By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
Epic Story Media (ESM) and CBC Kids have confirmed a licensing agreement for the new preschool comedy series Hop.
Created by Marc Brown, the Hop animated series follows group of friends that is led by an enthusiastic frog named Hop who has one leg that is shorter than the other.
ESM has engaged the non-profit organization RespectAbility as a series consultant to ensure that it accurately represents the experiences of people with disabilities.
Hop marks the first TV series that Brown has created since the animated Arthur franchise, which ran for 25 consecutive years and more than 250 episodes.
The creative team for the new Hop series will include the co-creators of Arthur, Peter K. Hirsch and Tolon Brown.
The animated preschool series is produced by Epic Story Media and animated by Loomi Animation.
Epic Story Media will be presenting Hops at MIPJUNIOR and MIPCOM with a special screening of its first episode.
“As we gear up for MIPCOM, we’re excited to once again be bringing an engaging, vibrant and varied slate of shows from leading creators, which each offer something unique for the whole family to enjoy,” said Epic Story Media president, Ken Faier. “Hop is already attracting a great deal of attention from the international market thanks to Marc and the heavyweight creative team behind the show, and it’s fantastic to now welcome CBC to this heartwarming and inclusive series.”
Per the terms of the new licensing agreement, CBC Kids has joined the MAX streaming service as an official commissioning broadcaster for the Hop preschool series.
CBC Kids is the children’s programming division of Canada’s national public broadcasting service CBC/Radio-Canada.
The CBC Kids division operates a variety of services such as a children’s TV programming slate, a free streaming service called CBC Gem, and a dedicated website for age-appropriate games, articles, and videos.
“We’re excited to bring the latest series from the legendary Marc Brown to audiences across Canada,” said CBC Kids SD, Marie McCann. “This fun-forward show is full of loveable characters who kids will relate to right away,”
The first season of Marc Brown’s Hop animated series is scheduled to debut in Q2 2024.
Founded in 2017, Epic Story Media is an independent, full-service entertainment and franchise development company that specializes in content creation, distribution and licensing for kid-friendly IP.
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