60 Projects Announced for 20th Cartoon Movie

More than 800 producers, directors, authors, distributors, sales agents, broadcasters, video game companies and new media players from Europe and beyond will assembles March 7-9 in Bordeaux, France, for the 20th edition of Cartoon Movie.

To date, 60 projects from 22 countries have been selected to be pitched at Cartoon Movie 2018: 21 of them are concepts, 26 are in development, six are in production and seven are sneak previews.

France will be represented by 18 projects, followed by Germany with 7 projects and Spain with 5 projects, Denmark with 3 projects, Belgium, Czech Republic, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and South Korea, with 2 each.

The full list of projects can be found here.

With 48 projects out of the 60 selected, family & children comedies remain the focus of Cartoon Movie projects:

• Terra Willy (TAT productions -- France, producers of The Jungle Bunch), the new adventure movie of Eric Tosti about the discovering of the planet, its fauna and flora, and its dangers.
• New movies of well-known film directors: A Greyhound of a Girl by Enzo d'Alò (Italy), about the affirmation of life and all its mysteries (adaptation of the novel of Roddy Doyle); Slocum by J.F. Laguionie (France); and The Last Whale Singer (Telescope Animation -- Germany), the new movie from Reza Memari (Richard the Stork) about saving oceans.
• In the Dark and Mysterious Forest by Alexis Ducord (Zombillenium), adapted from Dans la Forêt Sombre et Mysterieuse by Windshluss (a.k.a. Vincent Paronnaud, who is known for co-writing and co-direction with Marjane Satrapi the highly acclaimed film Persepolis).
• Bartali's Bicycle. Hopes for Tomorrow (Lynx Multimedia Factory -- Italy), the unforgettable cycling champion Gino Bartali saved hundreds of Jews by transporting counterfeit identity papers hidden in the frame of his bike. The project is about history and the tolerance into communities.
• Coppelia (Submarine Animation -- Netherlands) is a modern fairy-tale with live-action dancers of the Dutch National Ballet. 2D characters are placed in 2D/3D backgrounds.

This year, 14 of the selected projects target an audience of young adults/adults and raise History, political or even psychological themes:

• About the civil war in Africa: Allah is not Obliged (Special Touch Studios -- France).
• About the war in former Yugoslavia (today Croatia): Chris the Swiss (MA.JA.DE. Filmproduktion -- Germany) based on the life of the journalist Christian Würtenberg and directed by Anja Kofmel, his cousin.
• All Blood Runs Red (La Luna Productions -- France), the story of the first African-American pilot.
• About gender dysphoria and the recognition of the identity: Eugene (My Fantasy -- France).
• Book adaptations: Folio d’Alba (Nexus Factory -- Belgium) from Les Fables de l’Humpur by Pierre Bordagen and The Sea Wolf (Elda productions -- France) from the book of Jack London.

Three regional projects will be presented: The Bears Famous Invasion of Sicily (Prima Linea Productions -- France), Unicorn Wars (same production team as the Psychonauts) in co-production with Autour de Minuit (France) & Schmuby Productions (France), and White Fang (SuperProd, France).

For the third consecutive year, three Cartoon Connection projects will be presented at Cartoon Movie in order to expand the collaboration established at Cartoon Connection Canada and Korea.

• From Canada: Brad, the Pomerleaus’ Genie (10th Ave Productions -- Canada) selected at last Cartoon Connection Canada by European broadcasters’ representatives from Cbeebies, CBBC, France Télévisions, Turner Broadcasting Systems Europe, RAI and Canal+ France.
• From South Korea: Millionaire Woody (Studio Gale -- South Korea) and Make the Princess Laugh (Anitoart -- South Korea) selected at last Cartoon Connection Asia by European broadcaster representatives from France Télévisions, BBC & CBBC, Turner EMEA and YLE.
• In addition, one project that was pitched at Cartoon Springboard 2017, event dedicated to the emergence of young talents, was selected for the Cartoon Movie 2018: The Precious Gift by Lenka Ivancikova (Czech Republic).

For the second time, Cartoon Movie will be putting the spotlight on a country. This year, Spain, a country which has a dynamic animation industry well-recognized on an international level, has been chosen for being the spotlight country.

With its vast international experience, its awarded artists, its innovative and well recognized digital software companies and its new incentives recently, Spain is a great partner to make your production a success.

The spotlight on Spain is supported by ICAA (The Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts, an autonomous body overseen by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports of Spain) and Diboos, the Spanish Federation of Animation Producers’ Associations (the umbrella body of the sector’s principal association).

On the strength of its eight selected projects (including three in co-production) this year, Spanish animation will appear as a constant thread throughout Cartoon Movie:

• Dragonkeeper (Dragoia Media -- in development)
• Another Day of Life (Kanaki Films -- in sneak preview)
• Elcano & Magellan, The First Voyage Around the World (Dibulitoon Studio -- in production)
• Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles (by Salvador Simó -- in production)
• Unicorn Wars (Abanos Productions & UniKo -- in development)
• Gabo -- Memoirs of a Magic Life (by Salvador Simó -- in concept)
• The Impossible Journey (El Viaje Imposible -- in concept)
• Trip to Teulada (12 Pinguinos -- in concept)

Since 1999, over 300 films pitched at Cartoon Movie, with a total budget of 2 billion Euros, have secured their financing and have been released thanks to this annual forum aimed at strengthening the production and distribution of animated feature films in Europe.

Cartoon Movie is organised by CARTOON with the support of Creative Europe -- MEDIA, CNC (Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée), Région Nouvelle Aquitaine, Bordeaux Metropole, the city of Bordeaux and le Pôle Image Magelis.

Source: CARTOON

Tom McLean has been writing for years about animation from a secret base in Los Angeles.