Greetings from the rabbit hole

"The idea for the film came to me during my children's cooking group, which takes place after school. I made the kids a raw vegetable salad, which of course didn't go down well with everyone. Someone then said: 'If I were a rabbit, I would definitely like it better'. And that's how the idea for 'Robert, the Super Rabbit' came about. A film in which a little boy turns into a rabbit under pressure from his parents while eating," says Script Writer and illustrator Franziska Biermann. That was in 2013, but good things take time. Seven years later, the project is taking shape. In April 2020, the FFHSH provided script funding totalling 20,000 euros, and work is currently underway on the first draft of the script. If everything goes smoothly, filming will start in 2022, making "Robert, the Super Rabbit" the first cinema film from the still young Hamburg-based company Eddi Media.

Welcome to the Clown family

Kreativlabor was founded in 2019, but its history actually goes back quite a bit further. Composer Nils Kacirek and Franziska Biermann have been working together for around twelve years: she writes and draws children's books and he composes the music. In recent years, the two have published various successful music picture books under the Eddi Musik label at Carlsen Verlag. They have only been working together in the medium of film since 2016. Until then, Kacirek had already written music for various film and television productions and was nominated for the German Film Music Award in 2015. Biermann also had his first contact with the medium of film at the Academy for Children's Media in Erfurt in 2013. However, it was to take a while before the first joint moving image idea was realised: "I had already realised at the Academy that I think a lot in pictures due to my job as an illustrator - and that benefits me when writing screenplays," says the children's book author.

The first project was then initiated three years ago. The web series "Welcome to the Clown Family" was created in co-production with the Munich-based company Lieblingsfilm and funded by the FFF Bayern. A slapstick format that manages without any dialogue and turns the parent-child relationship on its head: the children are sensible and the parents get up to a lot of nonsense. Further seasons are currently in development.

Music becomes media

In 2019, there was a new addition to the Eddi Musik team. Segment Producer Eva Fouquet joined the team, bringing with her a wealth of experience from public television, where many documentaries and reports were produced under her direction. She has been in charge of producing and marketing ever since. The team now distributes many clips via social media, and non-linear distribution is becoming increasingly important. However, as the music was no longer the focus, an umbrella organisation was needed: Eddi Media was born. "We all develop content concepts together. As all three of us are based at Atelier Freudenhammer in Eimsbüttel, there is a constant dialogue," reveals Eva Fouquet. The best conditions, therefore, for taking the new company forward.

Win-win for parents and children

Even though the content is aimed at children between the ages of three and twelve, parents are also an important target group: "Our productions should not only appeal to children, but also to their parents and the whole family. The content should be about something, but still be entertaining," says Nils Kacirek. Anyone who has ever been on a long car journey with their children can understand that. Children and parents are often interested in the same topics. "We give the parents a nice distillation of topics in which, if things go well, they can find themselves just as much as their children," adds Biermann. A win-win situation for children and parents.

But what children's content does the Eddi Media crew actually like to watch in private with (or without) children? "My favourite children's film of the last few years is 'Rocca changes the world' by Katja Benrath. It's a great film about a strong girl," reveals Eva Fouquet. Nils Kacirek was recently very enthusiastic about the Amazon series "Gortimer Gibbon: My Life on Normal Street". Franziska Biermann is a big fan of "Rico, Oscar and the Animal Shadows". Next, the Eddi Media team would like to see a boy in a rabbit costume on the big screen. But until that happens, there will be a salad or two to eat.