Tetesaclaques.tv to launch English site !
TETES A CLAQUES WORLD WIDE!
May 22, 2008 | By Matt Semansky
Tetesaclaques.tv, the French-language humour website created by former Publicis Montreal creative director Michel Beaudet, should have an English version to coincide with its two-year anniversary this August.
Tetesaclaques.tv consists of 100 short clips that combine animated clay figures and video skits created and voiced by Beaudet. The French site has enjoyed robust growth since launching two years ago; it gets about 1.2 million unique visitors per month, and its content is available on mobile phones in Quebec and France. The clips have also been compiled onto two DVD volumes.
According to Simon Parizeau, studio director for Beaudet’s Salambo Productions, the English site—which will be TAC.tv—will mainly feature adapted versions of previously produced clips at launch. He believes that the style of humour will translate well to English-speaking audiences.
“The important thing is to work with the English writers and get feedback,” said Parizeau. “But I think we have clips that can be very international.”
Catalina Briceno, head of operations for Salambo Productions, said that viewers connect to the material because its characters, while absurdly rendered with outsized eyes and facial features, strike a chord of familiarity.
“They can recognize some characters’ personalities from either themselves or people they know,” she said. “We’re taking those universal character traits so everyone feels they can engage with these characters.”
Parizeau believes that the level of engagement that fans have with Tetesaclaques.tv is attractive to advertisers, as is its broad demographic appeal. “We skew younger, but it also works for families,” he said.
Salambo and the Olive Canada Network, which handles sales for Tetesaclaques.tv and TAC.tv, are searching for advertisers to support the English version of the site. Bell Canada and General Motors are among the advertisers on the original French site.
Briceno said a variety of opportunities are available for advertisers, who can buy traditional leader board and big box space on the site as well as license TAC.tv characters for use in campaigns.
