A Squared Entertainment (A2), an international kids' entertainment company, and Tata Elxsi, the technology arm of the India's largest conglomerate, the Tata Group, are partnering to create A Squared Elxsi Entertainment LLC (A2E2).
The joint venture will create, develop and distribute animated entertainment, digital gaming and originally-designed consumer products for the kids' market. It brings together veteran kids' producers Andy and Amy Heyward with Tata Elxsi's Visual Computing Lab (VCL), a leading animation, visual effects and game development studio based in India. VCL also has a studio in Santa Monica, Calif.
"Combining A2's creative development, brand management and multi-media distribution expertise with Tata's exceptional animation capabilities and technological innovation gives us a tremendous advantage in today's competitive kids' marketplace," said Andy Heyward, co-president of A2 in a statement. "Not to mention the powerful stable of brands that are already in production with personalities ranging from Warren Buffett to Martha Stewart, Gisele Bündchen and Stan Lee."
"This venture will combine the best of creative and marketing skills from Hollywood and the animation production experience and scale of Visual Computing Labs of Tata Elxsi to create meaningful and purposeful content of which we can all be proud of," added Tata Elxsi's Visual Computing Lab chief operating officer S. Nagarajan in a statement.
VCL has worked on projects for leading Indian and global entertainment companies and has earned a number of industry awards. Recent productions include the film Roadside Romeo (co-produced by Disney and Yash Raj Films) and TV commercials for Coke, Reebok, Wrigley.
The new venture's daily operations will be managed by Andy and Amy Heyward from the Los Angeles office.
