JEDDAH: Saudi Manga Productions, a subsidiary company of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Misk Foundation, on Wednesday announced a partnership agreement with NEOM. The $500-billion megacity project in the Kingdom’s northwest will be the location for the second season of the Saudi animation series “Future Folktales” that attracted a global audience of more than 70 million for its first season. Dr. Essam Bukhary, CEO of Manga Productions, said: “We are delighted to collaborate with NEOM for the setting of the second season of ‘Future Folktales.’ This partnership brings Saudi Arabia’s creative industry together with NEOM, an incubator of creative capabilities and ground-breaking technologies that embodies the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.” He added that the link-up supported the company’s goal of inspiring future generations “to be part of the development of NEOM and build a bright future for all humanity.” NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr said that NEOM was committed to fostering and inspiring local and international talent. The partnership agreement follows the January launch of the “Future Folktales” series with Toei Animation in Japan, which introduced the Saudi culture to audiences around the world and celebrated the Arabic language while connecting children with Arab heritage, values, and future technologies through creative content. The series aired across 19 streaming regional and international platforms, including TV channels in Japan, China, Taiwan, Ireland, the UK, and the US, where Japanese animation series are popular. As part of the partnership, Manga Productions announced plans to launch a contest inviting creatives to submit prop designs to be featured in one of the episodes of “Future Folktales.” Al-Nasr said: “We encourage those in the creative industry around the world to participate in Manga’s competition which will be held in 2021.” The competition will empower local and international talents to unleash their creative potential and showcase their work to Arab and global audiences. Abdul Aziz Al-Naghmoush, business development manager at Manga Productions, said: “Since its establishment, Manga has been committed to investing and developing talents to enrich Saudi Arabia’s creative industry. “Our partnership with NEOM supports this commitment by being the home and future of dreamers and doers.”