Denmark is the queen of Nordic animation at this year’s Cartoon Forum

This year’s edition of Cartoon Forum, which ran from 16 to 19 September in Toulouse, has wrapped up. The Occitanie-based pitching and co-production forum hosted 993 participants from 42 different countries and saw the presentation of 75 new animated series projects. France led the line-up with 36 projects, followed by Ireland with eight, and Germany and Italy with five each.

Denmark was the only Nordic country present at the gathering, with three new shows pitched and one presented as part of the European Broadcasting Union’s (EBU) Co-Development Initiative. Among these, the project that attracted the highest number of attendees was the “epic futuristic adventure” Steel Hearts (the 10th most-attended session), a co-production led by Linni Rita Gad for EyeCandyFilm (Denmark), Zoran Vujic for Poster (Croatia), and Jure Vizjak for Invida (Slovenia). Based on the best-selling trilogy The Rusty World (Den rustne verden) by Adam O., the show targets kids aged 6-9. Set in 2075, the story follows the Starfield family living in Newropa, a safe haven in former Greenland. When a summer vacation is replaced by a positivity camp trip, headstrong 12-year-old Lark decides to take matters into her own hands. Alongside her siblings - nerdy Peter, cool Bowie, and cute Ramona - they set off on their own adventure.

Their vacation turns into the adventure of a lifetime when their flight-bot crash-lands in the old world. The children must cross the jungle-like wilderness to return to civilisation, fearing bad robots that inhabit the area. However, the robots turn out to be friendly -funny, charming, and warm - while the real enemies are humans determined to keep a dangerous secret.

Speaking about the show’s style and technique, the team said: “Inspired by the books, we added hand-painted strokes and lines to the 3D models to create a ‘painterly 3D-meets-storybook look’.”

Oscar-nominated Stefan Fjeldmark, known for Asterix and the Vikings (Astérix et les Vikings), Help! I’m a Fish (Hjælp! Jeg er en fisk) and Talking Tom & Friends, is directing the project, working from a script written by Pernille Bønlykke Toustrup.

“We are looking for sales agents, broadcasters, and streamers, and we’re always open to meeting co-production partners with whom we share the same vision,” Gad told NFTVF.

“Steel Hearts will be both an 88-minute feature film, set to enter production in 2025, and a TV series. The plan is to start producing material for the series in 2025 as well. The show consists of eight episodes, each lasting 22 minutes, with a tentative budget of 14 million Danish kroner. The main themes of the series are children’s empowerment, integrity, and the right to be who you are.”

Coming up next is the 26x11 series The Hippo Kids, written and directed by the duo Pernille Bønløkke Toustrup and Mikael Wulff. Backed by Danish pubcaster DR and produced by Jacob Oliver Krarup and Camilla Schønberg for New Creations, this 2D comedy show aims to appeal to a wide audience of kids aged 6-12 and their families. The story centres around siblings Thor, Eva, and Little B, whose parents - Mother and Father Hippo - are always super busy. When Uncle Dolph moves in temporarily, he takes on the role of caretaker for the kids.

Uncle Dolph takes his role as an uncle very seriously, though he’s an ‘uneducational’, grumpy ninja enthusiast who knows nothing about child-rearing. Despite his unorthodox methods and the semi-dangerous adventures he takes the kids on, Dolph gives them what they crave the most: presence.

Exploring the concept of the series, the team explains: “Parents always have a thousand things to do, from managing careers to booking vacations and exercising. Children are, of course, the most important part of adults' lives, but somehow, time with them often gets deprioritised. This is also the case with the Hippo family.”

The third Danish project pitched was Kitty Poo, produced by Emma Drost Jensen and Karsten Kiilerich for A. Film Production. The team describes it as a “darkly humorous 52x7 2D series that dives into the tumultuous relationship between a vengeful cat named Kitty Poo and its lazy owner, Ziggie”.

“Kitty Poo is an edgy comedy series combining humour with action and suspense, suitable for the entire family. It tackles themes like sibling bonds, childhood, friendship, jealousy, and moral ambiguities, using literary devices such as understatement, exaggeration, irony, and dark humour to connect with children,” the team elaborates.

The show is based on the graphic novel series Møgmis by Sophie Souid and Thomas Hjorthaab (also the head writer and art director, respectively), which has already been sold internationally to Italy, Norway, France, Finland, Poland, and Sweden, among others.

“The strength of the Kitty Poo books lies in their original and recognisable characters, current themes, and their ability to instil a love for reading among readers of all ages. By adapting Kitty Poo into a 2D animated show, we aim to amplify the quirky and humorous universe of the books,” the team adds.

DR has funded the development of the series, and the team is working on a pilot animatic. Some references mentioned in the pitch deck include Tom & Jerry, The Amazing World of Gumball, Zig & Sharko, and Calvin & Hobbes. The target audience is kids aged 6-12 and their families.

On Day 3 of the event, attendees were treated to a sneak peek at Pig & Andersen, produced by Fleng Entertainment. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s works and based on the 2022 short The Swineherd, this quirky comedy series was one of two projects selected for the first edition of the EBU Co-Development Initiative, receiving €130,000 in funding for its development.

The EBU Co-Development Initiative, backed by 15 European public broadcasters (including YLE, DR, and SVT), has been renewed this year, furthering the EBU’s commitment to supporting animated television programming and engaging young audiences across Europe. This new collaborative model centres on collective financing of a pilot project chosen by the 15 EBU members from pitches presented at Cartoon Forum.

In addition to the project presentations, four Tributes awards were handed out, honouring “the work of broadcasters, investors/distributors, and producers in promoting and developing European animation”. The Broadcaster of the Year award went to Franco-German pubcaster ARTE, while Germany’s ZDF Studios and Ireland’s Cartoon Saloon were crowned Investor/Distributor of the Year and Producer of the Year, respectively. Lastly, RAI Kids executive director Luca Milano received a Cartoon Tribute of Honour for his contributions to European animation.

This year’s edition also featured a special Spotlight on Italy, organised by regional film commissions from Sardinia, Marche, Lazio, Piedmont, and Tuscany, and coordinated by Cartoon Italia. Seven Italian projects were pitched at the event.

Since its founding, Cartoon Forum has facilitated the co-production and distribution of European animation for TV and new media platforms, helping 1,002 animation series secure €3.7 billion in financing over the past 35 years.