Since Wednesday the French gastronomic city of Lyon has been host to the 15th Cartoon Movie where 56 animated projects in various stages of production are on the menu of the 700 participants from the European animation and gaming industries. France has the most projects pitched (17), followed by the Nordic region (10), Germany (5) and Spain (4).
Two completed Nordic films supported by Nordisk Film & TV Fond are screening in Lyon: Denmark's Marco Macaco by Nordic Talents winner Jan Rahbek, and Finland's Niko 2-Little Brother Big Trouble. The film's production house Anima Vitae is competing for European Producer of the Year, and three European distribution companies who have successfully brought Niko's adventures to their domestic audiences, are running for European Distributor of the Year: Pro Film in Bulgaria, TF1 International in France and Universum Film in Germany. The award winners will be announced tonight.
Two projects in production supported by the Fund are also pitched in Lyon: Torill Kove's Hocus Pocus, Alfie Atkins (Norway) and Esben Toft Jacobsen's new film after The Great Bear, Beyond Beyond (Denmark) while Norway's established animator Rasmus A. Sivertsen (Ploddy the Police Car series) is introducing Christmas in Pinchcliffe, also in production.
Projects in development include Copenhagen Bombay's Get Santa! and Ploe-You Never Fly Alone by the Icelandic creators of Legends of Valhalla-Thor.
After Ronan the Barbarian, Danish director/producer Philip Einstein Lipski is pitching the concept of another irreverent character, Hugo-The World's Worst Comeback and SS Martha, co-directed with Thorbjørn Christoffersen, while Jannik Hastrup & Flemming Quist Møller are preparing the comeback of the mosquitoes from A Tale and Two Mozzies (2007) in Mini & the Mozzies.
According to Cartoon Movie's organizers, animation films continue to widen their target audience, with nearly 20% of the films aimed at young adults and adults. 3D stereoscopic films represent 25% of all animation projects made in Europe.
For further information on the Danish animation projects at Cartoon Movie, check the DFI FILM digital issue: www.dfi.dk/film.