Please wait...
Please wait...

CONTENT STRATEGIES: Uncovering programming opportunities worldwide

Regional variations

Catalan broadcaster TVC is a major supporter of the regional animation industry. Ed Waller finds out how.

Oriol Sala-Patau

It’s difficult to overestimate the importance of Catalan broadcaster Televisió de Catalunya (TVC) to the local animation industry.

The Barcelona-based broadcast group accounts for around 20% of all TV viewing in Catalonia, invests millions of euros in developing new children’s programming and is the first port of call for numerous animation shops in the Catalan region of Spain.

“Coproducing with Catalan independents is a big obligation for TVC; it’s part of our broadcasting licence that we have a high level of commitment to indies,” says Susanna Jiménez, head of coproduction at the company, whose flagship channel is TV3.

While Jiménez oversees TVC’s €16m (US$20.4m) coproduction fund, of which some €3m goes into children’s animation, it’s Elisabet Cabré and Oriol Sala-Patau who are top of the Rolodex for Catalan toonsmiths. As programmer for children and youth, Cabré runs Super3 and 3XL, TVC’s kids and youth channels, while Sala-Patau exec-produces TVC’s animated coproductions alongside the indies involved.

Ask Lara

Super3 (which replaced K3 in October 2009) broadcasts to under-14s from 06.00 to 21.30, after which older-skewing 3XL (which replaced Canal 300 in September 2010) takes over on the same frequency. Super3 programming includes in-house productions Club Super3, daily newscast Info K and preschool strand Mic.

TVC’s work with indies comprises coproductions and acquisitions: “About 10% of Super3’s output is in-house production; between 15% and 20% is coproduction; and the rest is acquisitions,” says Cabré. The acquisitions include Wild Kratts, Bob the Builder, Captain Biceps and Shaun the Sheep.

Keeping Sala-Patau busy, the current slate of coproductions is long and varied. It includes The Mint Fairy, a preschool toon from Cromosoma and Inercia Films based on the stories written by renowned Spanish author Gemma Lienas; Fungi (26×7’) from production company Stor Fisk, which previously made Saari, alongside France’s Awol Animation and Top Draw Animation of the Philippines.

Then there’s Wilbur Willmore (52×11’), a comedy adventure series from Edebé Audiovisual and Eddadesign that is aimed at kids aged 6-10; Night Breeds (26×23’), a US$4.8m vampire adventure from Sweatbox and Digital360 for kids 10-13; and adult animation Perfect Teeth from Yankeepay.

Two more recent Super3 projects are being developed with prodco Tomavistas. Rudy the Chosen One (52×11’) is aimed at six- to nine-year-olds and has coproduction partner Jetoon of China attached. It follows an attention-starved boy who imagines being a superhero above the clouds. The total budget is around €4m and the project still has a sizeable deficit, says Tomavistas’ head of new business development Pierre Nothman. “TVC is putting in €500,000 and we’re looking for the rest.”

The other Tomavistas project that TVC is involved with is preschooler Picnic With Pie (13×5’), alongside coproduction partners Submarine of the Netherlands and Walking the Dog of Belgium. Submarine and Tomavistas previously teamed up for TVC toon Ask Lara.

Picnic With Pie is adapted from a picture book of the same name by Vietnamese author Thé Tjong-Khing and the project will also include a 1×30’ special. The book tells the story of the theft of a pie from a village picnic through the different points of view of all the animals involved.

TVC is also dipping its toe into 3D animation with Zoobabu, from BRB Internacional and Screen 21; Jokebox, from Kotoc; and feature film Viaje Màgico a Àfrica (A Magical Journey to Africa). However, Sala-Patau says: “My personal opinion is that while 3D is interesting, most TV viewing will continue to be in standard formats.”

Despite supporting so many Catalan indies, Sala-Patau says the biggest challenge is finding funding from elsewhere. “Markets require 52-episode series and this is a very expensive format to produce,” he says. “Our network is often the first to put up money and that’s a great help to production companies seeking other investors.” Catalan indies are also able to tap into funds from cultural agency ICIC, which pumps €14m into audiovisual content a year, of which €1.5m goes into animation.

The competition in the kids space is Clan TV, the free-to-air digital channel from Spanish pubcaster TVE. Clan has about 2.9% of total viewing in Spain and Cabré admits that the channel is the one to beat. “When DTT [digital terrestrial TV] launched here, it was hard for us as Clan went digital before us. But being first doesn’t mean kids will stay watching you. Clan is strong but we often beat them in the school holidays,” she says, adding that Super3 gets between 15% and 20% of its target age group of four- to 12-year-olds.

And, she adds, Super3 isn’t just an on-air brand. “Club Super3 started in 1991 and now has 1.2 million members, who get access to live events, competitions, a magazine and an exclusive area of the Super3 website. And more than 420,000 children go to the Super3 festival.”

RELATED ARTICLES

Please wait...