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BKN International AG (BKNI) was a German kids TV production and distribution company that formerly operated as the international division of BKN, Inc.


History

BKN International was originally founded as Bohbot Entertainment Worldwide in 1994 as part of a split of Bohbot Communications. In October 1997, the company was renamed as BKN International. On October 15, 1999, BKN International split away as a stand-alone company, with it being registered in Cologne, Germany, on November 26, 1999. In December 1999, BKN, Inc. and BKN International decided to split their business in two, and in exchange for 87.5% of BKN International's common stock. The International distribution, sales, and subsidiaries (e.g., BKN International SAS) and property rights were transferred over, with BKN, Inc. retaining US rights. On March 9, 2000, BKN International went public on the ‘Neuer Markt’ of the Deutsche Börse AG public market, with BKN, Inc. retaining a 58.194% stake in the company, which was subsequently later reduced to 39.995% and then 37.738% through the rest of the year. On June 8, 2000, BKNI acquired French animation studio Arles Animation and renamed it BKN Studios, beginning the work on a TV movie called ''Kong: King of Atlantis'' and cartoon ''Keystone Kops'', later renamed ''Capertown Cops''. By that month, the company was working on projects based on ''
Journey to the Center of the Earth ''Journey to the Center of the Earth'' (), also translated with the variant titles ''A Journey to the Centre of the Earth'' and ''A Journey into the Interior of the Earth'', is a classic science fiction novel written by French novelist Jules Ve ...
'' (later renamed as ''
Ultimate Book of Spells ''Ultimate Book of Spells'' is a Canadian children's animated television series produced by BKN International. It first premiered on YTV Channel for kids in Canada. Inspired by the popular ''Harry Potter'' book and movie series, the show present ...
'') and ''
The Invisible Man ''The Invisible Man'' is an 1897 science fiction novel by British writer H. G. Wells. Originally serialised in '' Pearson's Weekly'' in 1897, it was published as a novel the same year. The Invisible Man to whom the title refers is Griffin, a s ...
''. On August 1, BKN purchased UK-based Design Rights International and formed BKN Consumer Products. On September 21, 2000, BKN acquired the international TV, video and merchandising rights for
GoodTimes Entertainment GT Media, Inc. was an American home video company that originated in 1984 under the name of GoodTimes Home Video. Though it produced its own titles, the company was well known due to its distribution of media from third parties and classics. The ...
's title library. On the same day, the company formed a UK-based subsidiary called BKN New Media. A project based on '' The Lost Continent'' and an original IP – ''The Invisible Private Eye – Detective for Hire'' was also planned in development. BKN International in January 2001 acquired BKN, Inc.'s operating assets: BKN animation library (5th largest at the time in the US), Los Angeles–based animation studio, and its trademark for $28.1 million. BKN, Inc. would continue as a holding company with its BKNI holdings. Following the BKN acquisition,
Sony Pictures Family Entertainment Group Sony Pictures Family Entertainment Group (also known as Sony Family Entertainment Group) was an American and global company that was established in February 1999 by Sony Pictures Entertainment that handles all of the family programs and films by S ...
(SPFEG) purchased a 3.8% stake in BKNI from BKN, Inc. as the company expanded into US and Asia. Under the deal, SPFE president
Sander Schwartz Sander Schwartz (born January 7, 1954) is an American Daytime Emmy award-winning producer of television animation. He was President of Warner Bros. Animation between 2001 and 2007, followed by President, International Productions of Sony Picture ...
became a member of the company's supervisory board while Allen Bohbot moved from the advisory board chairmanship to the management board's chairmanship. In September 2001, BKN formed a UK subsidiary called BKN Music, Ltd. in order to control worldwide music rights. On October 6, 2001, BKN International announced the production of a new cartoon called '' Legend of the Dragon'' as a co-production with Hong Kong–based studio Animation Enterprises for a 2002 delivery. In November 2002, the company began a restructuring after being surrounded in a €64 Million debt in the first half of the year, and entirely shuttered their French operations alongside their US and UK operations, only leaving the respective BKN New Media subsidiaries for both regions. In December 2003, after gaining profits again after the previous year, the company announced to secure a listing on the
London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...
. On May 4, 2004, BKN announced they would start production on their first feature-length movie - ''Kong: King of Atlantis'' and signed a North American home video deal with
GoodTimes Entertainment GT Media, Inc. was an American home video company that originated in 1984 under the name of GoodTimes Home Video. Though it produced its own titles, the company was well known due to its distribution of media from third parties and classics. The ...
to release the movie for a Fall 2005 release in order to cash-in on
Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
'
King Kong King Kong, also referred to simply as Kong, is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. The character has since become an international pop culture icon,Erb, Cynthia, 1998, ''Tracking Kin ...
remake. An international home video deal with
Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment, Inc. (doing business as Warner Bros. Home Entertainment; formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the American home video distribution ...
was also announced. On May 27, the company announced a new television series called ''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves: The Lost Scimitar of Arabia'' for a Fall 2005 delivery. In the middle of 2004, the company opened up a BKN New Media office in Singapore and signed a €1.3 million representation agreement with Hong Kong–based management company Agogo Corporation to represent its Asian-exclusive lineup alongside the BKN catalog. In January 2005, The ''Ali Baba'' project was reworked as a feature-length film, with BKN signing a deal with the Egyptian Media Production City to co-produce the movie and distribute it in the Middle East. In May, the company announced the development of two new action-packed shows - ''Shanghai Tiger'', a boys property, and ''Triple Threat from Outer Space'', a girls property. The latter show was later renamed to ''
