The men behind the first two “Harry Potter” films and “The Power Rangers” are joining forces to launch a family-friendly animation studio.
Haim Saban, the CEO of Saban Capital Group, announced on Wednesday that he partnered with filmmaker Chris Columbus (“Harry Potter,” “Home Alone”), producer Michael Barnathan (“Night at the Museum” and ZAG Entertainment founder Jeremy Zag to create ZAG Animation Studios.
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The seasoned team of Hollywood veterans will lead the studio in developing, producing and distributing high quality, global feature film family entertainment franchises.
Starting in 2017, they expect to push out one 3D animated film and one CGI-live action hybrid per year.
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The studio’s first feature, ‘Melody,’ will be full CGI, co-directed by Columbus and Zag. Additional films in the line-up include: ‘Ghostforce,’ a CGI-live action hybrid, and ‘Abominable,’ in full CGI.
A total of 10 feature films are already in development.
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The animation studio will operate in Glendale, Calif., as part of ZAG Entertainment’s new campus.
“This is an incredible moment for our business as we partner to create a world-class animation studio that will produce extraordinary feature films,” Saban said in a statement. “ZAG Animation Studios will deliver creative and compelling family entertainment for generations to come.”