The Jim Henson Company Partners With N-Fusion Interactive To Release App For iPhone, iPad And iPod touch, Based On Sprout®'s Popular Preschool Series "PAJANIMALS"

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Sept. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Jim Henson Company in conjunction with multi-platform video game developer N-Fusion Interactive Entertainment has just released an interactive app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, based on Henson's preschool series, PAJANIMALS, currently airing in the U.S. on 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout^® and on the new Saturday morning NBC Kids block.

The PAJANIMALS App, an interactive adaptation of the episode "Light in the Sky," lets children join in the fun with their favorite PAJANIMALS characters. Filled with engaging activities that play off of the theme of the episode, as well as charming music and animation, the fully 3D app will extend the reach of the TV series onto iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.  

"PAJANIMALS has already developed a loyal and enthusiastic fan base among parents and their young children, and now those fans will be able to enjoy interacting with their favorite characters in a whole new way," said Melissa Segal, SVP, Global Consumer Products, The Jim Henson Company. "Our creative relationship with N-Fusion enabled us to deliver an outstanding interactive experience that expands upon the TV show."  

"Our goal was to introduce the first PAJANIMALS App in a way that captures the warmth and emotional honesty of the TV series by allowing children and parents to interact with the PAJANIMALS' world in a more personal way," stated Jeff Birns, CEO, N-Fusion Interactive Entertainment Corp. "Having this wonderful set of characters helped us to achieve that."

The PAJANIMALS series follows the amazing adventures of four sweet and gentle characters: Sweetpea Sue the pony, the excitable duck Squacky, the creative cow CowBella and the optimistic puppy Apollo. Through their imaginary journeys, these cuddly musical puppets venture out on amazing adventures of discovery, modeling the skills preschoolers need to move through their days successfully.

Produced in Northern Ireland as a co-production between The Jim Henson Company, Sprout and Northern Ireland's Sixteen South Television, PAJANIMALS has obtained funding assistance from Northern Ireland Screen. The Jim Henson Company's Lisa Henson and Halle Stanford serve as Executive Producers for the series, along with Alex Rockwell and Jeff Muncy. PAJANIMALS was created by Muncy and Rockwell.  Andrew Beecham is Executive Producer for Sprout and Sprout's Lisa O'Brien serves as Executive in Charge of Production. Sixteen South's Colin Williams is producer for the series, with Michael and Patty Silversher composing the music. The series airs in the U.S. on Sprout, the 24-hour digital cable channel dedicated to preschoolers. The Jim Henson Company is handling all ancillary use of the property including licensing, video and merchandising.

About The Jim Henson Company:
The Jim Henson Company has remained an established leader in family entertainment for over 50 years and is recognized worldwide as an innovator in puppetry, animatronics and digital animation. Best known as creators of the world famous Muppets, Henson has received over 50 Emmy Awards and nine Grammy Awards. Recent credits include the Emmy®-nominated "Sid the Science Kid," "Dinosaur Train," "Wilson & Ditch: Digging America" and "Pajanimals." Features include "The Dark Crystal," "Labyrinth," "MirrorMask," and "Unstable Fables" and television productions include "Fraggle Rock" and the sci-fi cult series "Farscape."

With additional locations in New York and London, The Jim Henson Company is headquartered in Los Angeles on the historic Charlie Chaplin lot, complete with soundstage and postproduction facilities. Independently owned and operated by the five adult children of founder Jim Henson, the Company is also home to Jim Henson's Creature Shop™, a pre-eminent character-building and visual effects group with international film, television and advertising clients, as well as Henson Recording Studios, one of the music industry's top recording facilities known for its world-class blend of state-of-the-art and vintage equipment. The Company's Henson Alternative brand has recently launched the national tour of "Stuffed and Unstrung," a live puppet improvisational show named one of the top 10 "Best Stage Shows of 2010" by Entertainment Weekly. Visit henson.com, join us on facebook.com/hensoncompany, and follow us at twitter.com/hensonparents.

About N-Fusion Interactive Entertainment Corp.
Established in 1996, N-Fusion has created over 30 games on most every platform for children and families as well as core gamers. The Company's most recent release, Air Mail, a mobile app was chosen as an Editors' Choice by Apple in the App store. The company's experienced team of producers, designers, programmers and artists have developed a variety of both licensed content and original IP. For more information, please visit the Company's website at n-fusion.com.

About Sprout®
Available in over 50 million homes, Sprout is the first 24-hour preschool destination available on TV, on demand and online for children ages 2-5 and their parents and caregivers.  The 24-hour digital channel, which launched in September 2005 along with the website (SproutOnline.com), is the only channel that follows the day of a preschooler from breakfast to bedtime with its distinctive, interactive programming and original hosted blocks.  Sprout's VOD offering is the #1 on demand service for younger children with over one billion views. 

Sprout is a partnership among NBCUniversal, HIT Entertainment, PBS and Sesame Workshop.  Its program lineup of gold-standard, curriculum-based preschool shows includes:  Sesame Street®, Bob the Builder™, Barney & Friends™, The Wiggles®, Thomas & Friends™,  Caillou®, The Berenstain Bears™, Roary the Racing Car™,  dirtgirlworld and more.

The PAJANIMALS App is available for $4.99 from the App Store on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore. 

SOURCE The Jim Henson Company