DQ Entertainment, Ireland green lights 3D animated version of The Jungle Book

MUMBAI: Along with the launch of its new feature film division, DQ Entertainment Ireland Ltd. (DQE) has green lighted a new, 3D animated version of Rudyard Kipling?s The Jungle Book.

Kipling?s The Jungle Book has already seen several screen incarnations, the best known of which are the 1942 live action version produced by Alexander Korda Films and the 1967 Disney animated version.

DQE chairman and founder Tapas Chakravarti, ?Our commitment to animated features marks another major milestone for DQ Entertainment. By leading off our slate with a 3D stereoscopic version of The Jungle Book, we?re making a bold statement to the industry- that DQE is committed to put the creative, technical and financial resources together to produce compelling, high quality animation for all distribution channels.?

While the film is being produced by Chakravarti, Eric S. Rollman, CEO of Rollman Entertainment and former president of both Marvel Animation and Saban/Fox Family Productions, is serving as executive producer along with DQE vice president of intellectual property Rouhini Jaswal.

The film is being written by Billy Frolick (Madagascar) and co-directed by Jun Falkenstein (The Tigger Movie) and Kevin Johnson.

Pre- and post-production will be based in Los Angeles, with animation being done at DQE?s headquarters in Hyderabad.

The company said it is also developing two other classic titles as film projects.

The studio, which also produces a TV series version of The Jungle Book, ventured into theatrical films for the first time last year by handling the animation for The Prodigies, a feature for Warner Bros., Onyx Films and France?s Fid?lit? Films.

The project, budgeted at $45 million, is aiming for a 2014 release.

DQ Ireland is a subsidiary of Hyderabad-based DQ Entertainment.