Preschoolers will be delighted to learn — the Teletubbies is getting a makeover.
Halifax-based DHX Media Ltd. has announced plans to produce 60 new episodes of the popular British children’s show it acquired last fall.
Giggly moppets Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po will star, as they do in the 365 existing episodes of the program which launched in 1997, but with fresher visages, said DHX president and COO Steven DeNure.
“The characters are going to be the same; we may do a little bit more (computer-generated) enhancements to the faces, but it’s going to be pretty subtle.
“It will be wide screen and HD which is something audiences expect now and we’ll be using some production techniques that were used on big films like the Harry Potter series or the Lord of the Rings series; using blue screen technology to kind of enhance the magic world that the Teletubbies live in; all in an effort to recreate in a modern way what the Teletubbies looked like when it was shot on a real set in a farmer’s field.
“For us, it’s really about updating the episodes and extending the series and making beautiful new episodes that take advantage of today’s technology. There is an ineffable quality about the Teletubbies that’s just a little hard to put your finger on.”
The original episodes were filmed outdoors at a farm in England, but after the series wrapped production several years ago, the Teletubbies house was torn down and replaced with a pond.
“We thought about recreating that, but dismissed it relatively early,” DeNure said.
Reruns of the BBC show remain a global draw. It’s seen in 120 markets in 45 different languages.
It was also the first western pre-school property to air on China’s CCTV reaching an audience of 300 million children, according to DHX.
In the late ‘90s Teletubbies drew the ire of American fundamentalist preacher Rev. Jerry Falwell who cited purple, purse-toting Tinky Winky for “role modelling the gay lifestyle.”
Falwell’s comments led both the BBC and the show’s production company to issue statements denouncing the suggestions.
The new shows, which are being produced for BBC’s CBeebies channel, should be ready for air in the UK and elsewhere by the end of 2015. Financial terms of the agreement weren’t released.
Other changes will update the characters too, though DeNure wouldn’t offer many hints. He said the proliferation of touch-screen technology in homes changes some of the dynamics between the characters.
The original Teletubbies had TVs in their tummies.
“For a kid watching that now, it’s no longer a television, it’s a screen you can hold in your hand. We think there are some really interesting creative opportunities on that front as we develop new Teletubbies,” DeNure said.
When it first aired, Teletubbies was one of the rare live-action children’s television shows that crept into the mainstream consciousness with a line of plush toys, a top-selling series of VHS tapes, and a song that reached Number One on the U.K. Singles Chart.
Teletubbies is still wildly popular on YouTube where DHX estimates that episodes and clips of the program received about 40 million views worldwide in May through both its official channel and videos posted by other users.
“It continues to be something that parents are showing to their kids and kids are asking for,” said DeNure.
DHX distributes shows through traditional broadcasters, streaming video outlets like Netflix and on its own YouTube channel where the company generates revenue through advertisements delivered by Google.
DeNure said YouTube gives the company the opportunity to earn revenue from its properties without the limitations of more traditional media.
“The whole notion of shelf space kind of goes out the window,” he said.
The company also bought the Family Channel from Bell Media, giving it a platform to create and sell more shows globally, and the Epitome group of companies, producer of the hit Degrassi TV franchise.
DHX is also producing new Inspector Gadget shows and considering the same for its other properties like Yo Gabba Gabba! and Caillou.
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