The animated series “Migali,” featuring a six-armed, two-legged spider princess, is set to make its world premiere at MipJunior on October 10. Ahead of the event, director Cédric Frémeaux shared insights into the five-year journey of adapting the character from comic book to screen for a 52-episode, 11-minute series.
Produced by Easy Peasy Entertainment and Bardaf! Productions, in co-production with French broadcasters TF1, RTBF, Ketnet, and RTS, the show follows six-year-old Migali as she attends the Royal Academy. There, she learns to control her abilities alongside other quirky princesses and princes, bringing boundless energy and web-weaving skills to her studies while maintaining a positive outlook on life.
Frémeaux, known for his work on “50/50 Heroes,” described the project as a collaborative effort that prioritizes human creativity over artificial intelligence. He emphasized that the series was developed in close consultation with the original creators, Alexandre Arlène and Fabien Ockö Lambert, and producer Adelaïde Terme.
“I’ve always loved animated series,” Frémeaux recalled. “As a kid, I woke every morning eager to discover ‘Dexter’s Laboratory,’ ‘Dragonball,’ and many others. I was captivated by these worlds. Growing up, it quickly became clear to me that I wanted to work in that industry someday.”
After studying animation at LISAA in Paris and interning at Ankama, Frémeaux began his career as a storyboard artist. Terme approached him for “Migali” after recognizing his ability to connect with the target demographic of children aged five to eight.
“What struck me with this character is how radiant and fun she was, as a heroin,” Frémeaux said. “With our target audience [kids 5-8], it’s very important to connect with a protagonist. And with Migali, they definitely can as she faces the sames challenges that they do.”
The series draws comparisons to “Spiderman’s young cousin living in a world of unicorns, dragons and potions.” The source material has already achieved significant success in France, with over 150,000 copies sold across nine volumes.
Frémeaux noted that the humor in “Migali” avoids being simplistic, aiming instead to respect the intelligence of young viewers. “Children from this age are much smart than we think, and if you’re lazy in your writing, they will see it instantly,” he explained. “Instead of fighting for their attention span with fast-paced, frantic content, we chose to craft something that both takes them seriously and makes them laugh. And I think that’s key to succeeding in retaining kids’ attention today.”
Producing 52 episodes required a rigorous workflow, with the team delivering a full animatic every week after storyboards were finalized. The animation was split between Caribara studios in Annecy and Paris, and their Belgian subsidiary, Waoooh.
“My role as a director is to find people who are better than me at they own field of expertise. Once I managed to achieve that, every piece fell right into place, and the production was very smooth,” Frémeaux stated. He added that the show is entirely AI-free, asserting that “creativity has to remain at the center of this process, and tools can’t replace artists.”
Frémeaux expressed excitement about introducing Migali to global audiences, noting that the series has significant potential beyond the Royal Academy. “Migali is about to discover a whole new world, and I can’t wait to introduce her to global audiences,” he said. “There are many more paths and characters we can explore, to build beyond the Royal Academy and introduce children to this loveable IP.”
“Migali” is distributed internationally by Moon-Keys International Content and will air on partner broadcasters in the coming months following its MipJunior debut.
Does anyone know if the six arms make animation significantly more expensive? That must be a nightmare for the animators at Caribara studios.
Over 150,000 comic copies sold in France proves the IP has legs. Excited to see if this translates globally or stays a local favorite.
Spider Princess meets school setting reminds me of early Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vibes. Hope the humor lands well for the five-to-eight age group.
AI-free production? I actually respect that stance. It is nice to see creators prioritizing human artistry over cheap tech shortcuts.
Finally, an animated show that respects children’s intelligence. This sounds like a refreshing change from the frantic pacing of most kids’ cartoons today.