Smilingüido is an ant that lives with his friends in the anthill of the Friendants, in the middle of the forest. Already popular among Brazilians, their stories, which promote values such as love, friendship and preservation of nature, are now becoming known in several other countries.
The Light & Life Publishers Corp., which turns characters into themes for page markers, postcards, books, comic books, appointment books, school material, calendars, films, CDs, games, finger dolls, puzzles and toys, started exporting six years ago.
Currently, their products are sold in the United States, Mexico, Spain, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Portugal, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, New Zealand, Venezuela, Peru, Malta, Mozambique and Japan, as well as in Egypt.
The products are available in Portuguese, English and Spanish. Some items have also been manufactured in Arabic (mini-books) and in Japanese. This year, page markers in German are scheduled for production.
According to Ruth, approximately 10% of the production in Portuguese is exported. The export rate for products in Spanish and English is 90%. In Brazil, the most famous characters are the Smilingüido ant and his gang, but abroad, according to the manager, The Cherub Crew (Turminha Querubim) is more popular.
The Cherub Crew products include schoolbooks, postcards, cantata CDs, bathing books (rubber books for kids to play with while taking baths). Other Cherub Crew items are produced in English and Spanish, such as appointment books.
Whereas in Brazil the Cherub Crew product line is aimed at children of up to seven years of age, in foreign countries they are meant for all ages. The same is true of the Smilingüido product line in Brazil: it is consumed both by children and adults. The Smilingüido gang was created 27 years ago.
The Cherub Crew came about in 2001. Based in the southern Brazilian state of Paraná, the publishing house responsible for producing the items is 54 years old, and is maintained by an association of preachers.
Nevertheless, according to Ruth, the company is not tied to any particular religion. The goal is to convey, through their products, messages of divine love and love for one’s neighbor. But the Smilingüido product line does include the Bible.
According to Ruth, despite the fact that foreign sales began six years ago, only in 2004 did they become more significant. Last year, the Light & Life Publishers Corp. established an office and a distribution center in Miami, United States, to make exports easier. The Miami unit became operational between late November and early December 2006.
According to the manager of the International Department at the publishing house, Ruth Calles, small amounts of postcards, school material and diaries in English language were already sent to Egypt, the last country to show interest in the products.
The material was sold to a distributor in Cairo, the capital of Egypt. In addition to the Smilingüido items, also exported were products featuring The Cherub Crew, a group of children’s characters which includes Caleb, a boy who collects toys, Ralph, a boy who loves sports and studying, and Tuffy, a cheerful dog. All the characters like to help others.
Contact
In Brazil
Light & Life Publishers Corp.
Website: www.luzevida.com.br
Telephone: (+55 41) 2169-2244
In the United States
Light & Life Publishers, Corp.
13329 SW 135 Avenue.
Miami, FL 33186
Phone: (305) 252-5572
Fax: (305) 252-5559
nilson@lightlifepublishers.com
lucy@lightlifepublishers.com
USA
Anba – www.anba.com.br
From the Luz e Vida site:
Created in 1980 by Marcia D’Haese and Carlos Tadeu Grzybowski, Smilingüido is edited since 1989 by Luz e Vida. Through time, he made friends and became one of the best-known child cartoon characters in Brazil.
Smilingüido and his Little Squad are little Brazilian ants that live in the forest, at the anthill of the “Friendants.” The mission is to preach God’s love. Stories and adventures exercise universal values such as love, friendship, forgiveness, comprehension, and nature protection.
Smilingüido and his Little Squad appear always followed by biblical messages. The cartoon character was created to communicate God’s love and shall not be used for other purposes.
Luz e Vida is a non-profit organization that invests its resources in strengthening the communication of Christian messages and in producing quality material in several languages, through different press media.
The internal team of about 150 persons shares the vision and fully dedicates their lives for the fulfillment of the company’s mission. Also, tens of competent representatives work daily, introducing Luz e Vida products to bookstores all over Brazil.
At its headquarters in Curitiba, Luz e Vida Publishing Company celebrated 50 years of work in 2004. Luz e Vida Products stand out for their quality, since the beginning of its activity in 1954, when all its products could be assembled on a table at the back of a church.
Nowadays, they are almost 800 products that are distributed through 5,000 outlets in Brazil and exported to countries like Japan, United States, Portugal, Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica and African countries. Products that used to be restricted to evangelical shops can now be found with Luz e Vida trademark on shelves in large chain stores.
From the Smilingüido – www.smilinguido.com.br – site:
In the mid-80’s, a group of young people wanted to make a dream become a reality: expressing the love of God in a cheerful and creative manner. In this group, there was a designer – Márcia D’Haese – who used to draw a little ant to decorate her notebooks. There was also a young man who had a gift to write – Carlos Tadeu. And many other people offered to help creating the first stories.
They first named the little ant “Zecão” (Big Joe), but soon the group found it was a very strong name for such a small and fragile creature. Then, they suggested the name “Smilingüido” in order to remark the fact that, besides being small and fragile, it could be an instrument through which God could show His power and sovereignty. Because the power of God “is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12.9).
Smilingüido represents human fragility and reminds us that man can do nothing without God: “for apart from me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).
Created in 1980 by Marcia D’Haese and Carlos Tadeu Grzybowski, Smilingüido is edited since 1989 by Luz e Vida. Through time, he made friends and became one of the best-known child cartoon characters in Brazil.
Smilingüido and his Little Squad are little Brazilian ants that live in the forest, at the anthill of the “Friendants.” The mission is to preach God’s love. Stories and adventures exercise universal values such as love, friendship, forgiveness, comprehension, and nature protection.
Smilingüido and his Little Squad appear always followed by biblical messages. The cartoon character was created to communicate God’s love and shall not be used for other purposes.
Luz e Vida is a non-profit organization that invests its resources in strengthening the communication of Christian messages and in producing quality material in several languages, through different press media.
The internal team of about 150 persons shares the vision and fully dedicates their lives for the fulfillment of the company’s mission. Also, tens of competent representatives work daily, introducing Luz e Vida products to bookstores all over Brazil.
At its headquarters in Curitiba, Luz e Vida Publishing Company celebrated 50 years of work in 2004. Luz e Vida Products stand out for their quality, since the beginning of its activity in 1954, when all its products could be assembled on a table at the back of a church.
Nowadays, they are almost 800 products that are distributed through 5,000 outlets in Brazil and exported to countries like Japan, United States, Portugal, Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica and African countries. Products that used to be restricted to evangelical shops can now be found with Luz e Vida trademark on shelves in large chain stores.
From the Smilingüido – www.smilinguido.com.br. – site
In the mid-80’s, a group of young people wanted to make a dream become a reality: expressing the love of God in a cheerful and creative manner. In this group, there was a designer – Márcia D’Haese – who used to draw a little ant to decorate her notebooks. There was also a young man who had a gift to write – Carlos Tadeu. And many other people offered to help creating the first stories.
They first named the little ant “Zecão” (Big Joe), but soon the group found it was a very strong name for such a small and fragile creature. Then, they suggested the name “Smilingüido” in order to remark the fact that, besides being small and fragile, it could be an instrument through which God could show His power and sovereignty. Because the power of God “is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12.9).
Smilingüido represents human fragility and reminds us that man can do nothing without God: “for apart from me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).
