Rainbow/Bardel’s, 44 Cats, produced in collaboration with Antoniano Bologna and Rai Ragazzi, has been awarded the Golden Dolphin for Best Animated Series in the overseas category at the Cyber Sousa Competition as part of the 12th edition of Xiamen International Animation Festival, China’s most influential festival for animation and comics.

The XIAF is supported by ASIFA (Association Internationale du Film d’Animation) and ASIFACHINA, and promotes the development of the animation industry, comics and video games boosting information technology’s application and international exchange. The award is a further recognition for the whole 44 Cats team, already working on a second 52 x 13’ season and delivering a top quality show that is quickly growing into a preschool classic.

After its first landing on screens across the world with season 1, 44 Cats has been growing at a steady pace, emerging as new kids phenomenon for its compelling features. The show stars a band of 4 musician kittens – the Buffycats – and their lovely Granny Pina, and promotes can-do attitudes for a young target. 44 Cats presents the audience with an explosive mix of original songs and comedy, major partners offering top broadcast coverage and a vast consumer product range which allows the brand to spread its cuteness and universal attributes worldwide. Ratings have been driving up along with kids and families’ love for 44 Cats, and Rainbow is riding this first wave of success both on free and pay TV worldwide. Global SVOD partner Netflix scooped up the show after the TV debut in Europe and overseas, where the share results are pushing the show toward season 2.

About Bardel

The Emmy Award®-winning studio, Bardel Entertainment Inc., has been the leading animation service provider in North America for over 30 years due to its stellar reputation built on three core values: quality, creativity and innovation. Bardel has over 500 employees in two state-of-the-art studios, one in Vancouver and one in Kelowna, Canada. Currently, Bardel is producing content for a diverse slate of top-level collaborators including Nickelodeon, Disney, Cartoon Network, DreamWorks, and Warner Brothers. Bardel also produces feature films, prime time series, kids and preschool TV series, as well as projects for SVOD and VOD platforms. In 2015, Bardel was acquired by Italy-based Rainbow Group, one of the largest animation studios and licensors in the world.

About Rainbow

Rainbow Group was established in 1995 by Iginio Straffi, President and Chief Executive Officer, and gained worldwide fame thanks to the extraordinary success of the Winx Club fairies brand. The group operates in the kids and family entertainment industry, ranking among the main international companies for the development of content – both animated and live action – for TV and cinema productions, as well as for the creation, development and licensing of content and the production of animated content for third parties, integrated by the group with the acquisition of Canadian studios Bardel Entertainment in 2015. With the acquisition of Iven Group in 2017, Rainbow has also broadened its offer of TV and movie products dedicated to adults and families, with TV formats and film library owned by Iven Group company’s Colorado Film Production. In over 20 years of experience, the group has created and developed a variety of properties and can count on a product portfolio aired in over 130 countries through different broadcasting platforms; in the consumer product industry, the group ranks in the top positions on the annual Top 150 Global Licensors List and is 1st in Europe, with more than 500 licensees worldwide.

For further information please contact: Rainbow Press Office press@rbw.it