VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc. (TSXV:TBRD, OTC – THBRF) (“Thunderbird” or the “Company”) announces the brand-new animated original “Mermicorno: Starfall.” Created and produced by Thunderbird’s Atomic Cartoons, in partnership with global design tastemaker tokidoki, the ocean setting of the series showcases the wonders and magic of our natural world that aims to inspire this generation of kids. “Mermicorno: Starfall” will debut exclusively in the U.S. on Max in 2025.
Now in production at Atomic, “Mermicorno: Starfall” draws its inspiration from tokidoki’s hit character family Mermicorno. Sirena, the first Mermicorno, debuted in 2015 and the Mermicorno character family launched with collectibles, apparel, accessories and more in 2016.
The new animated series is a smart and fun adventure-comedy that takes place in a fantastical and magical undersea world, where a team of Mermicorno (enchanting half-Unicorno/half-fish creatures) join together to save the ocean from the threat of the evil Ika Inkblot. During their epic mission, our heroes unlock the magic of creative self-expression, discover new depths of friendship, and find the best bowl of ramen in the sea. The series takes viewers (and the Mermicorno) on a hilarious and stylish subaquatic adventure and is also the first animated series to bring tokidoki's wondrous underwater world and characters to life.
Atomic is overseeing the production and final delivery of “Mermicorno: Starfall.” Thunderbird Chief Executive Officer and Chair, Jennifer Twiner McCarron, President and Chief Creative Officer, Matthew Berkowitz, and Aaron Behl, VP of Atomic Originals, will also executive produce along with tokidoki co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Simone Legno and co-founder and CEO Pooneh Mohajer, and Shea Fontana (Monster High, Polly Pocket).
“We’ve long been dedicated fans and collectors of tokidoki and its Mermicorno brand. There’s magic in these Mermicorno, and we felt there was a tremendous opportunity to fill a white space for an intelligent adventure-comedy to appeal to both girls and boys — and their families,” said Berkowitz. “Having this opportunity to collaborate with the brilliant minds of Simone and Pooneh at tokidoki, as well as Shea Fontana, has been incredible for our studio. We believe we are going to bring a tremendous show to Max and we are incredibly grateful for their support.”
“We have waited a very long time to bring our Mermicorno to life through animation. It is truly our dream come true to work with such an amazing team who has so much passion and creativity and helped me to build a majestic story around my creations,” said tokidoki’s Legno.
“We could not have asked for better partners to join us on this epic creative journey. It is our honour to work with Atomic Cartoons, Thunderbird, and now Max,” said Mohajer.
Thunderbird Distribution represents global media sales for “Mermicorno: Starfall,” and under the leadership of Richard Goldsmith, President of Global Distribution and Consumer Products, is currently licensing the series globally to broadcasters and platforms outside of the U.S. Thunderbird is also co-managing the consumer products rights to the IP with tokidoki, which will debut at Licensing Expo, taking place in Las Vegas from June 13 to 15, 2023.
About Thunderbird Entertainment
Thunderbird Entertainment Group is a global production, distribution and rights management company, headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Los Angeles, Toronto, and Ottawa. Thunderbird creates award-winning programming for the world’s leading digital platforms and international broadcasters. The Company develops, produces, and distributes content through its Thunderbird Kids & Family (Atomic Cartoons), Thunderbird Unscripted (Great Pacific Media), and Thunderbird Scripted brands. Productions under the Thunderbird umbrella include The Last Kids on Earth, Molly of Denali, Highway Thru Hell, Kim’s Convenience, Strays and Reginald the Vampire, among others. The Company also has a team dedicated to global distribution and consumer products. Thunderbird is on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @tbirdent. For more information, visit: www.thunderbird.tv
About tokidoki
tokidoki, which translates to “sometimes” in Japanese, is an internationally recognized and iconic lifestyle brand based on the vision of Italian artist Simone Legno and his partners, serial entrepreneurs Pooneh Mohajer and Ivan Arnold. Since debuting in 2005, tokidoki has amassed a cult-like following for its larger-than-life characters and emerged as a sought-after global lifestyle brand. tokidoki offers an extensive range of products which include apparel, handbags, cosmetics, accessories, toys and more. Simone Legno, tokidoki’s Chief Creative Officer, was born in Rome, Italy and from a very young age developed a deep love of Japan and a fascination with world cultures. Combining Legno’s unique talent and creativity with Mohajer’s business acumen, tokidoki has grown exponentially. As an innovative company, tokidoki is known not only for its eye-popping aesthetic and criminally cute characters but also its megawatt partnerships. tokidoki is on Facebook and Twitter at @tokidoki and on Instagram at @tokidokibrand. For more information visit: www.tokidoki.it
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release, which has been prepared by management.
About Max®
Max®, which launched May 23, 2023, is an enhanced streaming platform from Warner Bros. Discovery, delivering unparalleled quality content for everyone in the household. With a personalized user experience that brings unique and unexpected stories ranging from the best of unscripted to the highest quality in scripted programming, Max is the destination for HBO Originals, Warner Bros. films, Max Originals, the DC universe, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, an expansive offering of kids and family content, and best-in-class programing across food, home, reality, lifestyle, and documentaries from leading brands like HGTV, Food Network, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Discovery Channel, TLC, ID and more, all in one place.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Thunderbird’s public communications may include written or oral “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” as defined under applicable Canadian securities legislation. All such statements may not be based on historical facts that relate to the Company’s current expectations and views of future events and are made pursuant to the “safe harbour” provisions of applicable securities laws.
Forward-looking statements or information may be identified by words such as “anticipate”, “continue”, “estimate”, “expect”, “forecast”, “may”, “will”, “plan”, “project”, “should”, “believe”, “intend”, or similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements in this document include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to plans for a mass-market consumer products program for Thunderbird’s new fully-owned IP; plans to debut Mermicorno: Starfall on Max in 2025; the inherent magic of tokidoki’s Mermicorno brand; the proposed executive producers of Mermicorno: Starfall; the belief that Mermicorno: Starfall will fill the current white space with intelligent animated action-comedy that would appeal to girls; and timing for debuting Mermicorno: Starfall to prospective manufacturing, retail and promotional partners at Licensing Expo. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to: general business, economic and social uncertainties; litigation, legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; product capability and acceptance; international risk and currency exchange rates; and technology changes. An assessment of these risks that could cause actual results to materially differ from current expectations is contained in the “Risks and Uncertainty” section of December 31, 2022 MD&A. The foregoing is not an exhaustive list. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to Thunderbird or that management believes to be less significant may also adversely affect the Company.
The forward-looking statements or information contained in this document represent our views as of the date hereof and as such information should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this document. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.
