With a fascinating sneak peek into the heart-warming story of a young black boy and his magical dreadlock mentor, the teaser of upcoming 2D animation feature JG and the BC Kids is creating a huge buzz among fans and netizens. Actor Will Smith shared the teaser of the movie on his social media platform yesterday. JG and the BC Kids is conceptualized by renowned American actress and Smith’s former co-star Janet Hubert. The feature is being co-produced by global animation major Toonz Media Group, Ericka Nicole Malone Entertainment and Janet’s Elijah Rock Productions.
Written by Janet Hubert and Yvette Kaplan, the movie has a star-studded cast and crew with Emmy Award-winning composer Wendell Hanes helming the music. Actors Raven Goodwin, Cheryl Alexander, Ezra Knight, Jasmine Hanes, Blaze Berdahl, Ahmad Maksoud and Joey Taranto lend voice to the main characters while Hubert herself voices the narrator and several other characters. Hubert is an established voice actress who has voiced many commercials including the voice of BAYER. The movie is directed by Ron Myrick, Indra Narayan Datta and Antony Leo.
JG and the BC Kids was born out of the compelling need to create a children’s animation property that broke stereotypes and represented characters from diverse backgrounds and cultures. The movie features two black central characters – a school boy and a young science whiz who is trapped inside a fractal world. Herself an African American mom, Daytime Digital Emmy nominated Hubert says when her son was born, she struggled to find toys, accessories and even story narratives that he could relate to. In a world where her son’s identity was starkly under-represented, Hubert wanted to create something to inspire him, and millions of other kids like him.
Hubert said, “It is time for change and I decided to be and make the change that I seek. I am so proud of this production and our grassroots team who joined me on this journey of creating JG and the BC Kids.”
Toonz Media Group CEO P. Jayakumar, “This is a project that really resonates with the times that we live in. For the Toonz team, we feel extremely honoured and proud to be part of this path-breaking feature film. I am very happy with how the movie is shaping up. Kudos to Janet and the entire team. I am sure that JG and the BC Kids will create a lot of excitement among the audience as well as in the industry.”
Malone said, “What an incredible journey to be an executive producer of this movie as this story will inspire millions of children around the world that in spite of the challenges they may face, if they believe in themselves and the beauty of their imagination…they can win.”
Based on Hubert’s book A Sneaker Feature, JG and the BC Kids will bring street smart and book smart kids together to create life smart kids. JG, the female superhero, and her band of darling dinosaurs will mentor and encourage children to believe in themselves. Targeted at five-nine years old, the movie has been produced in vibrant 2D animation with a blend of hip as well as poignant, positive music that will be loved by parents and kids alike. The pre-production work of the project has been completed at Toonz’s Ireland-based Emmy Award-winning studio Telegael. JG and the BC Kids is slated to be released in March/April 2022. The movie will be marketed worldwide by Toonz Entertainment, a subsidiary of Toonz Media Group, led by chief sales and marketing officer Bruno Zarka.
