Ulysses Films (The Amazing Maurice), Moetion Films (Two By Two) in Ireland and Danish prodco A. Film Production (Raggie).

Kari Juusonen and Jorgen Lerdam have returned as co-directors for the new installment, which features a script penned by Juusonen, Animaker producer Hannu Tuomainen and Irish writer Marteinn Thorisson. Financing for the film has been contributed by several organizations, including the Finnish Film Foundation, the German Federal Film Fund, Screen Ireland, the Danish Film Institute, the Estonian Film Institute, Nordisk Film and RTÉ.