The Adult Animation Spotlight panel between Warner Bros. Animation and Adult Swim at Annecy Animation Festival summarized a number of titles in the overlap between the two studios, including the Anderson Entertainment collaboration “Hit Squad.”
The presentation was lead by Peter Girardi, EVP of Alternative Programming at Warner Bros. Animation and Adult Swim President Michael Ouweleen.
The highlight of the session, however, turned on discussion of “Heist Safari,” an animated action comedy from director Genndy Tartakovsky, who also attended the festival with his first feature, “Fixed,” s Sony Pictures Animation movie acquired by Netflix.
Tartavoksky had pitched “Heist Safari” live at last year’s edition of the festival to Ouweleen. During this spotlight panel, the pair shed a little more light on the new series from the “Samurai Jack” creator, adding a few more details of the series, which follows three frogs, all brothers, as they attempt to rob a bank.
Ouweleen reminded the room of the event last year, and jokingly called it a “hostage situation” as the two optioned the title in an Adult Swim presentation at Annecy 2024, so to avoid booing from the crowd, he claimed.
Ouweleen showed an animatic which Tartakovsky had done himself, something he called exciting for its rarity. A quick introductory video from Tartakovsky briefly showed other elements from the show, including mafioso hippos, while describing the show as being a spin on the crime flicks of Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie.
The animatic itself showed how Tartakovsky’s personality and preference for strong visual storytelling entangled with these references. Developed after his work on “Primal” Season 3, the series of boards from the first episode of the show featured the frog brothers chasing a bank vault manager mouse before it can make it to the security button. The sequence, for which Ouweleen pointed out Tex Avery influences, is a burst of kinetic visual comedy, backed by aggressive EDM music.
The frogs squash against obstacles they crash into, as their faces are reflected in stray bullets; later a giraffe acts as a siren, before a match cut reveals that their head and neck is through the sun roof of a police cruiser.
The rough drawings switch back to the perspective of the mouse, the frogs missing violent and increasingly comic attempts to stop it. The end of the short sequence also demonstrates that the show is capable of being just as violent as it is silly – one of the frogs finally fires off a bullet at its target, and Tartakovsky emphasizes the size of the bullet hole left in the bank manager mouse as a result.
Even in this rather dark conclusion, the animator’s comic sensibilities shine through, in the old school ‘X’s replacing the mouse’s eyes in death. It’s a promising first look, showing off an embrace of the classic elements of the heist genre in following the consequences of being trigger happy during the robbery, but also how classical cartooning can transform that experience.
The “Heist Safari” sneak peek reinforces Tartakovsky candidature, if there were ever a contest, as the highest profile animation personality at Annecy-MIFA 2025.
Earlier this week, he world premiered his first feature, “Fixed,” part of Tartakovsky’s deal with Sony Pictures Animation and acquired by Netflix, so present at Sony and Netflix panels. Pic was well received by Variety’s Peter Debruge. Tartakovsky also proved a leading figure at Cartoon Network Studios’ 25th anniversary panel.
“Heist Safari” marks the latest Adult Swim slate announcement this Thursday at Annecy.
At its Annecy studio focus, President Michael Ouweleen revealed “The Elephant,” a highly innovative animated special produced by Titmouse uniting the talents of Pendleton Ward (“Adventure Time”), Rebecca Sugar (“Steven Universe”), Ian Jones-Quartey (“OK K.O.!”) and Patrick McHale (“Over the Garden Wall”).
Adult Swim also confirmed the official renewal of high-octane and fan-favorite anime “Ninja Kamui” for not one but two additional seasons.
John Hopewell contributed to this article.
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