Leading Production Company APC Kids And Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF) Play HARDBALL With France Télévisions

APC Kids, the children’s entertainment division of leading co-production and distribution company APC Studios has secured a deal with France Télévisions for new live action comedy Hardball (13 x 24’) distributed by Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF).

Produced by Northern Pictures in association with Screen Australia, Create NSW and the ACTF, Hardball is a fresh, fish-out-of-water comedy aimed at 8–12-year-olds. The series premiered in Australia on ABC ME last year.

When Mikey moves from New Zealand to Western Sydney, he finds himself in the thick of the ultra-competitive, schoolyard game of handball. After saving a kid on the playground from a wayward ball and finding he has the most powerful strike in the world, Mikey is befriended by Jerry and Salwa, who join forces to train him to become a weapon of precision and skill - equipped to topple resident king of the court, Tiffany, and take home the Western Suburbs handball crown - if only he could make the ball land in the right suburb! A series with lots of heart and humour, can Mikey go from zero to hero, in the quest to be the best in the west?

Claire Heinrich, Head of Acquisitions, Children & Youth Department at France Televisions  “We fell in love with this series for its devastating humour, its values of team play and solidarity, its endearing hero and its colourful and unforgettable characters; Mikey and his friends are inviting us into their game and there is no doubt that Okoo viewers will like to follow them as much as we do!”

Lionel Marty, Managing Director of APC Kids says “Hardball is an original, charming series with diverse, down-to-earth characters we know young viewers all over the world are going to relate to. We’re proud to be partnering with the ACTF to bring its great programming to a French audience.” 

Jenny Buckland, CEO of the ACTF had this to say “We’re thrilled that children in France are going to meet the gang from Hardball and we hope they love them as much as we do.”

Hardball has also been sold to broadcasters in Norway, Ireland, Canada, Hong Kong, Portugal and Slovenia, with further deals to be finalised soon.

About APC Kids
APC Kids is the children’s entertainment arm of leading co-production and distribution company APC Studios. Headed by Lionel Marty, the kids’ specialist has a growing portfolio of high-profile children’s and family properties including animated series KID-E-CATS, Ricky The Dinosaur, Roger, The Memories of Nanette and Zoli & Pokey. APC Kids also houses its own production company Zephyr Animation

About the Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF)
The ACTF is non-profit government funded company that develops and distributes television projects and accompanying educational resources for both Australian and international audiences. Our library contains over 400 hours of programming covering all ages from pre-school to teenagers, and presented in a range of formats and genres including live action comedy/drama series, animation, short-form, telemovies, and documentaries. We work with major international and local broadcasters and production companies and can proudly boast a catalogue of award-winning shows including Round The Twist, Mortified, My Place and Little Lunch.