AFM: Russia’s ‘The Snow Queen 2’ Picked Up for Multiple Countries

Russian’s Wizart Animation has closed a slew of AFM deals for its three top cartoons.

The Snow Queen (2012) sold to Latin America and Indonesia. A sequel due for international release next month, The Snow Queen 2 (2014), sold to Japan and Indonesia, and upcoming Sheep and Wolves (2015) sold to Australia.

The Moscow and Voronezh-based company, one of Russia’s fastest-growing animation studios, said OneVision Entertainment has acquired all rights for both movies from the Snow Queen franchise, based on the famous Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, for Indonesia, and Transformer Inc. picked up The Snow Queen 2 for all rights for Japan, with a limited theatrical release due next spring.

The Snow Queen 2 was this week nominated as Russia’s official entry for the animation section of the Golden Globes.

Rialto Distribution picked up theatrical rights for Australia for Sheep and Wolves, a new take on the old story of a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

In other deals, Discovery Networks Latin America/US Hispanic acquired The Snow Queen, which will air on their Discovery Kids network across the region (excluding Brazil) next month. 

Shinichiro Kato, acquisition manager at Transformer Inc., said: “Given the success of The Snow Queen, we are really excited about The Snow Queen 2 release. We feel that it is not just a movie for kids, but great entertainment for the whole family.”

Kelly Rogers, CEO Rialto Distribution, said: “We are extremely excited about the potential for Sheep and Wolves and anticipate a very strong showing for the film backed by a powerhouse P&A campaign which will undoubtedly attract a big audience.”

The Snow Queen has already been released in 70 countries around the world including the U.S , the U.K., France, Germany, Japan and other key territories. Further releases this year will include Malaysia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria, Wizart said in a statement. DVD releases are also planned for Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Indonesia. 

The Snow Queen 2 will be rolled out theatrically next month in Russia and CIS, the Middle East, South Korea, the U.K. and key European territories by Signature Entertainment with China, Malaysia, Israel, Turkey and other countries following next year.

Wizart’s cartoons are being marketed during AFM at the Russian Cinema stand, organized by Russia’s state Cinema Fund.

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