Rights & Brands appointed agent for The Brothers Gruff, one of the biggest children’s book series in Norway
3 October 2023
Rights & Brands appointed agent for The Brothers Gruff, one of the biggest children’s book series in Norway
Leading licensing agency Rights & Brands has been appointed master licensing agent for the best-selling Norweigan book series “Bukkene Bruse” (The Brothers Gruff), authored by Bjørn F. Rørvik and illustrated by Gry Moursund.
Press release October 3, 2023
Published by Cappelen Damm, the illustrated Bukkene Bruse books for young children have been a huge hit in Norway, selling over 750,000 copies and the best-selling children’s book series for 11 years straight (2009-2020). The rights have been sold to 9 other countries so far, including Denmark, Sweden, Germany, France, Japan, and South Korea. Adding to the excitement, December 25, 2023, will witness the premiere of the animated film, The Brothers Gruff Go To Splash World.
Bukkene Bruse is a modern interpretation of the timeless Norwegian folk tale The Three Goats Bruse originally recorded by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen in 1842. Bjørn F. Rørvik and Gry Moursund’s humorous stories reflect the essence of Norwegian culture, and few cultural works resonate as deeply with the Norwegian folk spirit as these beloved folk tales.
Furthermore, the books have been brought to life in a new animated film premiering this Christmas: The Brothers Gruff Go To Splash World (Bukkene Bruse på Badeland) by renowned companies Qvisten Animation and Nordisk Film. This summer, the film’s soundtrack soared to success even before the film’s release, with the song Badebussen by DJ MøMø featuring Kjartan Lauritzen topping the Norwegian charts in July. The animation company Qvisten Animation is also one of the co-founders of Rights & Brands Norway.
“We are pleased that our partnership with Rights & Brands continues to pave the way for what Qvisten brings to film and TV, making them not only accessible and visible to an even wider demographic but also ensuring their strength as stories worth sharing for generations to come. The Brothers Gruff Go To Splash World is a very good example of how we collaborate on our common IPs.”, Fredrik Kiøsterud, CEO of Qvisten Animation,
“Bukkene Bruse is a phenomenon in Norway, crafting a captivating universe that resonates with children’s daily lives,” says Anja Aarnes Breder, Commercial Manager at Rights & Brands Norway. “We very much look forward to collaborating with this brand and developing a high-quality licensing program, both within Scandinavia and internationally.”
“We are so looking forward to establishing a new brand from Norway. This is a part of Rights & Brand’s vision to bring Scandinavian brands to a global arena and to grow our business and local branch in Norway”, says Kristin Tjulander, Nordic Commercial Director at Rights & Brands.
Author Bjørn F. Rørvik comments “We have always wanted to expand the Bukkene Bruse universe with licensed products, and now it is finally happening!”
Rights & Brands will represent The Brothers Gruff/Bukkene Bruse for licensing rights worldwide.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Anja Aarnes Breder
Commercial Manager Norway
Tel: +47 938 07 983
anja.aarnes.breder@rightsandbrands.com
Kristin Tjulander, Nordic Commercial Director, Rights & Brands AB
Tel: +46 707 632 872
kristin.tjulander@rightsandbrands.com
Fredrik Kiøsterud CEO, Qvisten Animation
+47 975 96 740
fredrik@qvisten.no
LINKS
Rights & Brands logo
Anja Aarnes Breder photo
Kristin Tjulander photo
The Brothers Gruff image
Qvisten animation logo
Fredrik Kiøsterud photo
About Rights & Brands
Rights & Brands (R&B) is a 360 licensing and publishing agency bringing Scandinavian rights and brands – within art, design, and literature – to a global arena. R&B operates a worldwide network of over 30 sub-agents and 800 clients.
We represent iconic Scandinavian brands, artists, and authors. R&B is the worldwide master agent on behalf of Moomin Characters, and we represent the likes of Stig Lindberg, Carl Larsson-gaÌrden Sundborn, Astrid Lindgren & Ilon Wikland, The Beatles, The Smurfs, Tove Jansson, Sofie Sarenbrant and many more. R&B is ranked #1 in Europe and #16 worldwide in licensing agencies, with an estimated retail value of 900M Euro. We develop and create collaborations and brand extensions with leading brands such as H&M, Uniqlo, Granit, Happy Socks, Fiskars, Rovio, Frever, Bvlgari and Finnair.
The Rights & Brands headquarters is in Stockholm, with local branches in Helsinki, Oslo, Hong Kong, London, and Tokyo. R&B was founded in 2016 and has a yearly turnover of 270M SEK.
About Qvisten Animation
Founded almost 30 years ago, based on the vision to gather and entertain the whole family, while telling stories with emotional depth and educational value. Qvisten has worked with many authorships, including Astrid Lindgren, Tove Jansson, Thorbjørn Egner and Kjell Aukrust. Qvisten’s animated films have received seven Amanda awards over the years. The company also produces commercials, games, learning tools and attractions, and was award the first prize at the 2021 TEA Award for best park attraction under 10 million USD for the “Hyper Accelerator” for Hundefossen Amusement park, based on “FlaÌklypa” by Kjell Aukrust.
About Bjørn F. Rørvik
Bjørn F. Rørvik (1964-) has become one of the most successful and renowned children’s book authors in Norway since his first book was published in 1996. His book series about The Three Billy Goats Gruff (ill. Gry Moursund), Purriot (ill. Ragnar Aalbu) and Fox & Piglet (ill. Per Dybvig) has sold hundreds of thousands of copies in Norway alone. His books are full of crazy humor and original concoctions, making them enjoyable for readers of all ages.
About Gry Moursund
Gry Moursund (1969–) Since 1998, Moursund has illustrated numerous children’s books, including the ones in the Bukkene Bruse series. She has since received several prizes for her illustrations, among them the Brage Prize in 2003. In 2009 she won the Ministry of Culture´s Picture Book Award for the book The Three Billy Goats Gruff at the Water Park (Bukkene Bruse på Badeland). Moursund is known for her wild and colorful drawing and illustration style with funny figures and features reminiscent of children’s drawings.
