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CBeebies Acquires Ronja the Robber's Daughter

The British children's television channel Ronja the Robber's Daughter television anime.

The series was previously acquired by Scotland's Astrid Lindgren Company.

The director Goro Miyazaki commented, "'I am delighted to see Ronja on CBBC. With Ronja the Robber's Daughter, the great old dame Astrid seems to be telling children to believe in their own power to grow… all the while telling both children and adults alike to respect each other and to attain freedom in the true sense of the word. Nothing will bring me more pleasure than having those same messages played to the CBBC audience."

"Ronja is a household name in and the Nordics, and we hope that the title will now be enjoyed by a wider public in the UK,” said Hans Jagerholm from the Astrid Lindgren Company.

United Kingdom-based distributor Serious Lunch previously RTBF in French Belgium, and RTS in French Switzerland to begin production of a French version.

The anime adapts a children's book of the same name by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren (Pippi Longstocking). Amazon describes the story:

The daughter of a professional robber, Ronja realizes the complicated nature of her father's profession when she befriends Birk, the child of a rival tribe. Ronja struggles to balance the relationship with her family and the bond with her self-proclaimed brother Birk as she comes to understand the intricate issues of family and friendship and how differences can be overcome with the help of love and understanding.

Goro Miyazaki (Dwango handled production and writing.

The series premiered in Japan in October 2014 and ran for 26 episodes. Amazon began Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) narrated the series.

The anime won the Animation category at the International Emmy Kids Awards in April 2016.