Studio Zmei was founded in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 2015. Our goal is to develop the local animation industry by working on major international projects and applying the experience we gain to our own stories and original productions.
We started with “The Golden Apple” project – the first animated series based on Balkan folklore. After a successful crowd-funding campaign, the series became a French-Bulgarian co-production with the support of the French producer Dandelooo and is currently in negotiations for its first season.
In 2018, Studio Zmei began work on its first international animated series – “I Elvis Riboldi” – a co-production between Spain and France, for which our team created more than 90 minutes of animation. The show is available in more than 130 territories, both on Cartoon Network and Disney Channel.
In 2021, Studio Zmei began work on its second original project – Mila and Marko – which is still in its early stages of development.
From March 2021 until September 2022 we worked as subcontractors for the French Studio La Cachette on the animated series “Unicorn: Warriors Eternal”, directed by animation legend Genndy Tartakovsky. The show premiered on Adult Swim and HBO Max in May 2023.
In September 2022, Studio Zmei became a co-producer on the animated series “The Crunchers”, along with our colleagues from the French studio Je Suis Bien Content and studio Animato from Italy.
Also in 2022, in partnership with studio Samka and Procidis from France, the Studio Zmei animation team started working on the new installment of the classic educational series “Once upon a time…”, called “Once upon a time…the objects!”. The show is due to air on FranceTV, RTS in Switzerland and worldwide on TV5MONDE.
Since its inception in 2015, Studio Zmei has been steadily growing. Our teams are currently producing more than 200 minutes of high-quality animated content per year, available on some of the biggest platforms and TV channels worldwide.