Iginio Straffi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Iginio Straffi
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Iginio Straffi at the 2009 Lucca Comics and Games convention
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Gualdo, Macerata, Italy
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| Occupation | Founder and CEO of Rainbow S.p.A. |
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| Spouse(s) | Joanne Lee |
Iginio Straffi is a talented Italian animator and former comic book artist. He is the founder and president of Rainbow SpA, a famous animation studio. From 2011 to 2023, he co-owned Rainbow with the American company Paramount Global.
Iginio Straffi is best known for creating the popular animated series Winx Club and Huntik: Secrets & Seekers. He also helped create the comic book series Maya Fox.
While he was at university, Straffi published his first comic story in 1985. He continued drawing comics through the 1990s. In 1995, Straffi started Rainbow with help from Lamberto Pigini and Giuseppe Casali. The studio began with a small amount of money, mostly used to buy computers for digital design. Rainbow first offered creative services to other companies. Later, they got enough money to make their own projects.
In 2004, Iginio Straffi's show Winx Club first aired in Italy. It became very successful around the world. This success caught the eye of Viacom, an American media company that owns Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures. In 2011, Viacom bought 30% of Rainbow, with Straffi keeping the other 70%. This deal helped Rainbow's shows, like Winx Club, be shown all over the world by Paramount and Nickelodeon. In January 2023, Straffi bought back the remaining shares from Paramount Global, taking full ownership of Rainbow. Since 2019, Straffi has been focusing more on live action shows instead of just animation. Some of his live-action works include Nickelodeon's Club 57 and Fate: The Winx Saga, which is a live-action version of Winx Club.
Contents
About Iginio Straffi
Early Life and Inspiration
Iginio Straffi was born in Gualdo, a town in Italy. He loved drawing comic books from a young age. By the time he was seven, he was already creating his own comic stories. When he was eight, Straffi moved to the nearby city of Macerata.
In high school, he often drew comics in his friends' notebooks. He also entered art competitions. While improving his art skills, Straffi studied Modern Languages at the University of Macerata. During university, he met a girl named Antonella. She was adopted and wanted to find her birth parents. This inspired Straffi to create a character with a similar story: Bloom from Winx Club. Bloom's personality was also based on Straffi's wife, Joanne Lee. Straffi met Lee in 1997 in Singapore, her home country. They got married a few years later and have a daughter named Isotta.
Starting a Career in Comics
Straffi began his professional comic book career in 1985. He worked on stories for magazines like Lanciostory and Skorpio. In 1989, Claudio Nizzi, who created the Nick Raider comic series, noticed Straffi's talent. Nizzi invited him to work for Sergio Bonelli Editore, the publisher of Nick Raider. Straffi drew the October 1990 issue of Nick Raider called "Missione nel Bronx". His art also appeared in other magazines. Even though he enjoyed drawing, Straffi's dream was to turn his drawings into cartoons. However, he couldn't find an animation job in Italy at that time.
Moving into Animation
In 1992, Straffi left Sergio Bonelli Editore and moved to France. He got a job as a storyboard artist at Telcima animation studio. He was surprised to get the job, but he called it "the turning point" he was waiting for. Straffi worked on designs for a cartoon called Valérian. He also worked on a movie idea based on Roman de Renart. After learning about all the steps in making animation, Straffi returned to Italy.
With financial help from Lamberto Pigini and Giuseppe Casali, Straffi founded Rainbow SpA in 1995. He started the company with 10,000 euros. Most of this money was used to buy computers and software for digital design.
Rainbow Studio and Famous Shows
Early Projects and Winx Club Success
At first, Rainbow provided creative services for bigger companies. They helped with three minutes of animation for the movie How the Toys Saved Christmas. They also worked on the pilot for a cartoon called Belphégor. Eventually, Rainbow earned enough money to create its first original project. This was the Tommy and Oscar series, which included CD-ROMs and animations.
In 2004, Straffi's creation Winx Club premiered on Italy's Rai 2 channel. It quickly became one of the most-watched shows on the network. Straffi originally planned the Winx Club story to last for 78 episodes, which is three seasons. But because the show became so popular, he decided to extend it for an extra season in 2008.
Working with Nickelodeon and Paramount
The international success of Winx Club caught the attention of Viacom. Viacom owns popular channels like Nickelodeon and movie studios like Paramount Pictures. In February 2011, Viacom became a co-owner of Rainbow. They bought 30% of the company, and Straffi kept the remaining 70%. This deal was very important for Straffi. It meant that Rainbow's shows would be shown all over the world through Viacom's network. Nickelodeon studios have worked with Rainbow on many projects. These include more seasons of Winx Club and the show Club 57 in 2019.
In January 2023, Iginio Straffi bought back the remaining 30% of Rainbow SpA from Paramount Global. This ended their twelve-year partnership. Now, Straffi has full control over Rainbow's new projects. However, Paramount still owns the rights to the Winx Club seasons they helped produce.
New Directions: Live-Action and Other Creations
In 2011, when asked if he was tired of Winx Club, Straffi said he had moved on to other projects. His other creations include the comic book series Maya Fox, which started in 2008. He also created the animated TV series Huntik: Secrets & Seekers, which premiered in 2009.
In 2012, Straffi's first original animated movie, Gladiators of Rome, was released in Italy. The movie was very expensive to make. It did not do very well at the box office. Straffi thought this was because Rainbow was new to making movies. Straffi also produced The Dark Side of the Sun, an animated documentary. It was shown at the Rome International Film Festival in December 2011.
In 2019, Straffi shared that he planned to focus more on live action projects. He felt that moving into live action would complete his professional experience. This came after he announced that Winx Club would become a live-action series called Fate: The Winx Saga. This new show was made for older fans. The animated Winx Club series was also redesigned for a much younger audience. As of 2019, Straffi is an executive producer for Fate. He is also a producer for Nickelodeon's Club 57. Straffi has said that Rainbow's knowledge and Nickelodeon's knowledge work very well together. He believes the American way of thinking combined with the European touch is a great mix.
See also
In Spanish: Iginio Straffi para niños
