Industry news LAURENCE KING PUBLISHING TO PRODUCE TWO NEW GIFTS FOR THE FORTHCOMING THE AMAZING MAURICE FILM Laurence King Publishing will produce two new gifts for the forthcoming The Amazing Maurice Film. Philip Contos, Commissioning Editor for Gift at Laurence King Publishing, part of Orion Books, has acquired rights to produce a 250-piece jigsaw puzzle and children’s matching card game (Puzzle at £14.99 and cards at £12.99 inc. UK VAT, for children and families ages 6+) to accompany the release on Sky Cinema of The Amazing Maurice later this year. The film – produced by Cantilever Media and Ulysses Filmproduktion in co-production with Sky – is based on Terry Pratchett’s novel The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (2001), the first Discworld novel for children, which won the Carnegie Medal in 2001. Contos says: “I’m thrilled to be working on these games to help kids enjoy the world of The Amazing Maurice, Bad Blintz, and the rat king. It’s the first-ever animated feature film based on a novel by Terry Pratchett and it’s a fantastic way of introducing younger audiences to his work. I watched the rough cut with my 7-year-old and he loved it, in spite of the fact that it was only a third finished – I can’t wait to see the finished film and it’s going to be so much fun exploring the world of the novel further in the jigsaw puzzle and matching game. It’s like a cross between Ratatouille and Robin Hood, with the spirited Malicia as narrator giving lots of hilarious asides direct to camera.” Catch up on all the latest in our news round up JOE DAVIES APPOINTED AS XPRESSIONS DISTRIBUTOR TO INDEPENDENT RETAIL Joe Davies has been appointed as distributor for Xpressions 4 U Limited for some of the most popular Xpressions Ranges to independent retailers. Retailer favourite brands such as Pots of Dreams, Boofle, Nordic Lights, Feather & Grace, Only Fools & Horses, Dad’s Army and Minecraft are available now. Kishor Shah, Managing Director at Xpressions said, “We have been working on new strategies to evolve the Xpressions business to meet the changing marketplace and to ensure we keep on track for our long-term plans for growth. As part of this strategy, we are moving to new offices and changing to third party warehousing. To ensure our independent customers receive the same level of support and service they have always enjoyed we wanted a distribution partner to supply Xpressions direct to independent retail. “Joe Davies is a well-respected family-owned business, renowned for their Award-Winning Customer Service and their ‘little & often’ order system, which is a perfect fit for the Xpressions Range and our customers.” Paul Hooker, Commercial Director at Joe Davies said, “We are very excited to be working with Xpressions and looking forward to supplying Xpressions customers, many of which we already serve. The brands are a perfect match to our existing ranges and the tie up will really benefit both companies’ customers.” For all enquiries regarding the Xpressions Range at Joe Davies or to place orders please contact Joe Davies on +44 (0)161 975 6300 or visit www.joedavies.co.uk 8
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