The preemptive deal is the first since Michelle Raimo-Kouyate arrived from DreamWorks Animation last November to become president of production.
Janet Foxley’s novel was the winner of the 2010 Times / Chicken House prize and tells of a fairytale community living in a volcano, hidden from human beings.
It will be published by The Chicken House in the UK and Australia and will be published by The Chicken House / Scholastic imprint in spring 2012 in the US and Canada.
Family entertainment producer Jane Startz will serve as executive producer and her credits include Ella Enchanted, Tuck Everlasting and The Mighty. Kane Lee, Jane Startz Productions vp of development, is co-producer.
“Strong characters, relatable themes, a unique world and tons of inherent comedy: as soon as I read Muncle Trogg, I knew this would speak to the kinds of animated movies I want to make at Sony Pictures Animation,” Raimo-Kouyate (pictured) said.
“Janet Foxley’s Muncle Trogg is already on its way to become a much loved children’s classic book around the world, and we are so delighted that Sony Pictures Animation is set to develop the little giant into a magical movie character too,” Barry Cunningham, Chicken House Publisher and head of Chicken House Entertainment, said.
Cunningham is editor who discovered J K Rowling’s first Harry Potter novel when he was at Bloomsbury.
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