Paris x September 2022 – RX France (formerly Reed Midem) and Sinking Ship Entertainment today announced that new bold British school drama Phoenix Rise will be this year’s MIPJUNIOR World Premiere.

The International Kids Screening & Co-Production Market returns to its pre-MIPCOM schedule (15-16 October) at the newly renovated JW Marriot Cannes for its 30^th edition, and its first since 2019.

Over 900 delegates including the industry’s most influential producers, distributors and buyers of kids and family programming are confirmed for two days of acquisitions, pitches, insight sessions, deal-making and access to the unrivalled MIPJUNIOR screenings library.

The MIPJUNIOR World Premiere will be staged on the first day of the market at 17.45pm. The contemporary Phoenix Rise champions the underdog, following a diverse group of six teens taking their first tentative steps back into mainstream education after exclusion and the unlikely friendships they form. Phoenix Rise depicts their opportunity to rise from the ashes and prove that sometimes, being an outsider means belonging to the best club of all.

Each episode of Phoenix Rise follows one of six as the optimism and fun of teen life is set against the challenges they face in and out of the classroom. The premiere will show a compilation of clips from the series.

Created by lead writers Matt Evans (Ackley Bridge, Riviera, Our Girl) and Perrie Balthazar (EastEnders, Coronation Street), Phoenix Rise was developed by the BBC Studios Kids & Family Scripted Development team led by Anna Davies and is produced by Joanna Hanley.

The series was commissioned by Sarah Muller, Head of BBC Children’s Commissioning and Acquisitions, 7-12 and is produced by BBC Studios Kids & Family productions. The 20x30’ series is set to debut exclusively on BBC iPlayer in 2023 with Sinking Ship Entertainment handling global distribution.

The series joins Sinking Ship’s slate of award-winning live action series being presented at MIPJunior this year, including the math comedy series ODD SQUAD, the preschool dinosaur series DINO DANA and the sci-fi conservation series ENDLINGS.

Lucy Smith, Director of MIPCOM CANNES and MIPJUNIOR said: “MIPJUNIOR is back!  Returning on a wave of overwhelming sign ups and positive sentiment from a global kids community clearly keen to reconvene and reprise international deal-making in person. We’re delighted they will be the first to see this courageous, diverse and original production and are grateful to Sinking Ship and BBC Studios Kids & Family for helping make this world premiere possible.” 

“We are thrilled to be partnering with BBC Studios on Phoenix Rise, and honoured to be bringing it to MIPCOM this year. It’s an excellent example of a localised story with universal themes, and we know the authenticity of the characters’ experiences will resonate with kids all over the world” – Kate Sanagan, Head of Sales and Distribution, Sinking Ship Entertainment.

MIPJUNIOR immediately precedes MIPCOM CANNES (17-20 October). Billed as ‘the mother of all entertainment content markets’, the 38^th edition of the annual International Co-Production and Entertainment Content Market is now tracking to welcome over 10,000 delegates in total with over 300 stand holders confirmed to exhibit.

Further information

MIPCOM CANNES patrick@pk-consults.com

MIPCOM Accreditation Enquiries emma@emmabartholomewpr.com

MIPCOM Event Media Enquiries alison.wilcox@ddapr.com

Editors Notes

About MIPCOM CANNES

MIPCOM CANNES leads a portfolio of markets and conferences from RX France’s Entertainment Division staged for the international television distribution and production community year-round alongside MIPTV (featuring MIPDOC and MIPFORMATS), MIP Cancun, MIP China and MIPJUNIOR.

About RX

RX is in the business of building businesses for individuals, communities and organisations. We elevate the power of face-to-face events by combining data and digital products to help customers learn about markets, source products and complete transactions at over 400 events in 22 countries across 43 industry sectors.   RX France manages a portfolio of world-class, French and international face-to-face, virtual and hybrid events covering 15 industry sectors including MIPIM, MAPIC, Batimat, Pollutec, EquipHotel, SITL, IFTM Top Resa, MIPCOM, MIPTV, Paris Photo, Maison&Objet*… and many more. RX France’s events take place in France, China, Italy, Mexico and the United States.

RX is passionate about making a positive impact on society and is fully committed to creating an inclusive work environment for all our people. RX is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. www.rxglobal.com

*Organised by Safi, a subsidiary of RX France and Ateliers d'Art de France

About Sinking Ship

Named as the number one Kids’ Entertainment Production Company on Kidscreen’s Hot50 list in 2020, Sinking Ship Entertainment is a globally renowned and industry leading Production, Distribution, VFX and Interactive studio specializing in children’s and family content. Since its founding in 2004, Sinking Ship has won 24 Daytime Emmy® awards, including series wins for Ghostwriter (Apple TV+), Dino Dan: Trek’s Adventures (Nickelodeon), Odd Squad (PBS KIDS), and Giver (ION) and was named the Most Innovative Producer at the 2021 Banff World Media Festival. With a global reputation for quality, ground breaking original series and companion interactive experiences, Sinking Ship has produced more than 24 series and distributed to more than 200 countries across the world. Upcoming projects include the third season of the worldwide success, Odd Squad, the company’s first fully 3D animated series Builder Brothers Dream Factory, in partnership with Scott Brothers Entertainment and the highly anticipated series, Jane, co-produced with the Jane Goodall Institute. For more information, visit our website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.