Italy’s Rai Com and Gruppo Alcuni, together with Spanish entertainment company Planeta Junior and India-based animation studio DQ Entertainment, are collaborating on Pio Rocks! – The Series. 

Based on the YouTube character Pulcino Pio, whose channel has more than 1.9 million subscribers and 1.5 billion views, the series marks the first animation co-pro led by Rai Com, the commercial arm of Italian pubcaster Rai.

The CGI comedy previewed at MIP Jr. earlier this week, and is aimed at kids ages five to eight.

Production on the 52 x 11-minute series will begin in January 2017, with the first 26 episodes scheduled for delivery in April 2018.

The show follows Pio and his friends at Highnote High, a school where every class is about music.

Rai Com holds global sales rights excluding Iberia, France, Greece, CEE and Turkey, which are being overseen by Planeta Junior. Rai Com and Planeta Junior will jointly handle the UK and Latin America.