May 31, 2023

Amuse Animation Opens China Office, Directed by Distribution Veteran En Chin Liu

European kids and family production company Amuse Animation has expanded into China with a new office headed by distribution, co-production, and licensing veteran Entin Liu. [The company also has offices in Paris and the Canary Islands. The company has produced a number of popular digital children's shows, including "Shark Academy," "Animakers," "Plum the Super Witch," and "The Increditables."

Amuse has strong relationships with several Chinese companies, including Tencent, QIY, and Youku, and has won the Best Cooperative Partner and Best Content Creator awards at the 2021 Tencent Video Digital Content Creators Summit.

In her new role, Liu will report directly to Amuse's recently appointed Chief Revenue Officer, Giera Esmat, and will be based in London. Esmat previously served as Moonbug's senior director of distribution and content partnerships.

In the release, Esmat explains: "China is an important part of our expansion plans as we prepare to expand the company outside of Youtube and move into full 360 IP development. We look forward to building on our existing success in this unique and dynamic market and brokering co-productions and long-term animation partnerships between Eastern and Western partners."

Prior to joining Amuse, Liu was a regional distributor for Fifth Season, Nickelodeon/Viacom, Regency, and Paramount. He also facilitated co-productions for Fox, Insight TV, and Tencent, and worked in licensing for Aniplex, DeAPlaneta Kids & Family, and ADK. At Fox Networks Group, he served as Director of International Distribution and Licensing.

In the release, Liu stated: "Having a presence in the region will bring many opportunities to the company while continuing to provide a steady stream of great early childhood content to our partners and prospective clients."

He also stated.

Cartoon Brew's View While Amuse has had great success in the digital streaming space, recent hires and Esmat's comments make it clear that the company plans to make its IP available on other platforms. Esmat, coming from Moonbug, the rights holder of Cocomelon, which has set the standard in finding ways to grow and leverage digital IP, seems like the right person to lead the charge.