For Vancouver-based producer/distributor Thunderbird Entertainment, consumer products are never an afterthought. In fact, they have become a main driver when it comes to project development, and especially third-party pick-ups. It’s a strategy that has been brewing under the leadership of Richard Goldsmith, who joined Thunderbird in 2021 to head up its brand-new global distribution and consumer products division as president.

Goldsmith is well-versed in this area of business, having overseen The Jim Henson Company’s third-party banner Henson Independent Properties from 2011 to 2016. But his vision came into sharper focus last year when the company set up Thunderbird Brands to focus on managing the licensing and merchandising business for both in-house and select third-party content. This new stand-alone division works hand in hand with Thunderbird Distribution, which manages media sales for the same titles.

Goldsmith says Thunderbird will pick up global distribution and consumer products rights to just two or three titles per year. It may come in as an investor before a project is completed, putting up a distribution advance/minimum guarantee in exchange for media and CP rights, but each property will likely have its own specialized funding model. “We have a fund [earmarked] every year that we can deploy just for these acquisitions,” he notes. The amount varies based on distribution and CP sales projections for each IP, and Thunderbird can help get shows over the line and into production by securing enough presales to fill any remaining gaps.

Serving as global brand manager for both media sales and consumer products/experiences also puts Thunderbird in a unique position to streamline multiple tasks under one roof, including trade advertising, conventions/markets and direct-to-consumer efforts like the creation of YouTube channels. Handling media sales and consumer products together isn’t something most distributors do, but Goldsmith says there are advantages to this level of coordination. “If I sit with [a big buyer] from a major retailer, they know that our company controls everything under one roof. They don’t have to [go elsewhere to meet] the licensing agent and [multiple] distributors.” The company is also working with several toy consultants to develop toyetic elements for its third-party roster—a tactic that ensures the play patterns of each series are mined to their full potential.

Three’s company

So far, Thunderbird has bagged three third-party properties for its unique CP treatment: Windy Isle Entertainment’s live-actioner Mittens & Pants, dialogue-free series BooSnoo! (Visionality Media and Mackinnon & Saunders), and the newest pick-up, BeddyByes (pictured) from Ireland’s JAM Media.

True to its holistic brand-building ambitions, Thunderbird is customizing strategies for each series with an eye on elevating their consumer products value. Mittens & Pants (81 x seven minutes) is a unique show for Thunderbird, with its focus on animals and its live-action style. The company brought in Darren Lee Phillipson, who previously worked in senior product design/development roles at Fisher-Price and Disney, to serve as its toy consultant on Mittens & Pants.

The series underwent pivotal tweaks to add more color to the show’s sets well ahead of filming. And by the time the cameras got rolling, conversations with US toycos had also commenced, giving them an early look and getting early feedback on how the show’s signature elements would eventually translate into plush and playsets. Mittens & Pants is currently available on 10 platforms in the US, including Peacock, Tubi, Roku, HappyKids and Kidoodle.TV. In other international territories, Thunderbird focused on locking down specific partners to join the show’s commissioning broadcasters CBC Kids (Canada) and Sky Kids (UK)—such as Hop! Channel (Israel), DR (Denmark), France TV and Warner Bros. Discovery, which picked it up for Cartoonito, Cartoon Network and Boomerang in Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Coming from a different starting point, BooSnoo! was fully financed when Thunderbird got involved. It was Lucy Murphy, director of kids content & ROI at UK broadcaster Sky, who brought the show to Goldsmith in April 2023. Following the path of a small red ball through different landscapes, this 41 x seven-minute series was uniquely crafted to appeal across multiple audiences—though one of its primary goals is to entertain neurodiverse kids by aligning with their content preferences, it also works as a calming/ relaxing series for all viewers. So when it comes to consumer products, there’s a unique opportunity to explore product categories and development for neurodiverse kids, in addition to a more mainstream audience. Thunderbird has bagged deals with terrestrial broadcasters in key markets like Canada (TVO), South Korea (EBS), Hong Kong (PCCW), Sweden (SVT), Denmark (DR) and Norway (NRK). And in the UK, Sky Kids is timing the series to air strategically throughout the day during times when kids are likely to need a break. It’s currently one of the broadcaster’s top-rated series.

When it comes to BeddyByes, it’s all about helping parents of young children deal with two major family life pain-points—mealtime and bedtime. Commissioned in June by CBeebies, this 52 x 11-minute toon helps toddlers and young preschoolers learn and get used to daily routines. It’s a premise that fills a “huge hole in the market” to help parents, says Goldsmith. BeddyByes has also been picked up by YLE (Finland), DR (Denmark) and RTÉ (Ireland). On the licensing front, having a major broadcaster like the Beeb attached from the jump helped Thunderbird start conversations with toy and publishing companies much earlier than usual, and the company is also planning a BeddyByes podcast that should tap into the strong performance of bedtime-centric kids titles in the audio market.

Future pickups

Reiterating its niche focus, the Thunderbird team is keen to field pitches for kids TV concepts that are toyetic and have potential to break into categories where there’s no leading IP at the moment, such as arts & crafts, for example. Evidenced by its picks so far, preschool seems to be a a sweet spot— but Goldsmith is actually open to anything from 18 months to 12 years when it comes to target demo.

Concepts for older viewers need to present an “extraordinary opportunity” in toys or gaming, he says. For example, Thunderbird is selling Atomic Cartoons’ Mermicorno: Starfall (26 x 22 minutes), which targets a slightly older crowd of five- to nine-year-olds, but the 2D-animated series also has solid licensing potential since it’s based on partner tokidoki’s existing collectible merch brand. Though the show is months away from debuting next year on Max (US), Thunderbird has already signed Jazwares (master toy partner) plus a master publishing partner that it will announce soon. It has also set up a large QSR promotion in the US next spring.

With all this momentum brewing for just three IPs, Goldsmith and his team are bullish about Thunderbird’s bespoke third-party business. As it looks ahead to year two, Thunderbird is open to pitches from all sources, including broadcasters who want to bring in an experienced producer/distributor on a series they’ve already commissioned. The company is also about to expand its consumer products team, and has plans to start funding co-development on original series involving Atomic Originals and third-party partners.

This story originally appeared in Kidscreen’s Q3 2024 magazine issue. You can read the full issue here.