As the head of children’s programs and channels for France’s Canal+ Group, Laurence Blaevoet oversees a bouquet of services that each has a distinctive target. There’s Piwi+, a preschool channel for the 3-to-5 set; TéléTOON+, focused on children 6 to 12; and Canal+ Family, a premium pay-TV service targeting kids 4-plus with an emphasis on co-viewing with parents.

Blaevoet tells TV Kids Weekly about the programming mandates she must observe for each of the channels, which feature a wealth of European content. She says that Canal+ does a lot of pre-buying from the market. She also gives advice for those looking to work with the French outfit. Blaevoet says that above all, shows must be funny in order for them to fit with the Canal+ brand.