Paris-based Cottonwood Media and the Paris Nationwide Opera are re-teaming with U.S. streamer Hulu, Germany’s ZDF and ZDF Studios and France Televisions, all companions on “Discover Me in Paris,” for one more premium stay motion tween collection, “Spellbound.”
Scheduled to begin manufacturing this summer season in Paris, shifting later to Brussels, “Spellbound” is created by Jill Girling and Lori Mather (“Experience”), the identical authentic govt produces and showrunners of “Discover Me in Paris.”
Renaud Mathieu serves as line producer, a place he additionally held on “Emily in Paris.”Sequence lead director is Alexander Jacob (“Theodosia,” “4 O’clock Membership,” “Hollyoaks”). Administrators embrace Annie Bradley (“The Handmaid’s Story,” “The Expanse”), in addition to Robert Burke (“Discover Me in Paris,” “Free Rein”).
Federation Children & Household, a gross sales arm of Cottonwood Media mother or father Federation Leisure, will accomplice with ZDF Studios, the business subsidiary of German public broadcaster ZDF, to deal with worldwide gross sales.
Working to 3 seasons from its bow in 2018, “Discover Me in Paris” has been broadcast in 130 territories with the soundtracks registering 18 million streams for 2020/2021 and its YouTube channel recording 46.1 million views by means of February 2022..
“Spellbound” is as soon as extra set on the Paris Opera Ballet College. Its protagonist is a number of years youthful, nevertheless: the feisty 15-year-old Cece Parker Jones, performed by newcomer Hailey Melody Romain, and whereas retaining a mixture of fantasy and the theme of discovering one’s place on the planet, it substitutes the time journey of “Discover Me in Paris” with magic.
In Paris, Cece discovers a e-book of household spells in Aunt Ginger’s apothecary and inadvertently cancels a safety spell hiding her identification.
Henceforth she has to juggle the pressures of among the best elite ballet faculties the world, tutorial research, new friendships and, the plot runs, “perhaps a cute boy… or two, in addition to her unbelievable means to activate magic, whereas preserving the underground Coven a secret for under her closest associates.”
A “high-calibre leisure collection for a worldwide viewers,” “Spellbound” is “an thrilling high-concept collection that mixes ballet, magic, witchcraft, and extra, with range and inclusivity on the coronary heart of the manufacturing,” its companions introduced Thursday.
“Having labored within the ballet world for a couple of years, we acquired enthusiastic about telling aspirational tales with a BIPOC lead. With a recent perspective on ballet and the added pleasure of a magical twist, Cece and her associates have a variety of thrilling tales for us to share,” mentioned Girling and Mather.
They added: “We’re thrilled to have a completely numerous writers’ room, aside from the 2 of us, giving us new and completely different views than we’ve had prior to now, permitting us to inform genuine tales for ‘Spellbound.’”
Cottonwood Media’s Zoé Carrera Allaix, Cécile Lauritano and David Michel produce the collection.
“Spellbound” continues the corporate’s drive to serve an underserved children and household viewers worldwide, marking it out as a development space for manufacturing.
Whereas many primetime teen dramas have a close to sitcom-feel of their restricted units, sturdy lighting and colours and frequent close-ups, “Discover Me in Paris” was being shot “like a premium drama present,” Michel identified to Selection when asserting “Discover Me in Paris.”
No funds is given for “Spellbound.” It’s probably, nevertheless, to be excessive for a tween present. The primary season of “Discover Me in Paris” was budgeted at simply shy of €12 million ($12.6 million).
“It was simple for us to immediately fall in love with this excellent idea! ‘Spellbound’ will match completely into ZDF’s portfolio of high-profile stay motion teen collection. We’ve been working with Cottonwood’s inventive crew on many tasks and are very a lot trying ahead to persevering with our fruitful cooperation,” mentioned Nicole Keeb, ZDF head of worldwide co-productions and acquisitions, youngsters and youth packages.
“Having stored the Paris Opera Home as the primary setting as per ‘Discover Me in Paris,’ ‘Spellbound’ brings a totally recent and modern storyline with some shock parts to please audiences worldwide,” mentioned Cottonwood’s Carrera Allaix, Lauritano and Michel.
Arne Lohmann, VP junior at ZDF Studios, noticed that “after the great success of ‘Discover Me In Paris,’ it was solely logical to accomplice once more with the nice manufacturing crew of Cottonwood and the Paris Opera Home.”
For Claire Heinrich, France Télévisions’ deputy director of youngsters’s packages and head of acquisitions, “After ‘Discover Me in Paris,’ which enchanted our viewers for 3 seasons within the distinctive setting of the Paris Opera, the ‘Spellbound’ challenge appealed to us as a result of it goes additional by way of range and inclusion. We’re delighted to counterpoint our fiction providing with sturdy feminine representations, aimed toward a tweens demo who eat them primarily on our Okoo platform.”
