
The Seven Bears. Photo credit: Folivari
Netflix has unveiled a number of new animated series and films from European producers ahead of Annecy International Animated Film Festival next week.
The streamer is working on four new series and four new films, and Netflix said each of the titles “has its own distinct tone and language, but is universal in its storytelling and themes.”
On the series page Evil Dinosaurs is a British-Spanish production and the first CG animated series from Snafu Pictures. It follows the adventures of a Tyrannosaurus family as they deal with the trials of life in the prehistoric wilderness while surrounded by incompetent dinosaurs.
Based on a series of online shorts co-created by animation veteran Joel Veitch, the animation will be produced by Able & Baker (Dear Death & Robots, Dragon Riders) and directed by Simone Giampaolo.
Italian CG series Magic of the mermaid comes from creator and director Iginio Straffi (winxclub) and animation studio Rainbow/Bardel (Rick and Morty, Dragon Prince), along with chief author Rich Burns (spirit rides free). It follows a teenage mermaid princess named Merlinda as she leaves her underwater world to head to the unknown lands above them to seek out a rare source of magic that will help her take on the evil forces above and below the waves that are trying to destroy their kingdom.
Comes from France the seven bears, described as “a hazy twist on the fairy tales we thought we knew”. The CG series is based on the graphic novels by Emile Bravo and is produced by Folivari. with CG animation by Cube and Robert Vargas as showrunner.
UK series wereworld is produced by Lime Pictures in conjunction with Jellyfish Pictures as a studio. Based on the books by Curtis Jobling, the CG animated series is an epic fantasy adventure series that follows Drew Ferran as he comes of age and discovers that he is the last of a long line of werewolves and the rightful (but reluctant) ruler of a land ruled by werelords.
The series is directed by Tom Brass for Jellyfish Pictures and produced by Angelo Abela, Tim Compton, Curtis Jobling and Barry Quinn for Lime Pictures.
Meanwhile, Netflix’s new animated films feature epic adventures embers from SPA Studios in Spain, an untitled comedy heist from Superprod Animation of France and two UK holiday-themed titles – Timeless Films’ adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic Scrooge: A Christmas Carol, and locksmith animations this christmas, based on the book series by Richard Curtis.