Abstract
Abstract This article analyses the global rise of the Italian animated franchise the Winx Club (2004–) within the flows and contra-flows of entertainment content crossing the globe. A brain child of the entrepreneur Iginio Straffi, the Winx Club started out as a television series broadcasted in the Italian media landscape, and became a successful global entertainment franchise, distributed and licensed all over the world. The article situates this phenomenon in the evolving body of literature and scholarly conversations on media targeting children, their dynamics, industry practices, consequences and ramifications. In particular, the Winx Club appears to blend into the endless flow of images crossing national and cultural borders without providing images and specific cultural references drawn from the rich Italian cultural heritage, but trying instead to capture and fulfil the demand for entertainment of international children audiences proposing storylines not rooted in any specific culture, while being stylistically inspired by Japanese anime. This feature, combined with the application of successful business models practised for decades by the global leaders in the media industry, the US media conglomerates, appears to reveal the key to explicate the roots of the success of the Winx Club phenomenon in the competitive global media landscape targeting kids.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
