The animation industry has survived the pandemic by adapting to the new normal quickly, catering to changing audience behaviour and focusing on established IP. Here we talk to industry players about the fruits of their labours over the past 18 months.

It has been a busy year for the animation sector, which has adapted quickly to the Covid-19 pandemic, enabling it to get ahead of its live-action counterparts thanks to its ability to produce remotely. Most, if not all, distributors with animation on their slates have highlighted increased demand for their animated projects during the coronavirus crisis.

This year has also been different for the animation sector in Europe following the UK’s departure from the European Union, with UK production companies disinvited from French event Cartoon Forum in September for the first time. Despite that, and the difficulties Brexit has posed for British animators, UK studios are still saying they are busier than ever.

During this thriving period, a number of animated shows are launching to the global market this fall. London-based distributor Beyond Rights is showcasing Nina & Olga, a cartoon based on Italian children’s author Nicoletta Costa’s classic book series Olga the Cloud. Produced by Enanimation and Mondo TV Producciones Canarias, in partnership with Rai Ragazzai, Nina & Olga premiered recently on Italy’s RaiYoYo.

Given that the first Olga the Cloud book was published over 20 years ago, Beyond Rights’ senior VP of acquisitions and coproductions for the UK, Europe and kids, Sarah McCormack, praises the TV adaptation for its “timeless” quality, which she says represents a trend in the animation sector right now.

“The reason we chose Nina & Olga was because it is timeless in style. It has strong characters and really good storytelling, and that makes sure it can break through the noise of other shows. It is an eclectic market, but if you have strong storytelling and good production values, that’s what’s going to break through for you,” she says.

“We’ll probably see a lot more timeless brands coming out and people watching shows that you and I used to watch. Timeless brands do cut through a little bit more.”

Drawing on established brands and IP is also a key part of the strategy of the UK’s Jetpack Distribution. “Most buyers we talk to, particularly the newer platforms, want successful brands. Publishing is a rich source of content for us,” says CEO Dominic Gardiner.

“Since Netflix entered the market, its strategy has been to go straight to the content source, with commissioners attending book fairs. Publishing has elevated itself in importance as a source of new ideas. IP is now a highly competitive space because platforms and broadcasters want TV adaptations of something that’s already much loved to minimise risk.”

Jetpack has been working with literary IP for a few years now, and the company has some fruits of the strategy to showcase. 2D animated comedy The Sisters is a hit across mainland Europe and is based on a long-running comic book that originated in France and Belgium. Wolf, meanwhile, is a 2D animation aimed at a younger audience that is also based a traditional picture book, while Dennis & Gnasher Unleashed follows characters from UK comic The Beano.

As well as established characters and IP, high-quality content and strong storytelling are highlighted by Edward Galton, CEO of Cake Entertainment, as recurring trends in kids’ animation.

“The overriding trend is that people are expecting better content,” he says. “The global marketplace wants higher quality content and stronger storytelling, and there certainly is a lean towards platforms wanting known brands. They want safe bets. Whether it’s a book-based property or a property that’s been reimagined and brought back to life, those are the projects that generally have a better shot at succeeding.”

Cake is bringing three animated series to market this fall: BOT & the Beasties, which launched on the BBC’s preschool channel CBeebies in the UK last summer; Tish Tash, which premiered on CBeebies earlier this month; and Lucas the Spider, which debuted recently on Cartoon Network’s Cartoonito block globally.

Both Galton and McCormack also note a continuing trend for comedy and humour in children’s telly, with McCormack pointing out that gentler, more whimsical humour has become more prominent during the pandemic. This sits alongside a new trend for animated shows that present values like empathy and understanding, she adds.

In a similar vein to empathy and understanding, diversity has become a huge issue in the TV world over the past year-and-a-half, leading to more efforts from producers and broadcasters to diversify their cast and characters. Colin Williams, CEO of Belfast-based producer-distributor Sixteen South, signals a move towards non-white lead characters as something he is seeing a lot more of in the animation space.

