Universal Music France and Mediawan‘s Method Animation (“The Little Prince,” “Miraculous”) are joining forces on “Jam,” a animated music anthology which will showcase the greatest talents in both music and animation.
Co-developed with Universal Music France’s original contents department, the 15-part series will be directed by Michael Gracey, the revered helmer of “The Greatest Showman,” and is being created by Method Animation’s roster of talent, including Robert Valley, Félicie Haymoz, Sylvain Chomet and Joann Sfar.
These artists will getting an unprecedented access to Universal Music Group’s musical library and will be interpreting iconic songs that have crossed cultures and generations to deliver tales for family and adult audiences.
“Jam” fits Method Animation’s new mandate to come up with inventive animation projects skewed towards young adults.
“We are thrilled to partner with Universal Music France to create ‘Jam,’ the first ever music anthology for
animation. This partnership allows us to combine the best international musical artists with the greatest
animation talents,” said Julien Borde, EVP, managing director and CCO of On Kids & Family the Mediawan group which Method Animation is a part of.
“For 25 years, Method Animation has been establishing itself as one of the leading producers of animated series for children, and ‘Jam’ is an emblematic project showing our new ambition regarding adult animation,” said Borde, an animation industry veteran.
Aline Marrache, SVP of original contents development at Universal Music France, said this “ambitious animation project is the perfect demonstration that both industries – music and contents, are highly compatible to build unique concept stories.”
Marrache added that the project is a “perfect mix and match between visual and audio storytelling and represents a non-precedential shift into Universal Music France’s original content strategy.”
The executive said Universal Music Group was eager to board an animated projects in which contemporary music would be central, having previously worked on feature films, documentaries, and live action TV series.
