Network Ten will host the Australian premiere of Animalia, a locally produced children’s television series based on Graeme Base’s best-selling picture book of the same name. Hyped as the most ambitious children’s series ever produced in Australia, the CG-animated show will debut on Nov. 11 at 12 p.m., and will also air simultaneously on such outlets as BBC1 and CBBC in the U.K., PBS Kids in the U.S. and CBC in Canada.
Animalia centers on two contemporary kids, Zoe and Alex, who are inadvertently transported to Animalia, a magical and mysterious land inhabited by talking animals of every kind. When strange events undermin the fabric of Animalia’s civilization, Zoe Alex must try to set things right with the help of new best friends G’Bubu, a huge green gorilla, and Iggy, a small, heroic iguana.
Published in 1986, Base’s Animalia has sold more than three million copies worldwide. The beloved illustrated alphabet book has been brought to life in a series of 40 half-hour episodes. Base, who serves as exec producer on the show, comments, ‘Given the complexity of the original artwork and absence of any obvious storyline in the original book, turning Animalia into a television series was a huge challenge. But the artists, animators and filmmakers who have lent their talents to this series have been incredibly dedicated to creating something really special and I am utterly delighted with the results.’
Eight years in the making, Animalia was animated mostly at Photon VFX at Warner Roadshow Studios on the Gold Coast, with additional animation produced at Digital Pictures Iloura in Melbourne. The series represents the work of more than 300 local industry professionals and promises to further highlight the burgeoning computer animation industry in Australia, where Animal Logic created the imagery for Warner Bros.’ Oscar-winning CG feature, Happy Feet. A first look at Animalia can be seen at www.animalia.tv.
