We mentioned a while ago that Sony Pictures Animation was making some significant forward strides in using social media to interact with their followers in unique ways. As such, this news is nothing if not more proof of that.
According to Animation World Network, Sony Pictures Animation is teaming up with animation mega-entrepreneur Fred Seibert (founder of Frederator Studios and Youtube channel Cartoon Hangover) to form GO! Cartoons, a new idea generator project that will allow up-and-coming artists an opportunity to transform their ideas into animated shorts. Sony Animation will help fund 12 five-minute shorts that will debut on Cartoon Hangover (one each month). One of these shorts will then be turned into a limited series for the channel. This will, in turn, bring promising talent and content to the attention of Sony Pictures Animation through an alternative development method.
“Fred Seibert is a force of nature in animation, and we are thrilled to expand our current relationship with him by partnering on this,” stated Bob Osher, President of Sony Pictures Digital Productions. “This is a great opportunity for Sony Pictures Animation to find new talent that might not emerge from more traditional platforms. Fred has a proven track record with this type of incubator project, with series after series launched from them, including The Powerpuff Girls, The Fairly OddParents and Adventure Time. Hotel Transylvania director Genndy Tartakovsky was also an incubator find—Fred and I were in the first meeting where he pitched the idea for the hit series Dexter’s Laboratory.”
Over the years, Fred Seibert has established himself as a literal gamemaker in the animation industry and a master of the incubator platform. He helped revitalized animation on TV and had a major hand in the formation of MTV, Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, shaping them into what they are today. He even played an integral role in the founding of Tumblr, even going so far as to being one of their first bloggers (its CEO David Karp used to work as an intern for Frederator, building the company’s first blogging platform).
Here is what Fred had to say in light of the new venture with Sony Animation: “We’ve discovered amazing young talent through these unique incubators, and for the artists, this is an easier way to be seen. For Sony Pictures Animation, it provides different methods to develop projects. And for Cartoon Hangover, it’s a great way to shake the trees for new talent thanks to the involvement of a major animation studio like Sony Pictures Animation—and we’ll continue to fund and produce content our own unique way.”
This all sounds pretty neat. The internet has been well established as a place where alternative methods for project growth and funding can easily be sought (Kickstarter and Indiegogo are two major examples). It’s definitely a no-brainer that its best strengths be utilized in the name of discovering talent from all over.
For more information, visit Cartoon Hangover.com.
What do you think? Is this a good way to curate talent in the internet age?
