Nelvana And Sumitomo Corporation To Develop First Animated Series

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

NELVANA AND SUMITOMO CORPORATION TO DEVELOP FIRST ANIMATED SERIES

GEKI DRIVE is Currently in Development as Part of Nelvana and Sumitomo’s Multi-Year Production Partnership

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TORONTO, CANADA – February 7, 2019 – Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana, a world-leading international producer and distributor of children’s animated content, has announced that GEKI DRIVE is now in development with Sumitomo Corporation, a global trading company with a large investment and presence within the Japanese animation industry. The all-new 2D/3D hybrid animated series (52 x 11 minutes) is revving up to entertain children around the world.

Based on the hyper-fast customizable cars produced by BANDAI SPIRITS for the Japanese market, action-adventure cartoon GEKI DRIVE, meaning “Extreme Racing” in Japanese, targets boys six to eight and will draw them into a world where drivers build, customize and compete in epic races to become the ultimate GEKI racing team.

“There is significant opportunity in the market for a fast-paced, vehicle-driven series and brand like GEKI DRIVE,” says Nelvana President, Scott Dyer. “With this new series and partnership with Sumitomo, we’re off to the races on delivering a truly unique property.”

GEKI DRIVE is the story of the Pod Squad — a team of young racers that bursts onto the scene to take the Geki Circuit by storm. But the higher the Squad climbs, the more daunting challenges they face. If they hope to reach the top of the Geki leader board, the Squad must rely on their instincts, their unique skills and, most of all, each other. GEKI DRIVE combines high tech racing, teamwork, and out-of-the-box thinking to create an action-packed thrill ride of a lifetime!

GEKI DRIVE’s pit crew includes Shigeki Fujiwara (Beyblade, B-daman, Aikatsu), a well-respected figure in the Japanese anime and toy industry, Al Schwartz (The Hollow, Paw Patrol, Hot Wheels Battle Force 5, Max Steel) as head writer, and Mike McDougal (Mysticons, D.N. Ace) as director. In addition, former Cartoon Network president and chief operating officer, Stuart Snyder, who ran the network from 2007 to 2014 and oversaw many global franchise brands including Adventure Time, Ben 10 and Bakugan serves as an advisor.

“We are excited to co-develop world-class anime and exceptional children’s content together with Nelvana,” says Mr. Iehisa “IKE” Nakamura, Executive Officer, General Manager of Media Division in Sumitomo Corporation. “Our aim is to provide a new, unique, exciting and entertaining experience to children across the globe.”

About Nelvana
Nelvana is a world-leading international producer and distributor of children’s animated and live-action content. Nelvana produces a stable of award-winning and globally renowned brands that focus on comedies, preschool and boys action series and ancillary consumer products programs. Nelvana’s content airs on Corus Entertainment’s kids channels in Canada and in over 160 countries around the world. The Nelvana library has well over 4,000 episodes of programming and has received over 70 major international program awards including Emmys® and Geminis. Visit the Nelvana website at nelvana.com.

Follow Nelvana Enterprises on Twitter @NelvanaEnt

About Sumitomo Corporation
Sumitomo Corporation (“SC”) is a leading Fortune 500 global trading and business investment company with 109 locations in 65 countries, regions and 22 locations in Japan. The entire SC Group consists of more than 900 companies. SC conducts commodity transactions in all industries utilizing worldwide networks, provides related customers with various financing, serves as an organizer and a coordinator for various projects, and invests in companies to promote greater growth potential. SC’s core business areas include Metal Products, Transportation and Construction Systems, Infrastructure, Media and Digital, Living Related and Real Estate, Mineral Resources, Energy, and Chemical and Electronics.

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For media inquiries, please contact:

Emily Marshall
ChizComm Ltd. | www.chizcomm.com on behalf of Nelvana.
647.389.6101 x 341
emarshall@chizcomm.com

April Lim, Associate Publicist
Corus Entertainment
416.860.4216
april.lim@corusent.com