Skyland

Skyland
Company type	Television series
Industry	Animation, Entertainment
Founded	November 26, 2005; 20 years ago
Headquarters	Paris, Toronto, France, Canada
Area served	Worldwide (France, Canada, United States, Australia, United Kingdom)
Parent	Method Films, 9 Story Entertainment

Skyland (original French title: "Skyland, Le Nouveau Monde") is an animated series produced through a collaborative effort between France, Canada, and Luxembourg. It was created for broadcasters such as France 2 in France, Teletoon in Canada, Nicktoons in the United States, ABC in Australia, and CITV in the United Kingdom. The production is a joint venture between Paris-based Method Films and Toronto's 9 Story Entertainment.

A global preview lasting 60 minutes was broadcast on November 26, 2005. The series officially premiered on Teletoon on April 22, 2006, at 7:30 p.m. The pilot episode was later rebroadcast on Nicktoons Network on July 2, 2006, with the full series commencing on November 18, 2006. Chase Francisco served as the program’s host.

Plot

Set in the 23rd century, Earth has fragmented into billions of floating pieces revolving around a central core, forming a realm known as Skyland. Inhabitants called Seijins have evolved to harness sunlight energy, enabling them to perform extraordinary feats such as telekinesis, telepathy, mind control, and energy projection.

The Sphere governs Skyland by monopolizing water resources and enforcing its rule through Guardians—Seijins trained from an early age. Opposing the Sphere’s dominance are various pirate factions. After their mother is seized by the Sphere, siblings Mahad and Lena align themselves with the pirate resistance.

Main

Mahad (voice: Tim Hamaguchi; performer: Julien Girbig) – Aged 17, Mahad is an adept pilot who commands his father’s vessel, Hyperion. Though lacking Seijin abilities, he is one of the most skilled aviators in Skyland. Confident and daring, Mahad is motivated by his mission to rescue their mother. He wields a boomerang as his preferred weapon.
Lena (voice: Phoebe McAuley; performer: Christelle Ouvrard) – At 12 years old, Lena is a powerful Seijin gifted with telekinetic and telepathic powers. She is regarded as the prophesied 'Lady of Light.' Intelligent and resolute, Lena struggles to master her abilities but plays a pivotal role within the rebellion.
Aran Cortes (voice: Jack Langedijk; performer: Dominic Gould) – Aged 37, Cortes serves as the stern yet fair protector of Puerto Angel and is a former member of the Pirate Rebellion. Experienced and pragmatic, he carries a shotgun and strives to maintain order amid ongoing conflict.
Cheng (voice: Cameron Ansell; performers: Max Gruber and Emile Kaczorowski) – A clever 12-year-old hacker with a playful demeanor who is part of the pirate crew. Raised by Cortes, Cheng combines his technical skills with combat using a laser bazooka.
Dahlia (voice: Alyson Court; performer: Tadrina Hocking) – At 20 years old, Dahlia is a dedicated pirate fighter attracted to Mahad’s rebellious nature. Proficient with an energy bow and arrow, she balances seriousness with moments of lightheartedness.
Diwan (voice: Athena Karkanis; performer: Lena Kowksi) – A 25-year-old elite Seijin assigned by Oslo to apprehend Lena. Although loyal to her mission, she endures mistreatment from Oslo while leading the Brigadiers.
Marcus Farrell – The former leader of the Pirate Rebellion and father to Mahad and Lena. He co-founded the rebellion alongside Mila but vanished during an assault by the Sphere. His fate remains unknown.
Mila (voice: Alex Belcourt; performer: Julie Delaurenti) – Mother to Mahad and Lena; once a Guardian who defected to join the rebels after rejecting Sphere control. She remains hidden within Sphere territory while her children continue their fight for liberation.
Oslo (voice: Juan Chioran; performer: Simon Flossaut Masnay) – At age 35, Oslo commands the Guardians and serves as Sphere Commander possessing advanced Seijin powers. Previously close to Mila, he now pursues capturing Lena to fulfill an ancient prophecy.
The Vector (voice: William Colgate; performer: Olivier Breuils) – A 60-year-old eccentric genius who mentors Lena in mastering her powers. From his lighthouse in Puerto Angel, he has charted much of Skyland.
Wayan (voice: Milton Barnes; performer Pete Thias) – Cortes’ First Lieutenant aged 30, known for his sharpshooting skills and upbeat personality. He wields a Shock Blaster during combat operations.

