CTV and Epitome Pictures are testing the waters of animation, and on Thursday will unveil the first of two short toons from the makers of Degrassi: The Next Generation.

The two-minute short Confusionville, starring the voices of D:TNG regulars Lauren Collins and Stacey Farber, will debut in the broadband section of www.ctv.ca, to be followed next week by Punked, for which stars Aubrey Graham, Dalmar Abuzeid, Marc Donato and Melissa McIntyre were at the mic.

‘They all provided their own voice talent, and the recording sessions were really fun. The kids really got off on it,’ says Chris Jackson, director of digital media at Epitome. ‘Some of our cast have done significant voiceover work in animation and some have never done any. It was amazing to see the experience at work.’

The toons shot late last year and are the handiwork of animator James McCrimmon of Toronto’s Yowza! Animation (Titan AE, Curious George) and writer J. Torres, who coordinate with producers of the series. Degrassi: TNG is currently partway through its sixth season on CTV.

Torres also pens the ‘Extra Credit’ line of Degrassi graphic novels that were introduced last year.

‘J. has really become a close outside associate’ of the franchise, says Jackson. ‘He’s got such a great ear for Degrassi dialogue.’ The toons, books and a previously launched series of live-action webisodes are meant to fill in certain story gaps between seasons five and six.

The shorts are being billed as ‘mangasodes’ — taking their name from Japanese-style magna comic books. Epitome is waiting to gauge fan reaction before it considers making any more.

‘We’re going to wait until the fans tell us what they think,’ says Jackson.