Poncho Balón

*Poncho Balón*
Poncho Balón
Genre	Slapstick; Comedy; Adventure
Created by	Carlos Cuarón; René Castillo; Juan Elias Tovar; Luis Usablaca
Directed by	René Castillo
Starring	Humberto Vélez
Composer	Álvaro Ruiz
Country of origin	Mexico
Original languages	Spanish; English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	31
Production
Producers	Carlos Cuarón; René Castillo; Fernando de Fuentes; José C. Garcia de Letona
Running time	2 minutes
Production companies	Ánima Estudios; Estación Espacial
Original release
Network	Canal 5
Release	June 5 –; July 5, 2006

Poncho Balón (also known as Poncho Football in English) is a series of Mexican animated television shorts that ran on Canal 5 during the 2006 FIFA World Cup.^[2] It aired a total of 31 shorts. The show stars Humberto Vélez as the title character, who is best known for dubbing Homer Simpson in the Spanish-language version of The Simpsons.^[1]

The series was produced by Ánima Estudios and Estación Espacial and was created by Carlos Cuarón, René Castillo, Juan Elias Tovar, and Luis Usablaca.^[2]

Plot

The plot revolves on a clumsy, dim-witted, anthropomorphic soccer ball, named Poncho, who's trying to achieve his dreams of playing for the 2006 World Cup Final in Germany. As he journeys around the world, he faces a series of shenanigans and failed attempts while reaching to his final destination.^[3]

Broadcast history

Poncho Balón is broadcast on the following stations worldwide:^[3]

Region	Network(s)
Mexico	Canal 5/TDN
UNASUR	FOX Sports
USA	Univisión
Ecuador	Teleamazonas
Peru	Frecuencia Latina
Colombia	Caracol
Honduras	Canal 11
Guatemala	PCS

Feature film adaptation

Due to successful ratings, co-creators and producers, René Castillo and Luis Usabiaga, have announced that an animated feature film based on the television shorts is in development.^[4] The producers also said they wanted to achieve the similar success with Pixar movies and possibly earn an Academy Award nomination with this film.^[5] It will be set during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.^[6] Originally planned for a 2012 and 2014 release,^[4] the film is currently in production and was expected to be released sometime in 2015, produced by Kaxan Animation in Guadalajara, produced in English.^[5]^[6]^[7] It is currently unknown if Ánima Estudios, the producer of the television shorts, will be involved in the project.^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Poncho Balón va a la final Archived 2008-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b ANIMA ESTUDIOS COPRODUCES 'PONCHO SUCKERBALL' WITH ESTACION ESPACIAL
^ ^a ^b Narran aventuras de Poncho Balón rumbo a Alemania (in Spanish)
^ ^a ^b Manuel Badillo, Juan (10 July 2009). "Filmarán la película de Poncho Balón". Mundo 52 (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 March 2014.
^ ^a ^b Gutiérrez Franco, Laura (21 January 2012). "Con "Poncho Balón", Kaxan Group quiere ir al Oscar". Axópolis. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
^ ^a ^b ""Poncho Balón" protagonizará película en Mundial 2014". 14 December 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
^ ^a ^b Huerta, Cesar (14 December 2011). "Poncho Balón rodará de nuevo". El Universal (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 23 March 2014.

External links

[esmas-1] Poncho Balón va a la final Archived 2008-06-17 at the Wayback Machine

[animaestudios1-2] ANIMA ESTUDIOS COPRODUCES 'PONCHO SUCKERBALL' WITH ESTACION ESPACIAL

[los40-3] Narran aventuras de Poncho Balón rumbo a Alemania (in Spanish)

[mundo52-4] Manuel Badillo, Juan (10 July 2009). "Filmarán la película de Poncho Balón". Mundo 52 (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 March 2014.

[axópolis-5] Gutiérrez Franco, Laura (21 January 2012). "Con "Poncho Balón", Kaxan Group quiere ir al Oscar". Axópolis. Retrieved 23 March 2014.

[eleconomista-6] ""Poncho Balón" protagonizará película en Mundial 2014". 14 December 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2014.

[eluniversal-7] Huerta, Cesar (14 December 2011). "Poncho Balón rodará de nuevo". El Universal (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 23 March 2014.

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