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Sunday, February 12
| 4:00pm |
Early Registration (4:00 PM- 8:00PM)Registration Desk |
| 4:30pm |
Venue Tour (4:30pm - 5:00pm)Registration Desk Get a feel for the layout of our venue before the Summit officially kicks off so you don’t waste precious time trying to find sessions, events and people throughout the week. This tour departs from the Registration Desk and shows you where everything will take place. |
Monday, February 13
| 8:00am |
BREAKFAST (served from 8:00-10:00 in Biscayne & Chopin Ballrooms)Registration Desk, Bayfront, Sevilla, Merrick, Gusman, Tuttle, Dupont, Flagler |
| 8:30am |
Venue Tour (8:30am - 9:00am)Registration Desk Get a feel for the layout of our venue before the Summit officially kicks off so you don’t waste precious time trying to find sessions, events and people throughout the week. This tour departs from the Registration Desk and shows you where everything will take place. |
| 9:00am |
Brainpick: Pitching & Development (9:00am - 10:00am)Merrick Join some of the industry’s most experienced creators, who will work with you on fine-tuning your show concept and pitch materials so you’re ready for market. You can also pop in and ask any questions you may have about developing and pitching kids content. Featuring:
   
Brainpick: Co-Productions & Financing (9:00am - 10:00am)Merrick We’ve recruited a handful of leading kids content producers to advise you on your financing game plan and setting up effective co-production partnerships. Featuring:
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| 10:00am |
KEYNOTE - Making Caring Common (10:00am - 10:45am)Bayfront Many of today’s parents are intensely focused on kids' happiness and their achievements. But the preoccupation with these two factors—and the constant praising of kids that goes with it—can undermine their capacity to empathize with and care for others. In fact, concentrating so much on happiness risks making kids not only less caring, but ironically, less happy. And in the current socio-economic climate, where tolerance and empathy seem to be in short supply, it’s more important than ever to help kids develop these socio-emotional skills. In what's sure to be an eye-opening talk, Harvard Graduate School of Education's Dr. Richard Weissbourd will share results from research looking at how kids TV producers can help children—and their parents—learn to care for others, including those different from them in background and character. What kinds of messages are important for counteracting the nastiness, scapegoating and incivility that seems to be pervading our culture? Dr. Weissbourd will answer these questions and provide concrete strategies for promoting empathy, caring and well-being in this and future generations of kids. Featuring:
Richard WeissbourdDirector, Human Development and Psychology Program Harvard Graduate School of Education |
| 10:45am |
BREAK (10:45am - 11:00am) |
| 11:00am |
Catching up with YouTube Kids (11:00am - 11:45am)Bayfront Since launching at Kidscreen Summit two years ago, YouTube Kids has become a go-to source for educational and entertainment content for children. The app has also provided established and emerging family content partners with a dynamic new community, while giving parents a family-friendly way to educate and entertain their kids. Special guests including Malik Ducard, YouTube's Global Head of Family and Learning Content, will give an update on the app's progress and a glimpse at what's next for YouTube Kids. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Katie Wilson, Corus Entertainment (11:00am - 11:30am)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Arik Kerman, BabyFirst (11:00am - 11:30am)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 11:45am |
BREAK (11:45am - 12:00pm) |
| 12:00pm |
Inside Amazon Studios' Approach to Preschool (12:00pm - 12:45pm)Bayfront On a mission to foster lifelong creative learning through its original preschool programming, Amazon Studios has been striking exactly the right curriculum chord lately. Head of Kids Programming Tara Sorensen—along with some of the studio's key creators and thought leaders—discuss how the company is engendering play, creativity, art and early life skills like learning from mistakes in its content, and more importantly, what it's looking for next. Featuring:
Moderating:
The Power of Character: How parents choose content for their kids (12:00pm - 12:45pm)Sevilla It's no secret that parents regularly steer their kids towards educational entertainment that teaches STEM, literacy and problem-solving skills. But as it happens, US parents are also looking for content that develops character strengths like perseverance and gratitude in their kids. Common Sense Media's latest research shows exactly how parents search for content for their children, and how they very often make choices based on the character traits they see represented. Join us to explore these fascinating findings. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Maud Branly & Caroline Cochaux, Gulli/Canal J (12:00pm - 12:30pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Michael Carrington, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (12:00pm - 12:30pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 12:45pm |
