Look Who's Wrestling Now: France Télévisions Jeunesse Greenlights SUPER-LUCHA!

• The French television company, France Télévisions Jeunesse brings out the red carpet for its newest TV special, SUPER-LUCHA, produced by Vivement Lundi!.

• This 26-minute action comedy is catered to appease the youthful audience with a potent mix of excitement, fun, and the slightly bizarre.

• Billed as the first ever “Mexican manga in stop-motion,” it is promising to be a refreshing, unconventional pocket of whimsy.

• The plot revolves around 10-year-old Ennio, a resident of Mexiquito, a quaint Mexican town nestled snugly between sprawling desert landscapes and lush green hills. Quite the adventurous setting for our young protagonist!

Bravo France Télévisions! You’re Luch-in it up!

Remember when you were a kid with a box of action figures, making up weird and wonderful adventures in the middle of your bedroom? Yeah, that’s pretty much what this whole SUPER-LUCHA deal is like, except with a fancy French twist. “Mexican manga in stop-motion”? Sounds whackier than a piñata party in a sombrero factory, but that’s the kind of outlandish concept that gets kids… and let’s be frank here, us adults too…glued to the TV screen.

Stop-motion has always been the unsung hero of the animation world, and combined with the colorful cosmopolitan cues of Mexican manga, this sounds like an exquisite recipe for hearty, humorous entertainment. Ennio, our 10-year-old hero, navigating adventures in a Mexican-Manga-mashup world? We’re booking our one-way ticket to Mexiquito pronto!

My Hot Take

In a world where cartoons are increasingly going digital, props to France Télévisions for repping stop-motion and showcasing it’s not just a fad but the Mick Jagger of animation – forever young, dynamic, and surprising. SUPER-LUCHA gives you the profound cultural insight of a burrito – it’s packed with flavour, full of spice, and we can’t wait to take a bite. Be ready, couch potatoes, this “Mexican manga in stop-motion” is more than meets the eye – it’s the mole sauce on your nachos, spicing up your Friday night binge-watch with a bit of international flair. Can “Mexiquito” be the new Bikini Bottom? Only Ennio can tell. So, forget about sushi, grab some tacos, it’s time for Mexican manga bonanza!

Children’s programming branch of France Télévisions gives thumb up for the new TV show SUPER-LUCHA by renowned French production house Vivement Lundi !. The 26-minute action-comedy aimed at the younger audience will be the pioneer in the “Mexican manga in stop-motion” category.

The protagonist of the show, Ennio (10 years old), belongs to the Southern Mexican town of Mexiquito, tucked away between desert plains and sunny green hills. As a descend of the legendary Super-Luchadores, they are masked vigilantes battling strong against evil. With his companions Pablo, Lili, and the fresh character Helena, Ennio is on a mission to prove that ascending the ranks of the Super-Lucha is a tough ordeal.

SUPER-LUCHA’s directorial reins are helmed by Goulwen Merret, a Mexico City-born French animator. Merret’s story concept drew inspiration from his childhood wrestling heroes. Suzie Le Texier joined Merret in the scriptwriting process. The show’s original design is a credit to Agnès Lecreux, the creative mind behind the stop-motion TV series DIMITRI which bagged an Industry Excellence Award for Character Design at the 2019 Manchester Animation Festival.

https://vimeo.com/444871937

Combining his love for Japanese animation narrative, Mexican traditions, and hand-made pinatas inspired stop-motion, Goulwen brings to us SUPER-LUCHA, the first-ever Mexican style stop-motion manga!

-Mathieu Courtois (Producer, Vivement Lundi !)

SUPER-LUCHA was first pitched at the Cartoon Forum 2020. Subsequently, it was commissioned by France Télévisions Jeunesse and went through standard development processes. Funding for the development was aided by CNC, Breton regional fund Bretagne Cinéma, Local Breton TV channels TVR, Tébéo, TébéSud, France 3 Bretagne, la Procirep, Angoa, and the EU fund Creative Europe. The duty of international sales lies with the French company Autour de Minuit.

Image Source: Vivement Lundi !

Vivement Lundi !, the company behind SUPER-LUCHA, has an Oscar nomination to its name and is headquartered in the Brittany region of Rennes, France. With a rich legacy of 26 years in the industry, the company has produced highly successful movies including MEMORABLE by Bruno Collet, THIS MAGNIFICENT CAKE! by Emma de Swaef and Marc James Roels, FLEE by Jonas Power Rasmussen, NO DOGS OR ITALIANS ALLOWED by Alain Ughetto. The year 2025 holds a great promise in the form of multiple releases including TALES FROM THE MAGIC GARDEN which made its premiere in Berlinale, newly shortlisted SIGNAL and ATOMIK TOUR at the Annecy Festival and the Instagram native 2D series DOUCE. Producers Jean-François Le Corre, Aurélie Angebault, and Mathieu Courtois are currently engrossed with their other ventures OLIVIA AND THE INVISIBLE EARTHQUAKE (a joint venture with Spain, France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Chile) and the 52-episode 2D series HARRISON AND ME produced in association Superprod and France Télévisions.

Look Who’s Wrestling Now: France Télévisions Jeunesse Greenlights SUPER-LUCHA!