Lengthy-time TV lovers could also be aware of Jim Henson as the creator of “The Muppets” and hits like “Fraggle Rock,” however the leisure firm based in his identify is pivoting to a unique type of storytelling.
The Jim Henson Firm has partnered with Paramount’s Ananey Studios to create a brand new animated children’ collection focused to youth ages six to 12 — and it’s all about “local weather hope.”
The present, referred to as “The Season Keepers,” follows twins Lia and Ben on a journey that teaches them concerning the significance of concord between people and nature.
The trendy-day fairy story is impressed by Vivaldi’s “The 4 Seasons” and options plenty of fantastical themes and imagery for audiences of all backgrounds to take pleasure in.
The plot goes a bit one thing like this: When Lia and Ben’s dad and mom divorce, they go to their grandmother’s small village, which neither of them are very enthused about.
Because it seems, nonetheless, they’ve truly stumbled upon an “epic battle between the seasons,” the place Lia uncovers her powers to mediate between people and “The Nature Makers,” which a press launch calls “a realm of magical creatures who’re the guardians of nature itself.”
The present builds on the siblings’ relationship, as Lia makes an attempt to fix her household’s rifts, all whereas making an attempt to maintain the Nature Makers from “plunging the world right into a perpetual winter.”
Whereas Henson, the late puppeteer, is just not the mastermind behind the collection (that may be Bosmat Agayoff, the present’s creator and designer), a frequent collaborator of the Jim Henson Firm will take the present into his arms.
Craig Bartlett, who has written for teenagers’ reveals like “Dinosaur Prepare” and “Sid the Science Child” is billed as a author behind the event of the collection.
Halle Stanford, who’s the president of tv on the Jim Henson Firm, mentioned “handing the story reins over to Craig Bartlett ensures this journey will captivate children for generations.”
“From the minute [Ananey Studios] shared with us Bosmat Agayoff’s attractive designs for her creation ‘The Season Keepers,’ we knew this was the subsequent fantasy world we needed to discover at The Jim Henson Firm,” Stanford continued.
With themes of household, nature, and empowerment, creators are hopeful that Lia and Ben’s tales will affect younger viewers for the higher.
“At its coronary heart, ‘The Season Keepers’ is concerning the therapeutic of a household and of the pure world round them. And this collection about local weather hope is wrapped in an expensive whimsical world crammed with magical and never-before-seen creatures.”
Whereas it’s not but clear when the present will premiere, it’s obvious that the necessity for local weather optimism is pressing, as as we speak’s youth take care of unprecedented charges of tension concerning the setting.
Related reveals have additionally emerged throughout the globe, like Canada’s “Future Hen,” the UK’s “Octonauts,” and “Molly of Denali,” which airs on PBS within the U.S.
“The Season Keepers” may be the subsequent go-to within the lineup of climate-centric reveals for younger individuals — and attaching it to the Henson identify might preemptively launch it into the mainstream cosmos.
“We couldn’t be extra enthusiastic about becoming a member of forces with the legendary Jim Henson Firm, liable for a number of the most beloved and identified children reveals,” mentioned Orly Atlas-Katz, the CEO of Ananey Paramount, in a press release.
“On this modern-day animated fairytale, a wide ranging journey will intertwine magic, journey, and coronary heart to encourage younger viewers in all places.”
Header picture courtesy of the Jim Henson Firm
