Mar 27, 2024

Laughing Dragon Studios Produces New Animated Series with Skating Legend Tony Hawk

Legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk has teamed up with Montreal's Laughing Dragon Studio to develop a new animated series titled Skatebirds.

Laughing Dragon is a full-service 2D animation studio with over 100 animators, editors, illustrators, and producers. The company is responsible for major franchise titles such as "Central Park" for Apple TV+, "Mario vs. Sonic" for Youtube, and "Disenchanted" for Disney.

Skatebirds is part of Laughing Dragon's in-house development lineup. The company is also working on a mythology series titled Isaac & Friends and an animated adaptation of the webcomic Least I Could Do.

The series, a nod to Hawk's "Birdman" brand, will feature anthropomorphic avian skateboarders. According to Deadline, which announced the show, the young skaters will "come together to support their hometown and show the world that anything is possible when you put your wings together." [The show will consist of 11-minute episodes produced for digital distribution on platforms such as Youtube and Tiktok for children ages 6 to 11. This strategy is sound because these free video platforms are always the most popular places for children to spend screen time.

The Hawk brand is the foundation of a media empire that includes the most famous skateboarding game franchise in history (Tony Hawk Pro Skater), dozens of home video releases, and the HBO documentary Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off.

Speaking to Deadline, Hawk explained:

Skateboarding brings communities together, keeps kids active, fosters a sense of confidence, and provides endless opportunities. Whether you skate or not, keep an eye out for our shows that entertain audiences around the world.

According to Laughing Dragon CEO Sommer:

Somewhere in a drawer in a house I no longer live in, I have a list of people I wanted to work with to create an animated series. At the top of that list is Tony Hawk, the man who managed to get this uncoordinated person on a skateboard and give him a taste of asphalt after a while. We couldn't be more excited to have Tony lead Skatebirds and introduce this community to a whole new generation.