Annoying Orange creator Dane Boedigheimer teams with Collective Digital Studio to launch additional animated series on the Daneboe YouTube channel, beginning with The Misfortune of Being Ned, Gusto Rules and the premiere of Thunder McWylde.
Annoying Orange creator Dane Boedigheimer and next-generation media company and multi-channel network (MCN) Collective Digital Studio (CDS), announced that they will develop new shows for the top rated YouTube channel that will appeal to kids ages 8-12, furthering Annoying Orange’ s presence as the ultimate destination for original comedy programming targeting to this demographic.
The first of the new programs are The Misfortune of Being Ned, launching on October 9th, with another animated series, Gusto Rules, following in January. The channel, which currently boasts a subscriber base of 3.3 million, will feature a programming schedule similar to those seen on network television with shows airing on a regular cycle and will include comprehensive marketing support.
The Misfortune of Being Ned is a short-and-sharable animated web series that follows the spectacularly doomed adventures of the titular tween. The series is produced by Dane Boedigheimer, Spencer Grove, Derek Gonzalez, Bob Jennings, and Aaron Massey and stars Steven Zaragoza (Sourcefed), Meghan Camarena (Strawburry17), Kevin Brueck (Break.com), and Bob Jennings.
Gusto Rules, based on the art installment “Eggmanland” by world renowned artist Tofer Chin, will debut in January. The program follows the eccentric comedic adventures of fun-loving morons, who also happen to be Eggmanland’s royal family. The new show was created by Boedigheimer, Spencer Grove, and Abram Makowka, whose feature film Tug recently premiered at the Newport Film festival. Collective Digital Studio co-produced Gusto Rules with Emmy-award winning animation studio Shadow Machine.
The Misfortune of Being Ned and Gusto Rules join Annoying Orange, which will remain the flagship program on the Annoying Orange YouTube channel even though the show’s brand power has extended to broadcast with a successful Cartoon Network show and merchandising. The programs will be complimented with new series Boedigheimer is currently creating to help build out a robust slate of kids digital programming for the online destination. New episodes of Annoying Orange and other programs running on the channel will premiere on a weekly basis.
Dane Boedigheimer said, “Our expansion of the Annoying Orange channel marks the first steps towards evolving the channel into the go-to hub for animation programming that everyone can enjoy."
Reza Izad, CEO of Collective Digital Studio, said, “We look forward to continuing our partnership with Dane, a creative visionary that creates the kinds of series that appeal to young viewers who turn to the web for entertainment.”
In addition to the new shows debuting on the Annoying Orange channel, Boedigheimer will also be growing the offerings on the Daneboe YouTube channel with the launch of Thunder McWylde on October 10th. Thunder McWylde features a once top-notch street fighter, who struggles to fit into the “real world,” which is not built to accommodate someone of his size and strength. Featured voices on the show include Ross Everett (Sourcefed), Michelle Glavan (Awkward Kids), Steve Zaragoza (Sourcefed), Jess Lizama, Lee Newton (Sourcefed), Bob Jennings, Josh Neihaus, J.D. Maccoby, and Andrew Heder and is executive produced by Dane Boedigheimer and Aaron Massey, with Ross Everett as co-executive producer, and Frank Chad Muniz and J.D. Maccoby as producers.
The debut of the new series is part of a larger slate of programming that Collective Digital Studio will be debuting across multiple verticals. Expanded channels featuring top YouTube acts such as FreddieW, Epic Meal Time, and Megan & Liz, are also set to roll out throughout the year and into 2014.
Source: Collective Digital Studio
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
