BOCA RATON, Fla., April 27, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Grom Social Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: GROM) (“Grom” or the “Company”), a media, technology and entertainment company dedicated to family-friendly programming, web filtering technology, and safe social media for kids, today announced that Curiosity Ink Media, the company’s original storytelling division, and international global production and distribution powerhouse, Toon2Tango GmbH & Co. KG (“Toon2Tango”), were nominated both for Best Animated Film and Biggest International Market Potential Screenplay for Santa.com in the just-wrapped 2023 Stuttgart (Germany) International Festival of Animated Film. The recognition for Santa.com – which begins production later this year – was celebrated jointly by Curiosity Ink Media’s Chief Executive Officer, Jared Wolfson, and Toon2Tango Chief Creative Officer, Jo Daris.
The original screenplay for Santa.com was drafted by Jamie Nash, a versatile screenwriter whose biography includes work in many entertainment genres including family-friendly films (Santa Hunters and Tiny Christmas), horror films (Exists, V/H/S/2, Lovely Molly) and several screenwriting credits for television. He is also the bestselling author of Save The Cat!® Writes for TV, a step-by-step guide to television screenwriting.
Widely considered to be among the most prestigious animated film industry gatherings in the world, the Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film routinely attracts over 100,000 attendees annually. Nominees and winners will be feted at the festival’s awards ceremony last night, where Santa.com was one of four screenplays, out of 100 submissions, nominated in the category of Best Screenplay for an Animated Feature Film, which recognizes scripts that exhibit the most promise as a global market success. Hollywood-based Curiosity Ink Media and Germany-based Toon2Tango are readying the film for release in Fall 2025.
“The Stuttgart Festival award nominations reinforce our belief that Santa.com has all of the key elements of a commercial success and an enduring holiday classic film,” explains Wolfson. “We are energized by this recognition as we join the brilliant minds at Toon2Tango to begin production on the type of entertainment experience today’s families crave and deserve.”
Santa.com takes place in a world where Santa’s Workshop has undergone a technological revolution. Magic and tradition have been replaced with automation and efficiency. Even Santa himself has seemingly retired, leaving his workshop operations in the hands of a new generation of tech-savvy elves. But when a grinchy computer hacker takes control of Santa’s Workshop and threatens to destroy Christmas unless Santa is handed over, Yoyo, a lovable but naive, homeschooled elf unexpectedly becomes the North Pole’s last hope at saving the day. Fortunately, Yoyo isn’t alone. Along with his cynical HR elf colleague, his loyal reindeer pup, and a misfit packaging drone, Yoyo sets off on a wild and heartwarming mission to find Santa, all while helping everyone rediscover the true magic of Christmas.
In January, Toon2Tango and Curiosity entered into a co-production relationship, with an equity stake in Hey Fuzzy Yellow!, a preschool series that will serve as a launchpad for what Curiosity and Toon2Tango envision will be an entertainment franchise property. The series has already secured financial backing and distribution agreements with several international programming services. Curiosity and Toon2Tango will jointly co-produce the series which expertly blends original music, accessible comedy and edutainment curriculum for preschoolers, and will pursue ancillary brand extensions that advance the show’s goal of imparting important life lessons for toddlers while encouraging critical thinking skills through exploration and play.