LUNCH (served in Biscayne & Chopin Ballrooms) (12:45pm - 2:00pm)Lunching with... Co-Producers (12:45pm - 1:45pm)Merrick Here's your chance to get your co-production questions answered. Sit down and share a meal in a small group with experienced producers skilled in the fine art of co-production from eight key regions around the globe. Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Ireland, Korea, Spain and the UK will each be represented at a table hosted by two co-pro experts, who will be ready, willing and able to discuss the ins and outs of co-producing with partners in their countries. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
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| 2:00pm |
Consumer products insights from Toys"R"Us Inc. (2:00pm - 2:45pm)Bayfront In this session, top executives from the world's largest dedicated toy and baby products retailer Toys"R"Us will share their views on the current consumer products landscape, what's hot and not, and trends to keep an eye on in the coming year. Additionally, attendees will get insight into how TRU evaluates IPs and how partners can best work with the retailer. Featuring:
Moderating:
Marty BrochsteinSVP, Industry Relations and Information LIMA International Licensing Industry Merchandisers Assn Emotional Scheduling: How kids are organizing their own media lives (2:00pm - 2:45pm)Sevilla Kids today are accustomed to having access to what they want, whenever they want it. But as it turns out, programming schedules still make sense to them, and they organize their media lives around factors like where they are, who they’re with, and what they’ve been doing or are about to do. Dubit’s David Kleeman discusses this new concept of “emotional scheduling,” which is critical to driving discovery and retention for anyone creating media for children. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Lila Hannou, M6 (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Luca Milano, RAI Fiction (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Jules Borkent, Nickelodeon (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 2:45pm |
BREAK (2:45pm - 3:00pm) |
| 3:00pm |
Guardians of the Galaxy’s Cross-Platform Quest: A Marvel Animation case study (3:00pm - 3:45pm)Bayfront In 2015, Marvel embarked on a four-year mission to grow its little-known Guardians of the Galaxy IP into a hit family franchise by producing animation in diverse formats including a Disney XD series, two short-form series, comedy shorts and micro-content. Cort Lane from Marvel Family Entertainment will outline how these innovations in flexible format lengths were essential to maximizing reach for Guardians. He’ll also reveal how ambitious platform diversity (from iTunes to Facebook) has been the key to unlocking audience engagement and affinity for the blockbuster property. Featuring:
Serious Fun: The ins and outs of making educational content (3:00pm - 3:45pm)Sevilla Led by education content experts Cheryl Gotthelf and Dr. Laura Brown, this session will explore what “educational or curriculum-based television” really means, looking at what can it teach, who it’s for, why it’s important, and how a kids TV producer can execute educational concepts organically. They’ll also give an overview of what developers need to know about the audience, curriculum and key research, emphasizing how all this serious stuff can still be fun. Featuring:
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| 3:45pm |
BREAK (3:45pm - 4:00pm) |
| 4:00pm |
Kids TV Face-Off: Broadcasters vs. Producers (4:00pm - 5:00pm)Bayfront Just how well do broadcasters and producers really know each other? We’re going to find out in Kidscreen’s first-ever game show! Teams of broadcasters and producers will compete against each other in three rounds of fun, question-based challenges designed to test their knowledge of each other's point-of-view, audiences and what's happening in our business. Crowd participation is definitely encouraged at this laugh-filled quest to see who reigns supreme. Featuring:
Moderating:
Cocktails with… France Télévisions (4:00pm - 5:00pm)Gusman Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… Super RTL (4:00pm - 5:00pm)Tuttle Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… VIMN (4:00pm - 5:00pm)Dupont Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… M6 (4:00pm - 5:00pm)Flagler Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 4:30pm |
AAS Popcorn Screening Party (4:30pm - 5:00pm)Sevilla Sit back with a bag of popcorn and enjoy this showcase of clips from some the best and brightest animated series that have debuted at our Asian Animation Summit event over the last five years. |
| 5:00pm |
