Sceneries International, the Beverly Hills-based foreign sales company, brings for the first time to the American Film Market and the Cannes Film Festival the adaptation of Warp Graphics’ extremely successful Elfquest.
The picture will be produced by Paris-based Sceneries Europe, headed by Philippe Diaz, as a European production, in association with Trixter, the Munich-based animation studio headed by Michael Coldewey. Trixter and Sceneries have already collaborated on the much-anticipated Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K. 2, which will be released this Fall.
The entirely CGI project, being worked on in association with Wolfmill Entertainment (Pocket Dragon Adventures), has been in development for the last six months and is now in active pre-production.
Called “one of the most important works in American Fantasy” by the American Library Association, Elfquest has fans the world over, with over 2.5 million copies of the graphic novel collections in print throughout the United States, Germany, England, France, Italy, Scandinavia, Russia, Australia, South Africa, China and Japan.
Unlike most comic books’ 95% male readership, Elfquest appeals to males and females equally. Called both “a fantasy with teeth” and “an action soap opera,” Elfquest tells a dynamic adventure tale with richness and depth provided by a large cast of characters whose emotional stories are expertly woven in and out of the action.
Other merchandise includes prose novels and short story anthologies, a children’s book, figurines, caps, tee-shirts, bookends, calendars, audio books and even an upcoming tarot deck.
The comic books are extremely popular everywhere they’re distributed. In some countries, such as Germany, they outsell Superman and Batman. The bound collections can be found at Barnes & Noble, Borders, and all fine book stores.
In 1997 NASA took one of the characters into space as the logo of a Space Shuttle science mission making Elfquest, along with Peanuts, only the second comic strip to be so honored.
The Sceneries pavilion at the American Film Market, held in Los Angeles the last week in February. |
While most other film companies turned nearby hotel suites and hallways into a hamster maze, Sceneries rented an entire storefront and presented a relaxed atmosphere for film rights seekers. |
The Elfquest area within the Sceneries pavilion |
A closeup on the “stars,” who were very well-behaved throughout the entire experience!
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