Dork Hunters from Outer Space ''Dork Hunters from Outer Space'' (German: ''Dork - Jäger aus dem All'') is an animated television series produced by the German company BKN International and British subsidiary BKN New Media. The series was created by Rick Ungar. It first aired ...
'' near the end of the year. In October 2005, BKN New Media Inc. agreed to a $10 million outsourcing partnership with UTV Toons of India. after an initial partnership a month prior to produce a new TV series titled ''Kong: The Next Generation'' and fellow movie ''Kong II: Return to the Jungle'' for a 2006 delivery, alongside distribution of other BKN properties in the region. On January 6, 2006, BKN opened up a BKN New Media office in Barcelona, Spain in order to control assets in the country, alongside Portugal, Italy, France, and Latin America. On January 19, the company formed a new sub-division called BKN Home Entertainment for the United Kingdom and the United States, in order to distribute and market their products onto the DVD market. Alongside the already announced ''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'' and ''Kong: Return to the Jungle'', BKN also confirmed to be producing direct-to-video material based on public domain works, which included ''
A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...
'', ''
Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...
'', ''
Jungle Book ''The Jungle Book'' is an 1894 collection of stories by the English author Rudyard Kipling. Most of the characters are animals such as Shere Khan the tiger and Baloo the bear, though a principal character is the boy or "man-cub" Mowgli, who ...
'', ''
Jack and the Beanstalk "Jack and the Beanstalk" is an English fairy tale with ancient origins. It appeared as "The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean" in 1734 4th edition :File:Round about our Coal Fire, or, Christmas Entertainments, 4th edn, 1734.pdf, On C ...
'', ''
The Prince and the Pauper ''The Prince and the Pauper'' is a novel by American author Mark Twain. It was first published in 1881 in Canada, before its 1882 publication in the United States. The novel represents Twain's first attempt at historical fiction. The plot conce ...
'', ''
The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' () is a French historical adventure novel written and published in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is the first of the author's three d'Artagnan Romances. As with some of his other works, he wrote it in col ...
'', ''
Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', originally titled ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'', is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clerg ...
'', ''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
'', and ''
The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' (, ), Opus number, Op. 71, is an 1892 two-act classical ballet (conceived as a '; ) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination featuring a Nutcracker doll. Th ...
'', as well as already-existing shows like ''Legend of the Dragon'', ''Kong – The Animated Series''. and ''Dork Hunters from Outer Space''. BKN also confirmed they would self-distribute in the United Kingdom, and partner up with other distributors in the United States. On February 7, 2006, BKN signed a deal with
Zorro Productions Zorro ( or , Spanish for "fox") is a fictional character created in 1919 by American Pulp magazine, pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo de Los Ángeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashin ...
for the production of a new ''
Zorro Zorro ( or , Spanish for "fox") is a fictional character created in 1919 by American Pulp magazine, pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo de Los Ángeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashin ...
'' television series titled '' Zorro: Generation Z''. with a delivery of 26 episodes aimed for delivery in 2007. The deal also included the production of direct-to-video movie (Later named as ''Zorro: Return to the Future'') and an addition of 13 more episodes if needed. In 2007, the company revealed several DVD releases of their content in the UK and North America. On May 15, 2008, BKN announced the production of two new films for a DVD release that year – ''Zorro and Scarlet Whip – Revealed!'', and '' Dork Hunters and the Pirates of Tortuga Island''. On October 10, the company announced they had signed a co-pro agreement with Canadian studio Huminah Huminah Animation to produce a new series called ''Pocket Penguin Adventures'' for a Spring and Fall 2010 delivery. In January 2009, BKNI was involved in talks to buy
Entertainment Rights Entertainment Rights PLC (formerly known as Sleepy Kids PLC and SKD Media PLC) was a British multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate that specialised in television shows and cartoons, children's media, films, and distribution. ...
. On May 28, the company announced a new 2D/3D animated series called ''Joshua Blake: The Legacy'' in co-production with Huminah Huminah Animation, for a Spring 2011 delivery date. In the middle of the year, the company delisted from the London stock exchange while remaining on the Deutsche Bourse. In mid-year, BKN International filed for insolvency and began its sale of its assets in December 2009. By the beginning of January 2010, over twenty companies were in the talks of purchasing the company's assets. In October 2011, it was announced that Cyprus based management company Emba Media Management International Ltd (EMBA Media Associates) had acquired BKN International's former assets. At the same time, they announced a distribution deal with Your Family Entertainment to represent the ex-BKN library in 24 European countries. In July 2010, Allen Bohbot started up a new company,
41 Entertainment 41 Entertainment LLC (41E) is a privately held American animation company that develops, produces, and distributes popular television shows. Allen Bohbot is the founder and managing director of 41E. History Allen Bohbot founded Bohbot Entertain ...
. 41 currently holds distribution rights to the BKN catalogue, and from 2018 to 2022 held it under BKN Entertainment, a subsidiary founded to hold these rights. However, EMBA Media Associates remains the sole-owner of these programmes.