Kidscreen’s Kick-Off Cocktail (Join us on the Pool Terrace) (5:00pm - 6:30pm)Mix and mingle poolside with other delegates at the Summit’s biggest social event. This bash caps off the first day and attracts hundreds of kids entertainment execs looking to meet partners, chat about business and soak up the Miami sunset. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. |
Tuesday, February 14
| 8:00am | |
| 8:30am |
SOLD OUT! Master Class: Fine-tuning character (8:30am - 10:00am)Gusman Whether you're creating an animated or live-action series for broadcast or digital, if you can't communicate what your show is about in less than a sentence or two, chances are your concept needs work. More focused than a bible workshop or pitching clinic, this Master Class will help you move beyond the broad strokes of your high concept and into the nitty gritty of creating characters to drive your story. Experienced show creator Dave Skwarczek will help you dig deeper into the tools and techniques used to define strong characters and craft engaging PLEASE NOTE: Attendees who are keen to pack more professional learning into their Summit week can take part in this session for an additional $250. If you're interested in signing up, contact Maggie Wilkins (mwilkins@brunico.com or 416-408-2300 x539) Featuring:
SOLD OUT! Mentor Class: Negotiating 101 (8:30am - 10:00am)Tuttle So, you've got your first deal. Now what? This session will provide an overview of what to look for in negotiating a production deal in the current kids TV landscape. Join industry and legal experts Douglas Barrett (BellMedia Professor of Media Management, Schulich School of Business) and Hatty Reisman (founder and senior lawyer, Reisman Law Offices) as they consider various forms of programming (TV/digital/short form) and look at many types of deals that can be made and how to best protect your intellectual property. PLEASE NOTE: Attendees who are keen to pack more professional learning into their Summit week can take part in this session for an additional $250. If you're interested in signing up, contact Maggie Wilkins (mwilkins@brunico.com or 416-408-2300 x539). Featuring:
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| 10:00am |
BREAK (10:00am - 10:15am) |
| 10:15am |
From Toys-to-Life to Life on Netflix: A Skylanders Academy case study (10:15am - 11:00am)Bayfront Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders almost single-handedly created the US$4-billion toys-to-life category. And tasked with bringing the bestselling video game franchise to TVs around the globe, content arm Activision Blizzard Studios scored a worldwide deal with Netflix for Skylanders Academy, created by showrunner Eric Rogers (Futurama). In this session, the creative team behind the show will delve into its adaptation process and what we can expect to see next. Featuring:
Moderating:
Is Your IP Ready for Licensing? (10:15am - 11:00am)Sevilla You’ve got great characters, great animation and great stories ready to go. So, it’s toy time, right? Not so fast. A panel of experts from Mattel, Out of the Blue and Zodiak Kids will bring their many years of experience in the licensing business to bear on this discussion of how to evaluate the commercial prospects of a new property, as well as the mistakes developers commonly make, and how licensing hopefuls can maximize their chances for success. Featuring:
Moderating:
Marty BrochsteinSVP, Industry Relations and Information LIMA International Licensing Industry Merchandisers Assn |
| 10:30am |
30 Minutes with… Tiphaine De Raguenel, France Télévisions (10:30am - 11:00am)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Lucy Murphy, Sky (10:30am - 11:00am)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Nina Hahn Nickelodeon (10:30am - 11:00am)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 11:00am |
BREAK (11:00am - 11:30am) |
| 11:30am |
Hot Research: How to woo the elusive kid fan (11:30am - 12:30pm)Bayfront In today’s crowded and highly plugged-in landscape, attracting fans is more challenging—and more important—than ever. So how can your brand become fan-worthy? And what does fandom look like for kids? Come hear from the child development experts at Insight Kids as they share the results of a brand-new research study looking at how kids’ relationships with brands shift as they grow up, and what you can do to cultivate their devotion. Featuring:
Surviving, Scaling and Making Money in the Kids Digital Space (11:30am - 12:30pm)Sevilla Is there a way to create and deliver fun, engaging and strictly regulated digital content to this generation of kids, but also build market share, profits and long-term brand loyalty at the same time? In this fireside chat, Jeff Imberman, CRO of kids ad platform SuperAwesome—and former SVP of Sales and Marketing at Nickelodeon—will answer this critical question and show how the kids digital ecosystem is something to be embraced, not feared. He’ll also divulge how the under-13 audience is already telling brands and content creators what they want—delivering success is just a matter of really listening to them. Featuring:
Moderating:
30 Minutes with… Joe Tedsco, DHX Television (11:30am - 12:00pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Adina Pitt, Cartoon Network (11:30am - 12:00pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Angela Lin, YouTube (11:30am - 12:00pm)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 12:30pm |
LUNCH (served in Biscayne & Chopin Ballrooms) (12:30pm - 2:00pm)Lunching with... Branding & Licensing (12:30pm - 1:30pm)Merrick Spend some quality time getting closer to top-gun consumer products partners who can give you advice and guidance on how to commercialize your kids IP. You’ll have a chance to share a meal in a small group with one of 10 of the industry’s most influential kids merchandise licensees. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
Julia PosenEVP and Commercial Director, Group Rights & Development Walker Books and Walker Productions 
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| 2:00pm |
Franchise-building in the SVOD Age (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Bayfront In the good old days of children’s entertainment, producers, licensees and retailers had a pretty solid idea of where, when and how many kids were watching shows. Data is much more difficult to come by now, and licensees and retailers are hesitant to place their bets without the comfort of hard numbers. This licensing conundrum won’t stop kids from increasingly doing their viewing on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and VOD platforms like YouTube. So what’s the licensing business to do? New merch models will inevitably develop, and while no one is certain yet what form they’ll take, our panel of experts will give you their insights on how things are shaping up. Featuring:
Justin RichardsonVP, Global Content Distribution and Strategy, Home Entertainment and New Media Distribution Mattel
Moderating:
The Evolution of Play in a Virtual World (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Sevilla Pokémon GO showed us how much fun it was to play with virtual 3D characters in the real world. So what’s next? How will traditional play patterns change, and what new ones will emerge as kids begin to interact with virtual objects and characters in the real world around them? Get an early look at new mixed-reality technologies on the horizon with Dr. Ariella Lehrer, who’ll also explore their implications for future product design and play. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Marie McCann, Kids CBC (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Andrew Thomas & Alicia Coudurier, Hulu (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Janine Weigold, Super RTL (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 3:00pm |
BREAK (3:00pm - 3:15pm) |
| 3:15pm |
The New Creators (3:15pm - 4:00pm)Sevilla Looking for the next generation of creative talent to develop new ideas and content that will resonate with your target audience? Social stars may be one answer, but they are just one part of the global creative pool. In fact, new technologies and tools are democratizing the creative process and giving rise to a new generation of independent, highly creative talent. This session will help you learn how to identify and work with passionate or out-of-the-box creators in order to develop on-brand content consumers actually want to watch. Featuring:
Moderating:
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| 4:00pm |
BREAK (4:00pm - 4:15pm) |
| 4:15pm |
Hacking the System: How to reverse-engineer Hollywood (4:15pm - 5:00pm)Sevilla Sometimes the best idea isn’t the one that seems straightforward. Take getting a concept from script to screen—it’s not always a direct line, and a detour into another medium like books may be the best way forward. Learn how to reverse-engineer a film or TV concept by launching it as a publication first…and then selling it back to Hollywood. This panel of writers will give a step-by-step breakdown of how to use Hollywood’s hunger for IPs to hack the system and show how they pushed their passion projects from page to screen. Featuring:
Moderating:
Cocktails with... ABC Australia (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Gusman Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… DHX Television (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Tuttle Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… PBS KIDS (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Dupont Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 5:15pm |
Kidscreen Awards and After-Party (5:15pm - 7:30pm)Bayfront Join us as we celebrate the year’s best work in kids programming, broadcasting and digital media at our annual Kidscreen Awards Ceremony, hosted this year by Darrin Rose, a four-time Canadian Comedy Award nominee and an acclaimed cast member of CBC’s Mr. D. And be sure to stay for the after-party and hang out with winners, nominees and judges alike! Featuring:
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Wednesday, February 15
| 8:00am | |
| 8:30am |
SOLD OUT! Master Class: The state of digital distribution (8:30am - 10:00am)Gusman VOD, AVOD, TVOD, not to mention Netflix, Amazon and YouTube: There are now more ways than ever to slice licensing rights for digital platforms. How do you decide who gets what? When does it make sense to refuse a global VOD deal to pursue local ones? What platforms are ponying up the most cash? Distribution & digital experts Richard Goldsmith (The Jim Henson Company) and Josh Scherba (DHX Media) and John Robson (Wildbrain) will cover those burning questions and much more. PLEASE NOTE: Attendees who are keen to pack more professional learning into their Summit week can take part in this session for an additional $250. If you're interested in signing up, contact Maggie Wilkins (mwilkins@brunico.com or 416-408-2300 x539) Featuring:
SOLD OUT! Mentor Class: Structural Engineering for Storytellers (8:30am - 10:00am)Tuttle All good stories are as carefully constructed as a skyscraper, and this session will teach budding storytellers the basics of creating two- and three-act structures. Self-proclaimed "story structure engineers" Holly Huckins (Sheriff Callie's Wild West, Rugrats, Recess) and Carin Greenberg (Tumble Leaf, Lalaloopsy, Ghostwriter) will be your guides. They'll deconstruct an episode of a popular series to understand how it was built and why it succeeds, discuss the difference between story and character arcs, and examine the importance of conflict. PLEASE NOTE: Attendees who are keen to pack more professional learning into their Summit week can take part in this session for an additional $250. If you're interested in signing up, contact Maggie Wilkins (mwilkins@brunico.com or 416-408-2300 x539). Featuring:
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| 10:00am |
Inspire learning and creativity with VR and AR (10:00am - 11:00am)Bayfront Millions of people have used virtual and augmented reality to transport themselves to distant places and bring the world around them to life. These technologies provide an opportunity for developers to create educational and entertaining experiences. Google Play's Shazia Makhdumi will discuss Google's initiatives in virtual and augmented reality and share tips on using VR and AR to teach and inspire kids of all ages. Featuring:
Acing the kids Bechdel Test (10:00am - 11:00am)Sevilla An effective tool for ID’ing lopsided gender roles in mainstream cinema, the original Bechdel test answers three sequential questions: Does this movie show… at least two women? …talking to each other? …about something other than a man? But what’s the situation in children’s media? Provocative digital thinker Jens de Pedro (ex-Toca Boca) has come up with a modified version of the Bechdel Test to find out. Listen along as he puts the 20 highest-grossing kids films of all time through the process to see which ones would pass and which ones would fail, as well as exploring the impact this might have on ROI. Featuring:
Speed Pitching 1 (10:00am - 11:00am)Merrick Sit down one-on-one with top broadcasters and investors who have the power to greenlight your project. This highly effective networking format will feature 8-minute meetings again this year, giving you ample time to deliver the perfect pitch. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
Athena GeorgaklisExecutive Producer, Creative & Business Strategy Nelvana Studio / Corus Entertainment
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| 10:30am |
30 Minutes with… Linda Simensky, PBS KIDS (10:30am - 11:00am)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with... CJ Kettler, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (10:30am - 11:00am)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… J Milligan, Toca TV, Toca Boca (10:30am - 11:00am)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 11:00am |
BREAK (11:00am - 11:30am)30 Minutes with… Tara Sorensen, Amazon Studios (11:00am - 11:30am)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with... Sarah Muller, Channel 5 (11:00am - 11:30am)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Kristofer Updike & Lisa O'Brien, Sprout (11:00am - 11:30am)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 11:30am |
Little Big Kids: Preschoolers ready for life (11:30am - 12:30pm)Bayfront Viacom recently undertook a huge global study of preschoolers—an adventure spanning 12 countries, 6,500 families, social media diaries and in-depth ethnographies—to find out what it means to be under six years old today. In this session, Christian Kurz will unveil these latest findings on our youngest generation. And as an added bonus, real preschoolers—equipped with GoPro cameras—will give you a glimpse into their world. Featuring:
VR Storytelling Evolution: The challenge of an ever-changing point-of-view (11:30am - 12:30pm)Sevilla Future-proof your creative process by sitting in on this panel discussion featuring the creators, studios and platforms working at the cutting edge of storytelling in VR. They’ll explore the possibilities and the challenges of working in the space where tomorrow’s big kids franchises will come to life. Featuring:
Moderating:
Speed Pitching 2 (11:30am - 12:30pm)Merrick Sit down one-on-one with top broadcasters and investors who have the power to greenlight your project. This highly effective networking format will feature 8-minute meetings again this year, giving you ample time to deliver the perfect pitch. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
Athena GeorgaklisExecutive Producer, Creative & Business Strategy Nelvana Studio / Corus Entertainment
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| 12:00pm |
30 Minutes with… Cecilia Persson, Turner Broadcasting EMEA (12:00pm - 12:30pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Flavio Medeiros, Discovery Latin America (12:00pm - 12:30pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Jackie Edwards & Jo Allen, BBC Kids (12:00pm - 12:30pm)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 12:30pm |
LUNCH (served in Biscayne & Chopin Ballrooms) (12:30pm - 2:00pm) |
| 2:00pm |
STEAM Research: Entertaining kids where creativity and technology intersect (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Bayfront STEAM learning is a pretty hot genre right now—particularly when it encourages girls to get into the game. Listen in as this all-star panel explores what producers, broadcasters and consumer products players have learned so far about delivering STEAM concepts in fun and accessible ways, and also how they’re looking at the space right now. Featuring:
Michael OuweleenPresident, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Discovery Family, Boomerang and Turner Classic Movies Cartoon Network
Moderating:
Rebranding and Audience Engagement: A Sprout case study (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Sevilla In the kids business, connecting with moms is critical. So how do you manage a network or property relaunch/rebrand campaign without alienating your audience—and how do you simultaneously bring in new viewers? What are the challenge and the opportunities in today’s changing landscape? These are the questions US preschool net Sprout faced at the beginning of 2016, and in this session the broadcaster will provide an in-depth look into how it rebuilt its 10-year-old brand and flourished. Featuring:
Moderating:
Speed Pitching 3 (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Merrick Sit down one-on-one with top broadcasters and investors who have the power to greenlight your project. This highly effective networking format will feature 8-minute meetings again this year, giving you ample time to deliver the perfect pitch. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
30 Minutes with... Vellu Maurola & Paul Chenier, Toons TV, Rovio Entertainment (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Gusman A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Kay Wilson Stallings, Sesame Studios (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Tuttle A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
30 Minutes with… Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos & Laurent Guérin, TFO (2:00pm - 2:30pm)Dupont A returning favourite at the Summit, our 30 Minutes With…sessions give you a chance to hear about the future plans and priorities of the kids industry’s major content investors first-hand, as well as participate in some Q&A and meet-and-greets. You are welcome to attend as many of these popular buyer briefing sessions as you can fit into your schedule! Space will be filled on a first-come, first-seated basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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| 3:00pm |
BREAK (3:00pm - 3:15pm) |
| 3:15pm |
From Preschool to Pre-Cool: Is 4 to 7 is the new 3 to 4? (3:15pm - 4:15pm)Bayfront In a bid to keep the older end of the demo watching age-appropriate content, producers have lately been delivering faster-paced, high-concept shows for preschoolers that feel cool—or is it pre-cool? But in many parts of the world, the core three to four sweet spot still reigns supreme. So what does this split mean for content creators, producers and broadcasters? This panel of preschool experts is going to try and figure it all out. Featuring:
Moderating:
Occupy Kindness: How to create content kids love and parents want (3:15pm - 4:15pm)Sevilla Kids these days are over-praised, over-protected and personal wants are prioritized over family and community. The keys to overcoming these issues are communication and empathy, which are skills children inherently have, but need to practice to perfect. Tapping into their experience, our panel of experts will explore how the industry can create stories and games that give kids and parents what they long for—kids want to learn how to like and be liked, and parents want raise happy, kind and successful kids. Featuring:
