Mediatoon Distribution
Jerome Alby, CEO at Media Participations-owned French animation distributor Mediatoon, gives his view on market trends, his expansion plans and what the company has in store for its trip to the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this month.
How has demand for animation changed in recent years?
We are witnessing a growing demand for animated original creations as well as content based on long-standing IPs. Since we can offer both, this has created several business opportunities here at Mediatoon. In addition, we are seeing a greater interest in shorter and vertical formats.
Where is demand for French animation the highest?
For either economic reasons or geographical proximity, in certain territories there is certainly a stronger tradition of coproducing and acquiring French animation, such as in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium and Canada. And yet we are very happy with the good reception of our shows in the rest of the world, as French animation is an outstanding alternative to that offered by North American and Asian studios.
How has the SVoD boom affected your company’s business?
At Mediatoon, we have seen this effect in full force, with SVoD revenues growing from 5% to more than half of our annual budget in the past 10 years. This has been possible notably because of our fast response to the arrival of these new players. We were, for example, one of the first French animation providers to work with Netflix worldwide. Also, because of our investment in a vast catalogue of localised versions, we can offer our star shows to our SVoD partners in a wide selection of languages.
What opportunities does AVoD/FAST growth create for Mediatoon?
It has given us the opportunity to experiment with new content, as we did with [animated teen comedy] Roger & His Humans. Also, it allows us to increase the brand awareness of strong IPs such as Garfield, Cedric, Trotro, Code Lyoko etc. Finally, and above all, it means we can reach new audiences on different screens. For instance, we are very proud to have recently released the Jellytoon channel in partnership with Samsung TV Plus.
What can you tell us about the shows on Mediatoon’s new slate?
We are excited to be arriving in Annecy to showcase our most recent projects, a combination of high-added-value original creations and well-established IPs with awesome stories and a big global appeal.
In The Marsupilamis (52×11’), we embark on exciting adventures with the funniest and fluffiest friends you could wish for. It gathers all the ingredients we love in a kids’ series: amazing stories and characters, with a double scoop of comedy.
Samsam (52×11’) is back with new visual flair as we join this little hero and his friends on fresh and exciting cosmic adventures. Samsam’s eye-catching world explores questions that every kid can relate to, and we are glad to be presenting a new CGI series of this much-loved character.
In Living With Dad (52×12’), adapted from Nob’s best-selling comic book, we dive into the unpredictable and hilarious daily life of this very unconventional family.
Finally, The Fox Badger (104×12’) is back for another season with new adventures of this mixed-species family, comprising a single badger father and his three kids, and a fox mother and her daughter.
Which other genres of programming is Mediatoon moving into?
We are an animation-first company; that is our DNA. We are therefore always seeking to diversify our animation slate, providing a range of shows for different target audiences, from preschool to young adults. For us, the key is to distribute animated shows we love, with exceptional and long-lasting stories and characters, and values with global reach. All that said, we are always open to experiment with other genres of programmes, notably live-action fiction for children and young adults, as we did with Lucas Etc (52×7’).
How do the various companies within Media Participations work together?
Mediatoon has been set to develop and oversee all business opportunities emerging around the sphere of comic publishing, iconic youth properties and animation production. Therefore, we are very lucky to be part of a group that is involved in so many different activities: publishing, audiovisual, streaming platforms, L&M, videogames, theme parks, etc. This often allows an enriched 360-degree and long-tail approach to the shows that we distribute, developing to a great extent our brand management expertise. In this sense, our series Naruto and Yakari are two great examples, and we are just as confident that this also will be the case with new series The Marsupilamis.
What is your social media strategy and what success have you had in this area?
Our digital distribution team has more than doubled within one year. This indicates the central role that social media plays in our strategy, which entails experimenting with content, increasing brand awareness and reaching wider audiences. We manage more than 200 channels on YouTube, Snapchat Discover, Facebook Watch and TikTok with almost a billion views over the year. Also, we aim to upscale our shortform content offer on TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Meta Reels and Snap Spotlight.
What initiatives does Mediatoon have planned for the rest of 2023 and beyond?
We’re excited to present at Cartoon Forum in the second semester of 2023 our upcoming slapstick hit with our in-house production company Ellipse Animation. In addition, we will be premiering at MipJunior and Mipcom the new season of Samsam, produced by Folivari and Bayard Animation. The show is very special for us as Samsam is a beloved character, and we have great expectations for this upcoming release, since the first seasons achieved strong international recognition and even won France’s Export Prize.
