ZAG launches new Games and Interactive Experiences division with gaming’s Elinor Schops in VP role

The award-winning independent animation studio, ZAG has launched a new Games and Interactive Experiences division in a move to develop new gaming experiences and interactive opportunities across mobile, PC, online, console games, VR and AR, video and mobile apps. The division will develop new concepts for all properties under the ZAG Heroez label.

Leading the new operation will be Elinor Schops who takes on the role of vice president in order to lead an all star team of creatives from her base in Israel. Schops will report directly to Julian Zag, executive vice president, global operations art ZAG.

ZAG’s first official global mobile game for Miraculous – Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir was released in April 2018 and ranked the number one game in 39 countries with 100 million downloads to date.

“Following the huge success of the first Miraculous game, as well as the phenomenal presence of the brand online with over 20 billion views on YouTube, establishing the ZAG Games & Interactive Experiences division has been an important strategic goal for us, especially in managing the requests from gaming companies worldwide,” said Julian Zag.

“We are thrilled to have found the ideal executive in Elinor to lead this new division and the talented team we are building, while bringing her extensive expertise across entertainment, music, media and mobile fields to this new important role. With a renowned reputation as a ‘Startup Nation’ and a major global player in the gaming industry cross platforms, Israel is a perfect location to launch this new endeavor to manage game development for our phenomenal award-winning stable of brands.”

Schops added: “Gaming has become a tremendous multi-billion-dollar industry globally, and I am thrilled to lead this new division to maximize all of the untapped potential in this arena with ZAG’s amazing catalog of hit properties to develop unforgettable gaming experiences for fans all over the world.”

Schops will drive new opportunities for the company’s key brands under the  ZAG Heroez label, including the flagship brand Miraculous™: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir.   

Over 150M products have been sold for the brand during the past three years. Seasons four and five of the number one ranked series are currently in production, as well as two big-budget animated specials to be available globally (except for Brazil and China) on Disney Channel and Disney+, plus a major $70M U.S. theatrical release.

Additionally, season three of the series launches this summer and fall around the world. Seasons one and two currently air in key territories, consistently ranking #1 in the U.K., France, Spain, Italy, Poland, Brazil and Mexico, and top-ranked in the U.S. on Disney Channel.

Power Players, which currently airs on Cartoon Network in the U.S. and in key territories across EMEA and Asia Pacific, is available for streaming on Netflix and available on France’s France Télévisions, Germany’s KiKa, Brazil’s Gloob, and Discovery Latin America.

A new toy line from Zag Lab and Playmates Toys for Power Players recently debuted in the US, with an international roll-out commencing this fall. ZAG’s newest property, Ghostforce, is currently in production for Disney Channel EMEA, TF1, and Discovery Kids Latin America.

Before joining ZAG,  Schops served as vice president of business development at CrazyLabs (formerly TabTale), a Top10 mobile casual and hyper casual game developer and publisher. Among other initiatives, she was responsible for establishing the casual IP business for the company, and for the planning and execution of the company’s B2B marketing strategy to expand the company’s reach and recognition, as well as to drive potential partners’ awareness, engagement and satisfaction.

Schops also worked at Israel’s leading sports, media and entertainment company ONE (part of Yedioth Achronoth group) and its subsidiary Mobile1, where she initiated and managed strategic partnerships. As an executive in the gaming industry, Schops initiated the first ever Women In Games event in Israel. She also established an online network and mentoring program for Israeli Women In Games.