Best-selling children's book series Deadly, written by Morris Gleitzman and Paul Jennings, is about to become an animated TV series produced by SLR Productions.

Deadly is a 13 x 1/2 hour children's series financed through the 'Distinctively Australian Fund' run by the Film Finance Corporation Australia and pre-sold to Network Nine Australia.

This is the first series from Suzanne Ryan's new company SLR Productions. Ryan will produce Deadly, with David Evans directing and Geoff Watson of Yoram Gross-EM.TV serving as executive producer with Ryan. Yoram Gross-EM.TV will be the Australian Animation Studio and Distributor.

Executive Producer Geoff Watson said: "Yoram Gross Productions is excited about the opportunity to work with Suzanne on this great Aussie project. It also marks a new business and production paradigm for YG that we feel will broaden the opportunities and creative scope for both our company and new Producers such as SLR."

Producer Suzanne Ryan said: "I have no doubt that the television series of Deadly will have a huge national and international appeal. Morris Gleitzman and Paul Jennings' wonderfully inventive world is an animator's dream and it is fantastic that a project like this can be fully financed from Australia."

Ryan sourced the Deadly books at the suggestion of Gleitzman and Jennings, who felt they would make a great television series. Ryan set up SLR Productions in 2003 as a joint venture with New Zealand production company South Pacific Pictures. Its aim is to produce Deadly and to develop future animation projects.

Ryan pitched Deadly to Script Executive Jo Horsburgh and Director of Drama Posie Graeme Evans at the Nine Network, who immediately recognised its potential. Australian animation company Yoram Gross EM.TV, who have 35 years of experience in producing animation were brought on board as the Australian studio and international distributor, and the final piece of the puzzle fell into place in late October when the Film Finance Corporation came on board with their new drama fund.

Ryan said: "It's fantastic that the FFC have a scheme aimed at supporting projects like Deadly. This series is a distinctively Australian project. I'm very proud to be bringing one of our bestselling children's stories to the screen with a team of top Australian talent. Deadly is action-packed, humourous, scary, bizarre and highly entertaining – and most of all, it's fun!"