Programming Library


Shows

* '' Capertown Cops'' (2001) * '' Kong: The Animated Series'' (2001) * ''
Ultimate Book of Spells ''Ultimate Book of Spells'' is a Canadian children's animated television series produced by BKN International. It first premiered on YTV Channel for kids in Canada. Inspired by the popular ''Harry Potter'' book and movie series, the show present ...
'' (2001–2002) * '' Legend of the Dragon'' (2005) * '' Zorro: Generation Z'' (2006) * ''
Dork Hunters from Outer Space ''Dork Hunters from Outer Space'' (German: ''Dork - Jäger aus dem All'') is an animated television series produced by the German company BKN International and British subsidiary BKN New Media. The series was created by Rick Ungar. It first aired ...
'' (2008) * ''
Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...
'' (2008)


Cancelled Shows

* ''BKN's The Invisible Man'' (2001) * ''BKN's The Lost Continent'' (2001) * ''The Invisible Private Eye – Detective for Hire'' (2001) * ''Shanghai Tiger'' (2006) * ''Pocket Penguins'' (2010) * ''Joshua Blake: The Agency'' (2011)


Asian-distributed Shows

* ''
Mona the Vampire ''Mona the Vampire'' is an animated children's television series based on the children's book of the same name written and illustrated by Sonia Holleyman (itself adapted to the novel series, itself illustrated by Holleyman and written by Hia ...
'' (1999) * ''Iron Nose: The Mysterious Knight'' (2000) * '' Girlstuff/Boystuff'' (2002) * ''
The Berenstain Bears ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
'' (2003) * ''Moby Dick'' * ''Jacques Cousteau’s Ocean Tales'' * ''Kitou'' * ''Houdi Gaudi''


Movies

* ''Kong: King of Atlantis'' (2004) * ''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves: The Lost Scimitar of Arabia'' (2005) * '' A Christmas Carol: Scrooge's Ghostly Tale'' (2006) * ''Kong: Return to the Jungle'' (2006) * ''Zorro: Return to the Future'' (2006) * ''Jungle Book: Rikki-Tikki-Tavi to the Rescue'' (2006) * ''Alice in Wonderland: What's the Matter with Hatter?'' (2007) * ''Robin Hood: Quest for the King'' (2007) * ''The Prince and the Pauper: Double Trouble'' (2007) * ''The Three Musketeers: Saving the Crown'' (2007) * ''Zorro and Scarlet Whip: Revealed!'' (2009) * ''Dork Hunters and the Pirates of Tortuga Island'' (2010)


Cancelled Movies

* ''Jack and the Beanstalk'' * ''Gulliver's Travels'' * ''The Nutcracker''


References

{{Reflist German animation studios Mass media companies established in 1999 Mass media companies disestablished in 2009 Companies formerly listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange Mass media companies of Germany Companies based in Cologne