The Centre de Congrès in Lyon is host to more than 500 filmmakers, producers, distributors, investors and members of the press, as Cartoon Movie launches its 12th edition of Europe's leading co-production forum for animation features.
The list of selected projects includes three from Denmark - one in concept and two in production:
In concept is "Carlo's Casino", recently backed by DFI production support. Producer Thomas Borch Nielsen hopes to attract international investors to Jan Rahbek's first feature film, a 3D animated comedy peopled with monkeys and imbued with a quirky sense of humour.
Esben Toft Jacobsen's "The Great Bear" is selected as one of the projects in production. Copenhagen Bombay will be pitching their film with a focus on raising interest in a 3D version of the visually striking tale of a giant, 1000-year-old bear roaming in a mythical woodland.
The third Danish film, also in production, is Jørgen Lerdam's "Olsen Gang Gets Polished". The Olsen Gang is a well-known brand in Danish cinema, and the notorious trio of lovable, small-time crooks have reappeared in more than a dozen films since 1968. This animated version is produced by Nordisk Film and A. Film and is expected to release in Denmark next fall.
Production for "The Great Bear" is expected to wrap up in 2011, and for "Carlo's Casino" in 2012.
Danish production companies also contribute to two co-productions: "Marnie's World" (in development) by A. Film and German UFA Cinema, and "Metropia" (completed) by Swedish Atmo Metro in co-production with Zentropa.
Cartoon Movie takes place 3-5 March.