Cartoon Network commiions first APAC content for global distribution -

SPAA CONFERENCE, MELBOURNE (November 21, 2013) - Cartoon Network today announces it has started production on the first Asia Pacific-made series developed for global distribution. Exchange Student Zero will be ready to air in 2015 on screens across the world. Another new project in the pipeline for the leading kids' network is Monster Beach, an original TV special that will also be available internationally.

Since the very early days at Cartoon Network in Asia Pacific we have produced local content, says Mark Eyers, Chief Content Officer. Exchange Student Zero confirms our continued commitment to producing exclusive and compelling creator-driven local content with export potential.

The show's director, Patrick Crawley, from Bogan Entertainment Solutions (BES) in Australia, adds: It's fantastic that we'll be able to turn this character-driven, inter-dimensional story into a complete Cartoon Network series. Our Australian animation creative team is a formidable talent and we're thrilled to have the chance to work with an international broadcaster to bring Exchange Student Zero to a global audience.

Exchange Student Zero (13x22') tells the story of two boys who bring an anime character from a fantasy card game to life and pass him off as an exchange student. However, Hiro wreaks havoc amongst his western styled animated world. Attempts to return him back to the game result in even more anime characters being released with disastrous results. The series tagline is: 300 super-powered cards. Two different worlds. One crazy adventure.

Monster Beach (1x70') is also a BES production. The special tells the story about surfing, scary locals and two kids battling to save their worst nightmare. Silas Hickey, Turner's Creative Director - Animation, based in Hong Kong, is executive producer for both productions.

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Notes to editor

More about Exchange Student Zero:

300 super-powered cards. Two different worlds. One crazy adventure. Exchange Student Zero (13x22') is a series where fantasy becomes reality, when the dark forces from a tactical anime card game are unleashed on our world. The good news? The most powerful card in the deck, Hiro, is on our side. The bad news? Two 12-year-old boys are running the show! Their attempts to explain away Hiro as an exchange student are bizarrely successful - with the adults at least - despite the havoc he creates. Civilization as we know it might be teetering on the edge but rest assured our heroes are on the case as long as they can fit it in between bin duty, an errant older sister and the eternal quest for a date.

More about Monster Beach:

Monster Beach (1x70'). An ordinary summer holiday gets complicated when two kids - Jan and her brother Dean - are packed off to stay with their drop-out uncle, Woody. It should be paradise: a secluded island, great waves and a non-attentive adult in charge. What could be better? But why is this place so deserted? Why has the town been overrun by the jungle and what are those strange noises coming from the beach? The terrible truth is revealed when it turns out the locals are in fact monsters - and they don't take kindly to tourists. Well not at first anyway. The arrival of a rampaging property developer changes all that, when sibling rivalry and genetic differences are swept aside. Everyone bands together to save the strange little place they've all decided to call home. Monster Beach is a Bogan Entertainment Solutions production in conjunction with Cartoon Network.

About Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network, the number one kids' channel in the Asia Pacific region, offers the best in original animated entertainment while drawing from the world's most iconic cartoon library of Warner Bros., MGM and Hanna-Barbera titles. Original series showcased on Cartoon Network include the globally popular series Ben 10, The Amazing World of Gumball, Regular Show and Adventure Time. Cartoon Network is available in 23 territories throughout the Asia Pacific region and is currently seen in over 74 million cable homes. Online, Cartoon Network Asia Pacific reaches nearly four million unique visitors a month.

Cartoon Network is owned and operated by Turner Broadcasting System Asia Pacific, Inc., a Time Warner company.

About Turner International

Turner Broadcasting System International operates versions of core TBS brands, including CNN, TNT, Cartoon Network, and Turner Classic Movies, as well as country- and region-specific networks and businesses in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. It runs Pay- and Free-TV-channels, as well as Internet-based services, and is a commercial partner with various third-party media ventures; it teams with Warner Bros. and HBO to leverage Time Warner's global reach. TBS operates more than 150 channels showcasing 33 brands in 36 languages in over 200 countries. Turner Broadcasting System International, Inc. is a subsidiary of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (TBS), a Time Warner company.

For media enquiries and image/interview requests, please contact:

James Moore

Turner International Asia Pacific Limited

Tel: (+852) 3128-3720

E-mail: James.Moore@turner.com

LINK:	http://news.turner.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=6570...
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