Hasta La Motion!

Pragmatic Play providers for video slots and live casino has unveiled its latest creation, Wild Pixies.

The 3×5 video slot has reels filled with the colourful denizens of the enchanted woodland in which the game is set. A magic butterfly acts as the wild symbol, with a precious diamond as a scatter symbol giving players the chance to unlock huge wins.

If three diamonds hit the reels at the same time, the roaming wilds free spins feature is triggered. This transports players to an enchanted clearing in the pixies forest, where players can go in search of the secret riches of the Wild Pixies.

Pragmatic Play chief commercial officer Melissa Summerfield said: “Wild Pixies is a fun-filled, magical slot experience, and one we are thrilled to release. With its immersive gameplay and enchanting bonus feature, we are confident Wild Pixies will be a hit.”

Wild Pixies is the latest addition to Pragmatic Play’s popular offering and follows the launch of Extra Juicy, as well as complementing best-performing titles Mustang Gold, Wolf Gold and DaVinci’s Treasure.

Pragmatic Play has signed a series of significant commercial agreements over the past 12 months in regulated markets, expanding its reach with operators including PokerStars, Kindred and Casumo.

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Disney’s new streaming service will be bringing animated series inspired by Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. for the fans. Titled Monsters At Work, the series is set to premiere on Disney+ in 2020. John Ratzenberger, Jennifer Tilly, Bob Peterson, Ben Feldman, Kelly Marie Tran, Henry Winkler, Lucas Neff, Alanna Ubach, Stephen Stanton and Aisha Tyler round-up the star-studded voice cast.

Produced by Disney Television Animation, the series was developed and is executive produced by Disney animation veteran Bobs Gannaway (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Planes: Fire & Rescue) with Ferrell Barron (Planes: Fire & Rescue) serving as producer. Kat Good (Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero) and Rob Gibbs (Monsters, Inc.) will be sitting in the directors’ chairs.

Monsters At Work picks up six months after the original movie’s story, with the Monsters, Inc. power plant now harvesting the laughter of children to fuel the city of Monstropolis, thanks to Mike and Sulley’s discovery that laughter generates ten times more energy than screams.

Disney+ will offer ad-free programming with a variety of original feature-length films, documentaries, live action and animated series and short-form content, alongwith access to Disney’s library of film and television entertainment. The service will also be exclusively streaming films released by The Walt Disney Studios in 2019 and beyond, including Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, Toy Story 4, The Lion King, Aladdin, and Star Wars Episode IX.

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Releasing 17 April, Disneynature’s eighth theatrical feature, Penguins, is going to be the first-ever Disneynature film to be released in IMAX.

Directed by Alastair Fothergill and Jeff Wilson, Penguins is a coming-of-age tale narrated by Ed Helms (The Office, The Hangover, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart) about an Adélie penguin named Steve who’s on a quest to build a suitable nest, find a life partner and start a family. But it’s not an easy journey as he faces many obstacles, especially considering he’s targeted by killer whales, leopard seals and others who unapologetically threaten his happily ever after.

Disneynature vice president Paul Baribault commented, “Each film inspires a new conservation initiative, ranging from planting millions of trees in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest to the establishment of new marine protected areas, wild chimpanzee habitats and wildlife corridors, plus many more projects benefiting countless species. This 10-year milestone celebrates our commitment to working with the best nature filmmakers and premiere conservation organisations to not only inspire audiences to care about our natural world, but to make a direct impact through these programs.”

The first Disney-branded film from The Walt Disney Studios in more than 60 years, Disneynature was launched to bring the world’s top nature filmmakers together to share a wide variety of wildlife stories on the big screen in order to engage, inspire and educate theatrical audiences everywhere.

All seven of Disneynature’s theatrical film releases—Earth, Oceans, African Cats, Chimpanzee, Bears, Monkey Kingdom and Born in China—rank among the top 10 highest overall grossing feature-length nature films to date, with Chimpanzee garnering a record-breaking opening weekend for the genre.

For Penguins, Harry Gregson-Williams has composed the score and Alastair Fothergill, Mark Linfield, Keith Scholey, and Roy Conli has served as producers.

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Sony Pictures Animation has announced that Oscar-winning director Rich Moore will be joining the studio to develop, produce and direct original animated features whilst also acting in an advisory capacity with ongoing feature film and series-based projects at the studio.

“Rich is a world-class storyteller and he brings with him a wealth of experience and a unique sensibility for story, comedy and heart,” said Sony Pictures Animation president Kristine Belson in a statement. “We are so excited for him to join our team of filmmakers at Sony Pictures Animation as we continue to develop a slate of animated features that are big, bold, and will take audiences by surprise.”

“Sony Animation has emerged as a major player among animation studios,” Moore commented. “Their vision to give filmmakers and artists the freedom to take risks, and to really push the envelope when it comes to visual style and breadth of storytelling is impressive, and I can’t wait to be a part of shaping the studio’s future.”

Moore is the director of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 2016 Oscar-winning animated feature Zootopia, which he helmed alongside fellow director Byron Howard. His directorial debut with Disney Animation was the 2012 Oscar-nominated feature Wreck-It Ralph, and he most recently directed the 2018 Oscar-nominated follow-up Ralph Breaks the Internet with fellow director Phil Johnston.

Moore was one of the original three directors on The Simpsons, directing numerous episodes over the series’ first five seasons, including the Emmy Award-winning “Homer vs. Lisa and the Eighth Commandment.” Moore also oversaw the creative development and production of Matt Groening’s Futurama.

“Ten years is a long time but when you’re working on incredible films with people you love as I have these last ten years, that time flies by, “Moore said of his time at Disney. “I will always cherish my days at the Walt Disney Animation Studios and I leave with the faith that the studio is in good hands. I remain a lifelong Disney Animation fan and look forward to the films they’ll create in the future.”

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French independent producer and distributor ZED has won the MIPDOC Current Affairs and Investigation Project Pitch with its new project The Doubt Makers (52’& 90’) on 9 April. The project is slated for completion on Arte France in Summer 2020.

An independent documentary producer and distributor for more than 20 years, ZED has established a reputation as one of the major international sales companies for itself. Contributing to the reach of French factual programming worldwide, the company represents some 30 producers, handling distribution of their output to broadcasters across the globe.

‘The Doubt Makers’

Commenting on the win, ZED international sales and acquisitions executive Chloé Persyn-Preljocaj said, “We are very happy to have won the MIPDOC Project Pitch. As we are looking for pre-sales and co-productions opportunities, pitching our project at MIPDOC was a good way to find new partners.”

The team comprised of world-renowned researchers and major players whose in-depth investigation has culminated into such amazing graphic animations. The team also plunged into the science of doubt about Tobacco, climate change, pesticides and so on. The scientific knowledge involved in it, seemed so vast, detailed, shared and increasingly challenged.

One by one, this film dismantles the workings of this clever manoeuver that aims to turn science against itself and how can we, as citizens, sort out fact from fiction.

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