Halifax, NS – 1 February 2018 – DHX Media (or the “Company”) (TSX: DHX.A, DHX.B, NASDAQ: DHXM), a leading global children’s content and brands company, has received an order to produce 26 more episodes of the hit animated comedy series, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, with Sony Pictures Animation, in association with Corus Entertainment. The series, which is produced at DHX Media’s Vancouver animation studio, recently received eight Canadian Screen Awards nominations, including a nod for Best Animated Program or Series.
Following the successful international launch of season one last year on Turner’s Cartoon Network and Boomerang channels, as well as on Corus Entertainment’s YTV in Canada, Turner has now picked up season two of the series for its Cartoon Network and Boomerang channels across Europe, Middle East & Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, where it will premiere later in 2018.
In addition, DHX Media has signed new deals for season one of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs with France Télévisions, Disney Channel GSA (Germany, Switzerland and Austria), RTL in the Netherlands, ABC Australia, RTP Portugal, and TV3 in Ireland, bringing the total number of distribution deals for season one of the series to twelve.
Josh Scherba, EVP Content and Distribution at DHX Media, said: “Broadcasters around the globe are lining up for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, the series. A commission for season two alongside so many international sales of season one speaks volumes about the popularity and the enduring appeal of these wonderfully entertaining characters and their quirky world. We’re looking forward to creating more hilarious adventures for the intrepid duo, Flint and Sam, and sharing them with fans worldwide.”
The comedy series is based on Sony Pictures Animation’s 2009 animated feature films Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and its 2013 sequel, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2, which were both global hits.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, the series, takes place before the movies, when Flint and Sam are still in school. In season two, Flint Lockwood is still stuck in a town that just doesn’t understand him. Luckily, he and his best friend Sam Sparks don’t let that stop them from having a blast with more inventions, more adventures, and unfortunately for Sam, more sardines! Joining them are the best of Swallow Falls, including the corrupt Principal/Mayor Shelbourne; Flint’s stoic father Tim; Flint’s trusty lab assistant, Steve the monkey; the Mayor’s fawning son, Gil; local teenage baby-celebrity Brent; and Flint’s fellow inventor-slash-nemesis, Hector Evilman. High school and life in Swallow Falls may not be easy, but with these two best friends, it’s always tons of fun!
For more information, please contact:
Investor Relations: Nancy Chan-Palmateer – Director, Investor Relations, DHX Media Ltd.
nancy.chanpalmateer@dhxmedia.com
+1 416-977-7358
Financial Media: Shaun Smith – Director, Corporate Communications, DHX Media Ltd.
shaun.smith@dhxmedia.com
+1 416-977-7230
Trade Media: Aimee Norman at DDA Blueprint PR
aimee@ddablueprint.com
+44 (0) 20 8985 4708
About DHX Media
DHX Media Ltd. (TSX: DHX.A, DHX.B; NASDAQ: DHXM) is a leading children’s content and brands company, recognized globally for such high-profile properties as Peanuts, Teletubbies, Strawberry Shortcake, Caillou, Inspector Gadget, and the acclaimed Degrassi franchise. One of the world’s foremost producers of children’s shows, DHX Media owns the world’s largest independent library of children’s content, at 13,000 half-hours. It licenses its content to broadcasters and streaming services worldwide and generates royalties through its global consumer products program. Through its subsidiary, WildBrain, DHX Media operates one of the largest networks of children’s channels on YouTube. Headquartered in Canada, DHX Media has 20 offices worldwide. Visit us at www.dhxmedia.com.
YTV is a Corus Entertainment Inc. network. About Corus Entertainment Inc.
Corus Entertainment Inc. (TSX: CJR.B) is a leading media and content company that creates and delivers high quality brands and content across platforms for audiences around the world. The company’s portfolio of multimedia offerings encompasses 45 specialty television services, 39 radio stations, 15 conventional television stations, a global content business, digital assets, live events, children’s book publishing, animation software, technology and media services. Corus’ roster of premium brands includes Global Television, W Network, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network Canada, HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, HISTORY®, Showcase, National Geographic, Q107, CKNW, Fresh Radio, Disney Channel Canada, YTV and Nickelodeon Canada. Visit Corus at www.corusent.com.
About Turner International
Turner International operates versions of core Turner brands, including CNN, TNT, Cartoon Network, Boomerang and TCM Turner Classic Movies, as well as country- and region-specific networks and businesses in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. It manages the business of Pay- and Free-TV-channels, as well as Internet-based services, and oversees commercial partnerships with various third-party media ventures; it teams with Warner Bros. and HBO to leverage Time Warner’s global reach. Turner operates more than 18 channels showcasing 46 brands in 34 languages in over 200 countries. Turner International is a Time Warner company.
About Sony Pictures Animation
Sony Pictures Animation produces a variety of animated and family entertainment for audiences around the world. The studio is following its worldwide comedy hits—the record-breaking monster comedies Hotel Transylvania and Hotel Transylvania 2, the hybrid live action/animated blockbusters The Smurfs and The Smurfs 2, and the mouth-watering Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs movies; the fully animated reboot Get Smurfy in March 2017; the inspirational story The Lamb in December 2017; and an animated Spider-Man feature from the minds of directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord in Summer 2018. The studio, in conjunction with Aardman Animations, has produced two critically acclaimed feature films: the CG-animated family comedy Arthur Christmas; and the Academy Award® nominated stop-frame animated high-seas adventure, The Pirates! Band of Misfits. In 2007, Surf’s Up also received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Animated Feature Film. The division, whose first feature film Open Season led to a very successful movie franchise including the upcoming Open Season: Scared Silly in Spring 2016, turned 10 in 2012. Sony Pictures Animation is a division of the Sony Pictures Motion Pictures Group.
- Website: http://www.sonypicturesanimation.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SONYPicturesAnimation
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/sonyanimation
- Tumblr: http://sonyanimation.tumblr.com/
- YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/SonyAnimation
Disclaimer
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” under applicable securities laws with respect to DHX Media including, without limitation, statements regarding the business strategies and operational activities of DHX Media, including international demand for Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs and the timing for the release of new episodes. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on information currently available to the Company. Actual results or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations, among other things, include the Company’s ability to execute on license agreements and the risk factors discussed in materials filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time including matters discussed under “Risk Factors” in the Company’s most recent Annual Information Form and annual Management Discussion and Analysis, which also form part of the Company’s annual report on Form 40-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.