EXCLUSIVE: Malaysia’s Animasia Studio has inked a deal with China’s Zero One Animation to co-produce 3D animated feature Chuck Chicken – The Movie.

Chuck Chicken

The $8m animation is a spin-off of Chuck Chicken, a TV series that has aired on Disney China, Disney South East Asia, Nickelodeon India, the Middle East and CIS regional TV stations. In China, it received more than 300 million views within six months of its launch on VOD platform iQiyi.

Pre-production is set to start in June, followed by CGI production in late 2016. Delivery is expected early 2018.

An MoU ceremony at Hong Kong Filmart on Monday (March 14) will be attended by Animasia managing director Edmund Chan, Zero One general manager Helen Dong and Fujian Province Department of Commerce deputy director Tang Huiqin.

Animation production services contribute significantly to the export revenues of Malaysia’ s creative content industry. Export revenues reached $140m in 2014, up from $46m in 2009.