An Australian book-cum-cartoon series will air on Polish television following a deal between an Australian educational supplier and exporter and a Polish dubbing house.
An Australian book-cum-cartoon series will air on Polish television following a deal between an Australian educational supplier and exporter and a Polish dubbing house.
Joint owners of the Perth-based Kangaroo Creek Gang, Kosta Mijatovic and Tom Kieckhefer, are hoping the move into Poland will create opportunities in other Eastern and Western European countries.
The business partners bought the KCG property rights in 1998 and tried to sell the concept as it was, but found it was outdated and had an overly educational focus.
Mr Kieckhefer said the pair teamed up with Australian production house Southern Star Entertainment to revamp the characters and produce 52, 12-minute episodes, currently screening on Channel Nine.
The joint venture redesigned the characters – Peg, Wally, Tiddles, Kristie, Eddie, Kevin and Emily – giving them a more contemporary look to appeal to children.
Mr Kieckhefer said the aim since 1998 was to create a cartoon and merchandise to sell overseas.
He said the cartoon was set in the Australian bush and the animals were all friends.
“There is constant rivalry between the gang and a group of feral cats who live in the dump nearby, which leads to many conflicts,” Mr Kieckhefer said.
“Ultimately we would like somewhere here [Australia] to buy the merchandise and to sell it in the big chains.
“We now have the distribution rights from Southern Star, and Austrade has helped us get in touch with the people.
“We want to get the program out there and the merchandise selling. You get much more from merchandise than the TV rights.”
KCG was created in 1981 through a set of reading books that featured a group of Australian bush animals, including an emu, snake, kangaroo and koala.
More than 40 titles have been published with about one million copies sold around Australia.
The gang also became a regular cartoon strip in the children’s pages of several News Limited papers.
From 1987 to 1993, the Kangaroo Creek Gang was featured in a series of multimedia packages distributed to thousands of Australian primary schools, covering topics such as bike safety, self-esteem and the environment.
Australian Airlines and Ansett also used the gang as part of its in-flight activity pack for children.
Mr Mijatovic told Austrade’s monthly e-newsletter Trademark he was confident about the appeal of the cartoon and the unique Australian animal characters.
“They are a gang of kids that are full of fun. They love to play, challenge and explore the boundaries of fair play and acceptable social norms, and are willing to learn and develop in a communal environment,” he said.
Mr Kieckhefer would not disclose how much the deal with Poland was worth.
