The Rio 2016 organizing committee closed a partnership with Cartoon Network to "transform" the Olympic and Paralympic mascots, Vinícius and Tom, into characters for a cartoon series that will air as of Aug. 5, according to Amanda Kestelman of GLOBO ESPORTE. The series will consist of 32 episodes that are each two minutes long with the narrative "showing the adventures of the duo in Brazilian forests and metropolises." Rio 2016 Licensing & Retail Dir Sylmara Multini said, "The mascots were drawn up to live in multiple platforms, and this cartoon is one of the main ones. We need to be where the children are. We truly believe that with these 32 episodes we will start the process of engaging the children with the mascots and with the Games." São Paulo-based production company Birdo Produções "was chosen" for the project in Aug. '13. For now, the cartoon "will only be watched by Brazilian children." But there are "talks to extend the project to other countries." The series "will run until the end of the Paralympic Games" in Sept. '16 (GLOBO ESPORTE, 6/21).
