Animation veterans form media venture Phuuz entertainment

Three award - winning veterans of the US animation industry have joined forces to the form a new media company Phuuz entertainment.

Emmy award-winning producer/director and Film Roman’s former executive creative director Eric Rad-omski, former Warner Bros. Animation production VP Ken Duer and Level13. net’s former VP, GM Jay Francis are the co-founders of this new enterprise.

Explaining the logic behind the new enterprise Radomski was quoted in an official release saying, "There is no escaping the essential truth that today’s audience, especially the young audience, has changed. They are a gene- ration raised on computers, video games, and the Internet. We are convinced that the manner and format we employ to tell our stories have to be in sync with the way the audience is requesting their content be delivered. We intend to cater to their voracious appetites for bold, arresting, and entertaining stories."

To achieve this purpose Phuuz will develop original properties for the new media (video and computer games, wireless techno-logies, DVD, Internet), traditional media (telev-ision, film, comics / graphic novels), and the other ancillary markets (toys, fashion, advertising, music). In addition it plans on the using new media platforms to the maximise franchising and distribution opportu-nities.

Phuuz entertainment’s cl-ient roster includes MTV, Pioneer Entertainment USA, Japanese broadcaster TV Asahi, Japanese game producer Banpresto, Kor-ean animation company Seoul Movie, and Japanese animation company TMS. One of projects it is curren-tly busy with is producing an English adaptation of the Japanese animated series Lupin The Third for Pioneer Entertainment USA. On the distribution front it acted as an agent on behalf of the Pioneer and sold the Lupin series to kids channel Cartoon Network.

Phuuz recently complet-ed making the independ-ent film Jorge in association with DPS/Film Roman. Duer spent 11 years at Warner Bros. Animation, which culminated with his tenure as VP of world wide production from 1997-2001. Duer played a key role in the production of Warner Bros.’ animated se-ries over a decade including properties such as Batman, Scooby Doo, Tiny Toons, Johnny Bravo and Superman.