Staying in toon

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Tareq Wa Shireen developed for Arab children.

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Ben & Izzy with other characters.

With a major deal to co-develop Pink Panther & Pals with Hollywood's MGM Studios, Jordanian production firm, Rubicon sets the stage for more such co-production agreements to be linked in the Middle East in the future.

Rubicon, a Jordanian production company, recently made headlines when it teamed up with Hollywood's MGM Studios to co-produce Pink Panther & Pals, a new cartoon series based on the original MGM character. According to the deal, Rubicon will not just co-develop and co-produce the cartoon series with MGM; it will also be the company's exclusive licensing and merchandising agent in the Middle East and North Africa. Executives at MGM and Rubicon have not disclosed the value of the deal, citing confidentiality concerns. However, MGM called it ‘a very significant amount of money'.

The person behind this deal is Jordanian businesswoman and Rubicon's CEO, Randa Ayoubi. A computer science graduate from Texas Tech University with an Executive MBA from Harvard Business School, Ayoubi founded Rubicon in 1994 along with other young Jordanian entrepreneurs, who wanted to create a software development company that specialised in CGI technology. Today, Ayoubi, who strongly advocates creating family-friendly children's entertainment has steered the company's animation efforts in this direction.

"Pink Panther & Pals is a silent cartoon that targets pre-school children. It is the story of Pink Panther and his friends back when they were babies. It is a feel-good, happy product. We're bringing high-quality entertainment that's not just people beating each other," says Ayoubi.

She confirms that Rubicon will start working on the series this month. "We anticipate the first season to be ready 18 months later," she says.

The first production of Pink Panther & Pals includes 26 episodes. Each episode is of a half-hour duration. A team of 60 people will be working on the project, confirms Ayoubi, whose firm has more than 170 employees.

For sceptics who might think the Jordanian company has been roped in merely to create an Arabic version, Ayoubi clarifies: "Rubicon has not been involved in this deal to create an Arabic version. We are co-producing a version for the international market."

Rubicon will undertake the financing and co-production of the series. This includes Rubicon developing licensing and merchandising opportunities for the joint production and sharing in the revenue generated from MGM's international distribution of the property. Both companies will also seek carriage agreements for the show with international networks in the US and Europe. Since it is a co-productionn, Ayoubi confirms that both companies will develop their assets jointly.

This is not the first time Ayoubi has led her animation team to do something on an international scale. Last year, Rubicon announced the launch of its first 3D animation series, Ben & Izzy, in New York. MGM has agreed to help distribute this series as well internationally as part of the new deal between the two companies.

Ayoubi has placed a great deal of hope on Ben & Izzy. A comedy adventure that targets children aged between eight and 11 years old, Ben (an American pre-teen) and Izzy (a Jordanian boy) learn about the past and its values as they travel through time and space. Each episode encourages children to appreciate other cultures and respect personal heritage.

"We have created Ben and Izzy to become one of the great competitors of large international animation houses. There is an international crew behind Ben and Izzy. The voices of Lucy Liu and Mark Hamel are among a few of a large list celebrities that are part of the series. International directors are also working hand in hand with Rubicon to make Ben and Izzy a success story," says Ayoubi.

In fact, Rubicon claims that it "is looking to make Ben and Izzy the new Harry Potter". "With a book series accompanying the animated programme, Ben and Izzy will appeal to a middle school child," claims Ayoubi.

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