Monday, June 17, 2013

DreamWorks Animation Wheels and Deals

Like they've never whelt and dealt before.

Netflix made another aggressive move to become the HBO of online television Monday by announcing a deal with DreamWorks Animation, which will create more than 300 hours of original programs based on fan-favorite films such as “Shrek” and “Kung Fu Panda.”

The multi-year deal with DreamWorks is the biggest of its kind to date for Netflix, which has been gaining subscribers by offering new, made-for-streaming series like the “Arrested Development” revival that debuted Memorial Day weekend.

Financial terms were not announced, but the companies said in a press release that the first DreamWorks shows are expected to appear in 2014 and “will be inspired by characters” from the studio’s movies, which also includes “How to Train Your Dragon” and “Madagascar.” ...

Seventeen years ago, DreamWorks Animation The T.V. Unit was on the cusp of producing animated content for the ABC network. Then Michael Eisner and Diz Co. swept in and purchased ABC, and there went that deal. Soon thereafter, Dreamworks got out of the television animation business.

Today, however, they are pushing into the television production business once again. The question I have is, where will this work be created?

(I was over at DreamWorks' Lakeside building this afternoon, and there are lots of empty cubes, so I don't think production will be taking place in Glendale. On the other hand, most pre-production on DreamWorks Animation product, features and otherwise, has been done in California, so there's a fine chance that lots of that work will be brain-stormed and created here.)

3 comments:

Unknown said...
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Steve Hulett said...

Shy, are you?

-hoops said...

Turbo is being done by Titmouse

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