Alphanim and Cinar team up for Delta State

French toon house Alphanim is preparing to start production on a number of toons including Delta State, the company's first co-production with Cinar since the Canadian company's legal problems began.

Delta State is a 26×30' series, which focuses on four 20-something East Berliners with supernatural powers. Though they all are somewhat disorganised and lazy, they become reluctant heroes fighting against The Rifters who want to control the human race's collective mind.

The show, aimed at kids 12+, is a co-production between Alphanim, Cinar, Canal+ (France) and an unnamed UK partner. Production is due to start this September.

{The animation technique involves Cinar shooting live-action, with us using computer graphics to turn the footage into animation,{ said Alphanim's head of distribution Julie Fox.

Each partner has the rights to their own territory, with Alphanim taking all remaining territories. The last project the two animation houses worked on was The Baskervilles.

Also in production at Alphanim is Cosmic Cowboys, a 52×13' cel series destined for France3. {A German partner and a UK broadcaster are also involved,{ said Fox.

The comedy series, aimed at kids 8-12, revolves around a pair of intergalactic bounty hunters who face their arch-rival, the sinister Cereal Bob, a killer rabbit.

Pre-production is also underway on Gardeners, a 104×13' cgi series based on a limited edition range of dolls made by an artist in Hong Kong.

The show is set on a fantasy verdant island inhabited by various urban tribes who each follow some hip pastime like snowboarding, basketball or surfing. The storylines centre on each tribes' particular quests and various inter-tribe conflicts.

The show is being produced for France3, alongside the same unnamed German partner involved in Cosmic Cowboys. {Two British broadcasters are also fighting over the show,{ said Fox. {It will be very street-style funky-looking.{

{We're making so many episodes because we think there will be plenty of merchandising opportunities,{ she added. {We already have master toy licences and other merchandising deals in the pipeline.{

Further down the development slate is Potatoes & Dragons, Alphanim's first attempt at reaching the kids 4-6 demographic.

The 104×5' show follows the adventures of the king of a race of potatoes, who promises his daughter's hand in marriage to the first tuber to defeat the dragon who lives under his castle.

{It's a bit of a new direction for us,{ said Fox. {We usually target kids aged between 8-12. We're also deciding whether to use cel or Flash animation.{

Alphanim is in discussion with France's Canal J about the series.