Corus Entertainment has purchased a majority stake in Aircraft Pictures, the Toronto-based production company behind titles such as Family Channel series Holly Hobbie (pictured) and the Oscar-nominated animated feature The Breadwinner.
This investment will allow Aircraft to expand its capacity to develop, finance and produce premium content for the global marketplace, including a focus on international co-productions. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
It also marks another investment in the kids and family space for Corus, which owns kid-focused prodco and distributor Nelvana, publisher Kids Can Press, and family-friendly channels such as YTV, Teletoon and Treehouse.
Aircraft Pictures was founded in 2005 by co-presidents Anthony Leo and Andrew Rosen. The company, which also has an office in L.A., produces animated and live-action scripted content for kids and young adults.
Leo and Rosen were both nominated for an Academy Award for their work in producing animated Canadian co-pro The Breadwinner, and their previous scripted series include Todd & The Book of Pure Evil, Raising Expectations and a trilogy of Bruno & Boots TV movies based on the book series by Montreal-born author Gordon Korman.
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