Canada at the market – tweens live action

BERWYN’S NATURAL HEROES

Premise: Each episode finds polar bear Berwyn and his wacky gang of puppet friends off on an adventure into the wilds to explore the plight of a different endangered species and learn about the people working to save this species from extinction.

Genre: Puppetry and live action

Demographic: 8 to 12

Episodes: 13 x half-hour

Budget: Cdn$1 million (us$650,000)

Delivery: Spring 2001

Prodco: East West Media, Halifax and Charlottetown, Canada

Distributor: East West International, Halifax and Charlottetown, Canada

What’s the skinny?

Focus on protecting endangered species has universal appeal. Puppets by Terry Angus of Fraggle Rock fame.

SUPER RUPERT

Premise: Twelve-year-old Rupert Patterson uses his imagination and homemade, high-tech gadgetry to keep the streets of Boxborough and the world safe from evil. While foiling the plans of criminals with his sidekick, Russ, seventh-grader Rupert zaps into his imaginary world and transforms into animated comic book hero Super Rupert.

Genre: Live action and animation/Adventure

Demographic: 8 to 14

Episodes: 13 x half-hour

Budget: Cdn$4.8 million (us$3.1 million) overall

Delivery: Immediate

Prodco: Sullivan Entertainment, Toronto

Distributor: Sullivan Entertainment International, Toronto

What’s the skinny?

Universal appeal. Children can relate to Rupert and his fantasies. Vibrant colors with comic book animation sequences.

THE SADDLE CLUB

Premise: Three friends who share a love of horses learn about relationships and growing up. During each episode, the trio tackles life’s lessons and adventures against the backdrop of Australia’s beautiful outdoors.

Genre: Live action/Adventure

Demographic: 8 to 12 girls

Episodes: 26 x half-hour

Budget: Cdn$350,000 (us$228,000) per ep

Delivery: Immediate

Prodco: Coprod of Protocol Entertainment, Toronto, and Crawfords Australia, Melbourne

Distributor: Eaton Films (Europe), London

What’s the skinny?

Character- and relationship-driven stories based on popular series of 95 books by Bonnie Bryant. Official fan clubs, and more than 10 million copies in print in the u.s. Airing on ytv in Canada and abc in Australia. Coprod with The Black Stallion’s prodco Crawfords Australia. Original music.

WEE 3

Premise: The instinctive and spontaneous nature of four-year-old children at play, portrayed by a trio of small monsters who emerge from the nooks and crannies of a young child’s bedroom when the child is not around.

Genre: Live action and puppets

Demographic: Preschool

Episodes: 15 x 30 minutes and 30 x 15 minutes

Budget: Approximately Cdn$750,000 (us$483,000) overall

Delivery: Season one – immediate; season two –

January 2002

Prodco: Good Night Monsters Productions, Toronto

Distributor: Sextant International, Vancouver

What’s the skinny?

Full-bodied puppets. Slapstick, original songs and dance engage and entertain children. Stories presented from the point of view of four-year-olds.

MR. DAVINCI & ME

Premise: Ten-year-old Jerry develops friendship with 20-something Leo DaVinci, who claims to be a long-lost descendant of Leonardo DaVinci. With a shared natural sense of curiosity, the duo challenges each other’s perspectives and goes on adventures exploring the universe and beyond.

Genre: Live action and animation

Demographic: 7 to12

Episodes: 26 x 15 minutes

Budget: Not yet available

Delivery: In development. Series bible and pilot available.

Prodco: Sullivan Entertainment, Toronto

Distributor: Sullivan Entertainment International, Toronto

What’s the skinny?

Sparks young minds and encourages problem-solving skills. Edgy style with a combination of 60% Flash animation and 40% live action on high-definition digital film.