Universum produces S3D animation arm

Paris-- Inside the run-around the Feb. 7-10 Kidscreen Summit in NY, Jeremy Zag's French animation production company Univergroup is beginning a film division, Zag Pictures, which is joining track of leading Korean studio SamG. Zag Pictures will probably be dedicated to creating high-profile S3D animated features, allotted above 20 million ($26.4 million), and it is targeted at tapping European and Anglo-American scribes and helmers who've done Hollywood animated tentpoles, Zag mentioned. Zag's development roster includes $50 million "Miraculous Lady Bug," a Paris-set fantasy concentrating on a teenage girl with super forces, that's co-produced by Aton Soumache's Method Animation and $Thirty Dollars million "Kobushi," a comedy a la "Tom and Jerry" initiating a family group of sushi samurai.Both "Lady Bug" and "Kobushi" are increasingly being developped as TV series via Zag Toon, Univergroup's TV subsidiary.Gallic animator and storyboard artist Thomas Astruc, who created the first concept of "Lady Bug," will co-direct the tv skein as well as the toon feature. Zag, who intentions of making a "Lady Bug" franchise, mentioned he was finalizing a specialist Toy deal.Univergroup was founded in 2008 by youthful entrepreneur Zag and Jacqueline Tordjman, an animation vet who labored alongside Haim Saban for virtually two-and-a-half decades and introduced cult shows like "Goldorak" and "Gadget as well as the Gadgetini" to French TV. Meanwhile, Zag Toon keeps growing to Korea by merging with SamG, whose credits include French cartoons "Monk" and "7Cs," a collection and also have project developed with U.S. shingle Guy of Action. Re-named Mike Zag, the Seoul-based studio works exclusively on Univergroup's animated photos and tv skeins. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com