“I’ve noticed a very welcome change in the skin colour of lead characters. It’s really refreshing to see genuine diversity. There’s certainly a movement towards shows that don’t have white boy leads, which is always a good thing,” he says.

Sixteen South’s general manager, Alexandros van Blanken, also cites a trend for co-viewing, amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic. “When we were at the markets about two years ago, the big drive was for family co-viewing comedy across both animation and live-action, and what we can see now is the results of that wish. There is a lot out there that is family-driven; everyone seems to be developing or producing some kind of six-to-nine or seven-to-10 kids’ comedy which has a family feel to it, that is sort of ‘sitcomesque’ within animation,” he says.

Also launching to the global market this fall by Sixteen South is The Coop Troop, a comedy series about a gang of five animals whose mission is to help any animal with a problem. The series, which is currently in production, is set to air on France Télévisions and Tencent Kids in China.

Co-viewing has been cited as a trend in the TV space throughout the coronavirus pandemic, but mostly in relation to kids and their parents. A twist on this, however, is that Williams and van Blanken say they are seeing an increased desire among broadcasters for programmes children can watch with their grandparents.

“We’re speaking to a broadcaster about a project, who’s really keen to put it on to a channel where the audience is not kids and parents but kids and grandparents. That’s an interesting approach because you don’t have that on SVoD, but you do still have that on some linear channels in some countries,” Williams says.

Van Blanken adds: “When we heard this I asked other broadcasters and it’s a trend across several countries in Europe, mainly among public broadcasters that have linear channels.”

Fitting in with this trend, Sixteen South is currently developing Ivory Towers, a preschool animation set in a home for elderly animals, which follows a four-year-old elephant’s visits to her grandfather, where she hears amazing stories from the residents and, together, they make new memories.

Described by Williams as “a celebration of life,” Ivory Towers focuses on the value of intergenerational relationships. “It’s about gratitude and appreciating living in the moment, so things we’ve learnt to appreciate from lockdown and from what Covid has brought,” the exec says. “It’s about treasuring every moment and celebrating every day because we’re not sure what’s around the corner.”

Williams adds that Ivory Towers forms part of producers’ responsibility to address issues in children’s TV, which represents another key trend in the animation space. In addition to diversity and empathy, as mentioned above, subjects like mental health and climate change are increasingly featuring in kids’ shows.

“Channels are more tuned in to making sure they’ve got something to cover the mental health of children, as well as teaching them about nice values and being kind. That’s really key at the moment,” says Beyond Rights’ McCormack.

In light of this, Sixteen South is currently in production on animated series Odo, about a little owl’s refusal to be what society expects them to be and which touches on issues like self-belief and anxiety.

“Shows like Odo and Ivory Towers will resonate more now than they would have done if we developed them five years ago. That’s partly a direct result of the past 18 months where broadcasters have been trying to not just create another version of Paw Patrol, but actually think about the audience and their families,” van Blanken says.

The animation industry has survived the pandemic by adapting to the new normal quickly, catering to changing audience behaviour and focusing on established IP. Here we talk to industry players about the fruits of their labours over the past 18 months.

It has been a busy year for the animation sector, which has adapted quickly to the Covid-19 pandemic, enabling it to get ahead of its live-action counterparts thanks to its ability to produce remotely. Most, if not all, distributors with animation on their slates have highlighted increased demand for their animated projects during the coronavirus crisis.

This year has also been different for the animation sector in Europe following the UK’s departure from the European Union, with UK production companies disinvited from French event Cartoon Forum in September for the first time. Despite that, and the difficulties Brexit has posed for British animators, UK studios are still saying they are busier than ever.

During this thriving period, a number of animated shows are launching to the global market this fall. London-based distributor Beyond Rights is showcasing Nina & Olga, a cartoon based on Italian children’s author Nicoletta Costa’s classic book series Olga the Cloud. Produced by Enanimation and Mondo TV Producciones Canarias, in partnership with Rai Ragazzai, Nina & Olga premiered recently on Italy’s RaiYoYo.
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