Shout! Factory Kids Archives | Otaku No Culture

Maya the Bee will Keep on Buzzing into Sequels

Australian Movie Poster By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Young children may well be buzzing in delight to know that more Maya the Bee movies is coming. The films are a guilty pleasure, sweetly cute and enduring. Shout! Factory has inked a deal with Studio 100 Media to continue distributing products under this line, beginning with the first sequel, Maya the Bee 2 – The Honey Game in 2017 through this company’s kids & family entertainment imprint, Shout! Factory Kids.

“We’re incredibly excited and honored that Studio 100 has chosen to partner with Shout! Factory on Maya the Bee film series. Over the last year, we enjoyed the continuing success and growing popularity of Maya the Bee – Movie with North American family audience,” stated Melissa Boag, Senior Vice President of Kids & Family Entertainment at Shout! Factory. “We look forward to bringing these exciting new films, starring the beloved character Maya, to a variety of entertainment distribution platforms.”

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Shout! Factory to Distribute Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir! and Review

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By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Shout! Factory and ZAG Toon has formed an alliance with many other partners, such as TOEI and Disney Channel EMEA, to bring the French-Korean CGI-animated action adventure comedy series, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, to further broadcasting platforms. On May 3, 2016 will be the Shout! Factory Kids home video release of the first seven episodes of 26 for those who do not yet have access to it on television.

This program plays on Nickelodeon (USA), TF1 (France), ABC (Australia), EBS (Korea) and it will soon hit other markets such as Tele-Quebec (Canada), Gloob (Brazil), TVNZ (New Zealand), Proximus TV (Belgium), RTS (Switzerland) and LRT (Lithuania). The series is a fun watch, reminiscent in style to series like Sailor Moon. The anime influence is very noticeable. The main heroine, Marinette Dupain-Cheng is rather like Usagi Tsukino. Both are well-meaning and spirited (if not clumsy) individuals. Alya is Marinette’s best-friend and she’s not aware of her besties’ superhero identity. The humour between the two are great, and the costumes are inspired by the designs introduced in PIXAR’s The Incredibles.

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Russian-Made CGI Film Quackerz is Migrating to North America

unnamed By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Shout! Factory and Planeta Inform Film Distribution will soon be distributing the Russian-made computer animated film, Quackerz (Крякнутые каникулы) throughout North America. Directed and co-written by Victor Lakisov and produced by Rome Animation & Film Studio and A-VFX Studio, this comedy will get a strategic rollout across major entertainment distribution platforms and in packaged media in 2016 through Shout’s kids & family entertainment imprint, Shout! Factory Kids.

“We are looking forward to theatrical release of Quackerz in the domestic market as well as in the international territories. We’re extremely grateful to Shout Factory’s team for introducing our film to the US and Canada audience. I hope this partnership will become fruitful and long-lasting,” said Ruben Atoyan, Executive Producer of Rome Animation Studio.

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A Look at Sandman and the Lost Sand of Dreams. A DVD Review

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

910gsOx1UrL._SY445_ I’ve always been fascinated with discovering what dreams are made of and there’s plenty of library material to look at for self-study or to be entertained by. On this special list is the stop motion animated epic, Sandman and the Lost Sand of Dreams (Das Sandmännchen: Abenteuer im Traumland).

It’s a wonderful film because of the positive messages it imparts to younger audiences and for myself, the world it presents is comparable to other dream tales I enjoyed prior. The fantastic that’s evoked in H.P. Lovecraft‘s haunting world of the Dreamlands, the endlessness of the beauty found in Robin Williams‘ What Dreams May Come and the innocence of youth that Nemo represented in his Adventures In Slumberland are recalled in this German-made film originally released in 2010. Shout! Factory Kids released this English dubbed piece last month and my order did not arrive till recently for me to watch. There’s no bonus material with this release.

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Transformers: Robots in Disguise DVD is Set to Roll Out Oct 20th!

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

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The next chapter in the Transformers saga is set to arrive on DVD October 20th, courtesy of Shout! Factory Kids and Hasbro. Transformers: Robots in Disguise follows after the events of Transformers: Prime, and with the focus on Bumblebee, viewers can learn about whether he has what it takes to become a leader like Optimus Prime.

This little yellow vehicle who could seems to have difficulty with accepting the fact that he’s now a leader. One aspect of this series’ charm is in seeing him trying to find that catch phrase that improves upon what Optimus Prime, who makes cameo appearances, often says. Bee has to lead a rag-tag team on Earth looking for escaped Deception prisoners.

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The Seventh Dwarf comes to America through Shout! Factory Kids

SeventhDwarf By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Shout! Factory Kids will be bringing the German-made computer animated film, The Seventh Dwarf to North America in a limited theatrical run starting July 31st (in New York City and Los Angeles) and in a video release come August 18th, 2015.

This third instalment follows after the successful live-action versions 7 Dwarves – Men Alone in the Wood (2004) and 7 Dwarves: The Wood Is Not Enough (2006), and it brings the talents of Actress Peyton List (Disney’s Jessie) as Princess Rose, comedian Norm MacDonald (Saturday Night Live) as Burner and the Godmother of Punk Nina Hagen as Dellamorta. Fans of Hagen’s work will know that she played The Evil Queen in the previous two films.

Just like in previous installments, the fairy tale world of Snow White, the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella and Red Riding Hood are combined much like in Disney’s Into the Woods. In this latest story, Princess Rose is capable of saving the kingdom from the Evil Dellamorta’s curse if she avoids being pricked before her 18th birthday. However, the bumbling Bubi, the seventh dwarf, messes the celebration up. Both he and his companions has to go on a quest to find Rose’s prince charming to save a kingdom. Sometimes it’s not easy for diminutive people to be king too…

Meet the Characters in these Official Clips: