The global success of Puffins, the animated family/adventure show has led to a spinoff action series Puffins Impossible starring Johnny Depp in the lead role of Johnny Puff, produced by Iervolino and Lady Bacardi Entertainment (ILBE). The first season will be comprised of 18 episodes with Peter Nalli serving as the series showrunner.
Puffins Impossible will be the first animated series produced in the Republic of Serbia in coordination with ILBE’s daughter company, Iervolino Studios, where it was created, and Serbian Archangel Digital Studios.
Andrea Iervolino and Lady Monika Bacardi have worked with Johnny Depp on many projects including acclaimed movies such as Waiting for the Barbarians and Minamata as well as Puffins with Depp in the leading role, and now on the series “Puffins Impossible.”
Depp said, “Puffins Impossible is a great story for all ages, witty and educational. I enjoyed working on this project and I hope it will repeat the success of the Puffins series it derives from. The work that has been done in just one year is simply amazing. I’m delighted with the creativity of people from Serbia.”
The animated web series Puffins Impossible follows the adventures of five Arctic birds – Johnny Puff, Didi, Pie, Tic and Tac. Every day was just regular fun for our puffins – until they touched a meteor and unleashed incredible superpowers of speed, strength, intelligence, and empathy. With help and guidance from their mentor Johnny Puff, they transform into Tactik, Didi Damage, Megapie, and Mystic – a unified superhero team. While they are still just puffins with their own disagreements and issues, when help is needed, they are quick to put their differences aside, suit up and fly out to save the day.
Themes such as gender, racial equality, and environmental protection are among the important and universal issues addressed throughout the series. Amidst the absurd situations and hilarious gags, kids are entertainingly introduced to these important themes resonating in society today.
Puffins originated from the popular feature film Arctic Dogs (released theatrically in 2019 and becoming a top-rated animated film on Netflix). Iervolino and Lady Bacardi Entertainment acquired the spin-off rights of the characters from the original film, including all merchandising rights, commercial exploitation, soundtrack, and print publishing rights, and created Arctic Friends as a short-content format animates series consisting of five-minute episodes. The increased popularity of Arctic Friends led to Puffins.
Andrea Iervolino added, “The tremendous response we’re seeing to the Puffins franchise is incredibly encouraging and speaks to the global demand for innovative high quality short animated family content adapted to all screen types, including mobile phones for streaming platforms worldwide, which we are dedicated to making in Iervolino Studios in Serbia alongside our partners at Archangel Studios. Puffins Impossible is a fun, engaging spin-off, true to the ethos of the Puffins franchise that has brought enjoyment to kids around the world.”
