Netflix has greenlit a children’s animated series called City of Ghosts from first-time showrunner Elizabeth Ito, an Emmy-winning director and writer on Cartoon Network’s animated series Adventure Time and creator of the Cartoon Network short Welcome to My Life.
City of Ghosts is described as a “hybrid documentary and animated series,” featuring a group of kids who discover stories around their city by communicating with the ghosts that inhabit it.
In the story, Ito, also an exec producer on the series, explores her personal experience growing up as a Yonsei (fourth-generation Japanese American) living in various multicultural neighborhood across Los Angeles.
City of Ghosts is in production in-house at the Netflix Animation building in Hollywood, which opened in 2018 and currently houses roughly a dozen productions including limited series Maya and the Three from Book of Life helmer Jorge Gutierrez, feature Jacob and the Sea Beast from Big Hero Six director Chris Williams, adult animated series Inside Job from Shion Takeuchi, kids’ series Trash Truck from Max Keane and interactive series Battle Kitty from Matt Layzell. Netflix Animation is also developing animated series with Chris Nee as part of her overall deal with the studio.
Netflix has been bullish about growing its animation slate, which includes its first original animated feature Klaus, from Despicable Me-creator Sergio Pablo and his Madrid-based The Spa Studios. Klaus is slated to debut at the end of the year.
