MIPJunior Hot Pick The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

Studio 100 Media’s new CGI reworking of the classic Nils Holgersson character is the first since ARD’s 2011 two-part live-action telemovie, and the first animated version in more than three decades.

“The original was a coproduction between Germany and Japan’s Nippon TV,” says Studio 100’s managing director Patrick Elmendorff. “We’re currently at a financing stage with the new version. We’re going to have a teaser trailer and a bible for MIPCOM.”

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils is based on Selma Lagerlöf’s Nobel Prize-winning 1906 story about a mischief-making young boy who goes on adventures with a flock of wild geese after he is shrunken to a miniscule size.

“It is a story that’s very well known in Scandinavia and Germany, where the original series is still running on KiKA,” says Elemendorff.

With the story more than 107 years old, its copyright has long returned to the public domain, prompting Germany-based producer-distributor Studio 100 to begin working up its new show, which will be a CGI effort. “The CGI capabilities give the story even more added value,” says Elemendorff.

Though the story is well-known in Japan and throughout northern Europe, Elemendorff acknowledges sales into the UK and US, where it has little to no heritage, are a tougher proposition. “Of course, we’re happy if broadcasters show interest,” he says.

The show: The Wonderful Adventures of Nils
The producer: Studio 100 Animation
The distributor: Studio 100 Media
The concept: The latest reimagining of Swedish children’s character Nils Holgersson