Michael OuweleenPresident, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Discovery Family, Boomerang and Turner Classic Movies Cartoon Network 
Moderating:
Speed Pitching 4 (3:15pm - 4:15pm)Merrick Sit down one-on-one with top broadcasters and investors who have the power to greenlight your project. This highly effective networking format will feature 8-minute meetings again this year, giving you ample time to deliver the perfect pitch. NOTE: Advance sign-up required. Featuring:
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| 4:15pm |
Digging into Diversity (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Bayfront It is no secret that media has a big impact on shaping a child's world view and self-perception, but it is clear that not every child sees his or herself reflected on the small screen. The movement to make kids TV more inclusive and diverse, and challenge stereotypes faced by both boys and girls, has been gathering momentum. But how do we get there quicker? This panel of seasoned creatives including Chris Nee, the mind behind the groundbreaking Doc McStuffins series has a blueprint in mind, and they'd like to share it with you. Featuring:
Moderating:
Serialized Storytelling for Kids: Can I please just watch one more? (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Sevilla With the advent of binge-viewing, kids audiences are increasingly being offered the opportunity to dig into expansive story arcs and more complicated storylines. And creators and producers are now ramping up serialized concepts to feed this new need. Our panel of seasoned serializers will explore the key lessons that creators and networks need to keep in mind in creating these dramas and comedies for kids. They'll look at whether or not serialization is platform-agnostic, the unexpected drawbacks and benefits of kids serialized programming, what makes some serials more acceptable than others, and what kids audiences are the best targets for the more complex storylines and characters that serialization requires. Featuring:
Moderating:
Cocktails with… Gulli/Canal J (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Gusman Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… Turner Broadcasting EMEA (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Tuttle Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with… BBC Children's (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Dupont Chat over drinks with leading kids broadcasters in this brand-new format that aims to loosen up the networking vibe and help you make deeper connections at channels that buy kids programming. This is designed as a networking opportunity, folks, so please save your pitch for a private meeting. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
Cocktails with... HITN (4:15pm - 5:15pm)Flagler Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Featuring:
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Thursday, February 16
| 8:00am | |
| 10:00am |
Hyper Innovation: The future of animation (10:00am - 10:45am)Bayfront New platforms and social networks are bubbling up and opening new opportunities for kids, but also for content creators. How can animation adapt to continuous disruption? What emerging trends are growing, and how are they impacting content production and consumption? France TV's Julien Borde will zero in on some new trends with a panel of fellow animation experts. Featuring:
Moderating:
Encouraging Co-Viewing in the Digital Age (10:00am - 10:45am)Sevilla What does co-viewing look like nowadays? Ideally, it still entails families gathering together around the TV to spend some time together. But has family time given way to separate screens? Is TV still the best medium for co-viewing or are other platforms taking over? What strategies can be implemented to make kids content appealing both to parents and children? These questions and more will be put under the microscope by our panel of producers and broadcasters. Featuring:
Moderating:
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| 10:45am |
BREAK (10:45am - 11:00am) |
| 11:00am |
Let's Create a Cartoon! (11:00am - 12:00pm)Bayfront Ready for a serious case of the giggles? Watch as four experienced kids TV creatives take ideas for genres, main characters, plot points, etc. called out by audience members, and then pitch them back as a series before your very eyes. The writers in residence will cover all the elements that need to be considered—defining age targets, budgets, types of animation, etc.—to get a series to market. Part series development demo and part improv game, this session promises to be as entertaining as it is informative. Featuring:
Moderating:
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| 12:00pm |
LUNCH (served in Biscayne & Chopin Ballrooms) (12:00pm - 2:00pm) |
| 2:00pm |
Closing Cocktail (Join us on the Pool Terrace). (2:00pm - 3:00pm)Join us on the pool terrace to celebrate another successful Kidscreen Summit with some drinks and downtime. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until we hit room capacity. Sponsored by:  |