Supporting

Alice is a recently graduated Guardian who crash-landed on Puerto Angel and was taken captive. Initially, she believed the Sphere to be "benevolent" and pirates "malicious." She managed to escape by deceiving Mahad, who later sheltered her out of compassion. Following a telepathic connection with Lena, Alice uncovered the true nature of the Sphere. With Cheng’s assistance in repairing her Patroller, they devised a plan to locate their mother. After outwitting Diwan to gain freedom, Alice now allies with the pirates and seeks to expose the truth to other Guardians.
Astrid, Max’s daughter, is close in age to Mahad and shares a mutual attraction with him. Upon discovering that her father was not the renowned Sean of Aragon, she pursued the Sphere but ultimately became a hostage.
Celia is a young Seijin adopted by the Pirates. Initially silent and held captive, she unlocked her abilities with guidance from Lena, who mentored her on Puerto Angel. Celia appears to have feelings for Cheng.
Christophe Cortes (full name Christophe Mendias Theodore Cortes) is the elder sibling of Cortes. Arriving at Puerto Angel aboard a Mosquito, he requested Cortes’ help to free his damaged vessel, the Callisto—a sister ship to the Saint Nazaire—trapped within ice barriers inside a Sphere-controlled zone. After escaping, Christophe was discovered carrying exalarium, a metal utilized by the Sphere for anti-Seijin containment. He claimed it was intended to sustain Sphere confidence but later destroyed the Callisto during a Sphere attack and escaped custody, vowing to reunite with his brother.
Darius is Oslo’s twin brother; his birth limited Oslo’s Seijin capabilities and led to Darius being exiled permanently on Vandegaard.
Hailong Zalo, an elder Seijin and ruler of Ningxia, was once imprisoned but freed by his apprentice Lee. Ambushed by Diwan, Zalo sent a message to Lena from her mother before weakening; he entrusted Lee with Ningxia’s leadership.
Jonah is a scientist contracted by the Sphere to develop an Anti-Seijin containment cell on the Monolith for a specific Seijin. Fearing execution after completing his task, he fled but was captured by Diwan following interception by pirates. After conflicts on the Monoliths, Jonah escaped alongside Mahad and Lena to prevent his knowledge from being exploited.
Lee, hailing from Ningxia and apprentice to Hailong Zalo, sought out Lena ("Little Phoenix") bearing a message from her mother. Disillusioned by the Sphere’s betrayal of Ningxia—assisted by fellow apprentice Feng—Lee aided Mahad and Lena in evading guards and liberating Zalo before falling into an ambush by Diwan. Following Ningxia’s liberation, Zalo appointed Lee as its guardian.
Max, Astrid’s father and former delivery man for the late scientist Sean of Aragon, impersonated Sean to impress Astrid but inadvertently attracted trouble when the Sphere pursued the genuine scientist working on an infinite water formula prior to his laboratory’s destruction.
Patrucci, a wary resident of Puerto Angel fearful of both the Sphere and internal rebel treachery, distrusts Mahad, Lena, and Cortes but has shown concern for Dahlia. Although desiring to leave, he resurfaced reporting that Mahad, Cheng, and Lena were assisting a Guardian’s escape.
Shinseiki, a Guardian trainee exiled for attempting to fulfill the Prophecy independently, seeks vengeance through dark powers by abducting Seijins and absorbing their abilities. Her goal is to unify Skyland blocks and reconstruct Earth regardless of the suffering caused. She telepathically lured Lena but was deceived into overcharging her power; although her tower was destroyed, she survived. Shinseiki moves with agility and commands Brigadiers as her escorts.
Tibald Yee, Cheng’s grandfather from before Earth’s fragmentation, joined the Sphere in pursuit of order amid chaos. His daughter and son-in-law were scientists allied with the Pirates. Tibald designed all Sphere technology including Brigadiers, S-22 Patrollers, and Monoliths. While delaying missile defense development, he deployed Patrollers throughout Skyland searching for Cheng. Captured alongside Mahad and Lena during their rescue attempt of Cheng, Tibald fought alongside Cortes and exchanged missile defense plans for Cheng’s release. He now covertly supports the Pirates.

Animation

The initial animation work was carried out by Attitude Studios based in Paris, while detailed facial animation and rendering tasks were subcontracted to DQ Entertainment located in Hyderabad, India. Subsequent episodes were fully produced at DQ Entertainment, employing motion capture techniques to achieve a cutting-edge animation style.

Soundtrack

Paul Intson from Canada composed the series' musical score, with sound design and 5.1 surround sound mixing completed by Jim Longo of Rhythm Division in Toronto. Music editing responsibilities were divided between Rob Kirkpatrick for the first season and Kevan Staples for the second, with Bojan Risojevic providing additional editing support.

Home releases

Madman Entertainment distributed the entire first season across two DVD volumes in the Australian market.

Awards and nominations

Year	Organization	Category	Nominees	Outcome
2007	Gemini Awards	Best Animated Program or Series	Marilyn McAuley, Steve Jarosz, Vince Commisso	Template:Won
2007	Gemini Awards	Best Original Music Score for an Animated Program or Series	Paul Intson	Template:Won

Novel adaptations

From 2010 to 2011, Italian author Davide Morosinotto, writing under the name David Carlyle, released a trilogy of novels inspired by the series. Initially published in Spain as "Skyland," Atlantyca secured publication rights for editions in Brazil, Catalonia, Spain, Poland, Turkey, Macedonia, Russia, Hungary, and China. The third installment was not published in the Netherlands due to prior volumes receiving criticism for grammatical errors and limited reader interest. The trilogy includes "Skyland: Islands in the Wind," "Skyland: The Storm Ship," and "Skyland: The Water War."

External links

The Skyland French Fansite (in flash)
Canadian Skyland website (requires Flash)
Writer’s blog
Staff blog (French)